विवाह

Vivaha, the fifteenth samskara, is marriage, and it opens the householder stage of life. In the sequence of sixteen, it is the one that joins two families and establishes the household from which the later duties of raising children, hospitality and ancestral rites are carried out. The tradition describes the aim as a partnership for dharma, artha and kama, with moksha as the ultimate horizon, and the sanctity of the vow is tied to fire as witness.

The core of the ceremony is stable across regions even though the surrounding customs differ greatly. Its core elements are kanyadaan, the giving of the bride, the saptapadi of seven steps with seven vows around the sacred fire, the tying of the mangalsutra, the sindoor, the lajja-homa in which the bride offers puffed rice, and circumambulation of Agni. For scripture, tradition points to the Vivah Sukta, Rig Veda 10.85, and to the Asvalayana Grihya Sutra. In many communities the saptapadi is regarded as the step that makes the marriage binding.

Regional wedding practice is extremely varied. A Bengali wedding includes subho drishti and sindoor khela, a Tamil wedding the oonjal swing and the tying of the thali, and a Gujarati or Punjabi wedding features its own rituals and songs. The scale also varies, from a simple temple ceremony to a multi-day celebration. Families adjust the length of the Sanskrit mantras, often with explanations for guests, and the rite is now increasingly shared across the diaspora with translated vows.