Gujarati Wedding Day

The next question I asked was, describe how the main wedding day works. He gave a very elaborate answer that made me feel like I was actually there. He described it as, “The marital process of the Gujarati culture is very long, complex process. It all starts with the groom’s side partying and dancing their way to the site of the marriage, where they are welcomed by the bride and her family. Then, the groom makes his way to the altar and is welcomed by the bride’s eldest sibling and spouse, who then conduct certain religious prayers until the bride arrives. The bride makes her way to the altar accompanied by her uncles and brothers (cousins included), and is handed off to the groom by the uncles. The main wedding ceremony lasts a couple of hours.

Together, they go through a myriad of ceremonies that mostly compromise of different prayers to the many gods of the Gujarati culture. These prayers are led by a Gujarati priest and are done to ensure good fortune for their marriage and for the rest of their lives. This ceremony includes the brides’ parents with the bride and groom partaking in the rituals as well. To finish the ceremony off, after the rituals are completed, the bride and groom walk in a circle in the altar around the ceremonial offerings, and the respective families throw roses as they complete this circle to show that the marriage is completed.” This vivid description makes me feel as if I was at the wedding, and sitting right there as it was going on. The goal of the ceremony is the same as the American culture, but the means to get it are completely different. The Gujarati wedding ceremony has a strong focus on praying to the many Gujarati gods along with celebrating one of the cultures unique

So, after Aziz answered about the wedding ceremony, I asked him about any thoughts he had on this topic. He responded with, “Being from India, I don’t have any problems with this style of marriage because I have seen arranged marriages and love oriented marriage both succeed. I believe arranged marriages are becoming less popular because more and more Indians are migrating over here to the Americas. Kids growing up in America are more likely to favor the love marriages because that is what they see on a daily basis on social media or in the entertainment industry. To me, arranged marriages only happen for those who have those Indian beliefs instilled in them deeply, and that likely diminishes with those born here in the US.” Arranged marriage is defined as the marriage orchestrated by the families of the involved parties. (Guest p. 360) His perception of arranged marriage was very interesting because he believes the American culture is dominating the way religious customs are being done here in America. Also, he says wouldn’t force any of his children into an arranged marriage, he would let them decide how they would want to get married because he felt it was their choice, and ultimately, their life. I agree wholeheartedly with Aziz and his perception of how the child should choose their path for