Indian weddings are stunning productions, but they’re also known for being very spiritual. One of the religious rituals performed before the wedding day is a puja by both the bride and groom. Each is done separately with only the bride’s family present, and the groom with his family. We’ll discuss the bridal puja traditions here.
Puja is a religious offering to a deity, spirit, or divine presence and can be facilitated for many occasions, before beginning a new venture in life. The bride can perform the puja in a temple or at a home, as long as she has a shrine set up with elements that represent the deity, i.e. prints, sculptures, portraits, elements of nature. Size or grandeur are not deciding factors in the importance of the shrine. You can offer fruit, food, flowers to honor the gods; incense is lighted and a lit lamp, aarti, is waved in front of the deity. Before you invoke the spirits, one must be in a mental and emotional state of joy and serenity, as you would want to receive the spiritual blessing in a pleasant environment.
Photos provided by various sources. Thank you to Gsravya Blogspot, Logukrishnan.net, 14gaaam
