Our First Indian Wedding

We are profoundly grateful that our friend, Vishu G has invited us to share in his wedding to the lovely Shubhangi, in her home city of Vadodara, in the Guraji state in northwest India.

The bride’s family home was festooned with sunshades and decor in white and the orange of the best orange sherbet with vanilla ice cream. We were warmly welcomed by Shubhangi and her family. We had seen only photos of Shubhangi, and were meeting all of them for the first time. I joined the other ladies in having my hands decorated in henna – the first time for me. The young artist made a lovely and unique design on my palms. (It’s a long-lasting tint, BTW).

The first day after we arrived, the formal proceedings began with a ceremony at the home of the bride’s family. The family’s trusted priests executed a ceremony calling on their gods for an auspicious wedding. They chanted to each god in turn, burning special offerings to each to secure their blessing.

We were shepherded to and from our hotel by drivers supplied by the bride’s family. The hotel was extremely comfortable, with a nice restaurant where we breakfasted each day. It was interesting to see the variety of breakfast foods. Breakfast was also our one chance each day to eat familiar Western foods.

We hadn’t quite twigged to the fact that Vishu wanted us to be part of his family and actively participate in various ceremonies. An honor and a scary responsibility! Vishu and Shubhangi did their best to keep us moving in the right direction.

The next day we shopped for some additional clothing for the wedding. I’d been blessed by our friend, Niseema, also from India, who loaned me several outfits for the trip. Indian women dress so that their figures can only be guessed at. This did not line up with my wardrobe at all. But with Niseema’s kind sharing, I was able to dress appropriately. Being light-haired, however, I did not blend in and many Indian people are not shy about staring!

It was a bit dizzying to keep track of the various ceremonies that proceeded over the next several days! The groom or ‘boy’ received additional blessings, then ceremonies binding the families together. This latter bit is unlike our American commitments, where the purpose of the wedding is to bind two individuals together and send them off to a life together. I like the idea of a fortified family, committed to the success of their offspring!