Eight Types Of Marriages In The Hindu Community

By Author: Ankush Singhal
Total Articles: 173
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The union between man and woman in India is approved after passing through various rites or procedures and the alliance is known as marriage. The marital bond is recognized by the society and involves social and cultural rights and obligations. Religious marriages in the Hindu community are the most common type of marriages, where the wedding is conducted in the presence of elders and the almighty god.

As per the Indian traditions, the bridegroom and the bride have to repay for their life to their forefathers, and for this they have to marry and continue the family tree. So one can relate the Indian weddings to spirituality and the emotional attachment of an individual to his/her family, which is absolutely correct in the Indian context. The husband and wife are not just partners, but are life partners and soul mates who are responsible for each other’s deed and are together in good or bad times for life.

In the Hindu matrimony, the wedding is categorized into eight types, which are:
1. Brahma Marriage: It is the most common type where the parents or the guardian ...
... of a girl chooses a bridegroom. The wedding follows the rites and rituals as described in the Vedas. The father gives away his daughter to the groom by Kanyadaan.

2. Daiva Marriage: It is a very rare type of wedding where the girl is married to the priest in lieu of performing the wedding rituals.

3. Arsha Marriage: Another unusual type of wedding, where the girl’s father receives a milking cow and a breeding bull from the bridegroom’s side.

4. Prajaapaatya Marriage: The father of the girls gives away his daughter to the groom and blesses him for the duties they will be performing together in future.

5. Gaandharva Marriage: It is the type of love marriages that were conducted earlier ages back in the ancient times. Here the couple in loves used to get married secretly in the temples without getting approvals from their parents. These types of weddings are still unacceptable by the society since these marriages were mainly based on the lustful impulses.

6. Asura Marriage: It is one of the inferior methods of wedding where the bride is bought by the groom, who voluntarily gave wealth to the bride's relatives.

7. Raakshasa Marriage: This has been the worst type of wedding where the groom would forcibly marry the bride and takes her away from her family.

8. Paishacha Marriage: Another inferior method to get married when the woman is not awake, intoxicated or mentally disturbed, it was later prohibited.

Here is a quick description of 8 types of marriages in India. However, all the marriages are not approved and permitted in Hindus. In the Hindu matrimonial, only the first four types of weddings are accepted, while the last four are believed to be inferior methods and are condemned.

Nowadays, Internet has been a powerful source to seek the matrimonial alliances community wise, such as Punjabi matrimony, Agarwal matrimony, Kayastha matrimony, Rajput matrimony, etc.