Bengali Wedding Traditions & Rituals: Everything You Need To Know

Pre-Wedding Ceremonies:

• Aiburo Bhaat: This is a ritual where the bride, usually dressed in a yellow saree, is treated to a feast by her maternal relatives. It is a way of celebrating the bride’s last meal at her maternal home before the wedding.
• Dodhi Mongal: On the morning of the wedding day, the bride and groom have a ceremonial bath with turmeric paste and mustard oil. It is believed to purify and beautify them for the auspicious occasion.

Gaye Holud:

The Gaye Holud ceremony is a festive event where turmeric paste is applied to the bride and groom’s skin. Family and friends take turns applying the paste to their faces, hands, and feet, symbolizing blessings for a happy and prosperous married life. Traditional songs, dances, and music are an integral part of this joyous occasion.

Wedding Ceremony:

• Bor Jatri and Boron: The groom, accompanied by his family and friends (the Bor Jatri), arrives at the wedding venue. The bride’s family receives them with a traditional welcome called Boron, where the groom is greeted with flower garlands and offered sweets and betel leaves.
• Mala Bodol: The bride, adorned in a beautiful saree, enters the wedding venue accompanied by her brothers or close relatives. The groom welcomes her by exchanging flower garlands, symbolizing their acceptance of each other as life partners.
• Saat Paak and Subho Drishti: The bride sits on a wooden seat called piri, and the groom holds her hand while they take seven circles around a holy fire. This ritual, known as Saat Paak, signifies their union and commitment to each other. Subho Drishti follows, where the couple looks at each other through a mirror, reflecting their first glance as a married couple.
• Sampradan: The bride’s father places her hand on the groom’s hand, symbolizing the formal handover of his daughter’s responsibility to the groom.
• Yagna: A sacred fire is lit, and the priest performs religious rituals and chants mantras. The couple offers ghee and rice into the fire, seeking blessings for a blissful and prosperous married life.
• Sindoor Daan and Ghomta: The groom applies vermilion (sindoor) on the bride’s hair parting, symbolizing her marital status. The bride then covers her head with a new saree brought by the groom, known as Ghomta.
• Anjali: The couple offers prayers and flowers to the deities, seeking blessings for their new journey together.

Post-Wedding Rituals:

• Basar Ghar: After the wedding ceremony, the newly married couple visits the bride’s ancestral home for a meal. The bride’s family welcomes them with a warm reception and celebrates their arrival.
• Bidaai: The Bidaai is an emotional ritual where the bride bids farewell to her family and leaves for her new home with the groom. It is a heartfelt moment filled with tears, blessings, and good wishes from her loved ones.
• Bou Bhaat: Bou Bhaat is the first meal that the bride prepares and serves at her in-laws’ home. It is a way for her to showcase her culinary skills and be welcomed into her new family.