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The Sikh
ceremony begins as the bride, the groom, relatives, and friends bow before
the Guru Granth and congregate in His midst.
Ardas
(Prayer) and
Wedding Sermon
The couple
and their parents stand up and an Ardas is offered seeking God’s blessings.
The Granthi, the person in charge of the ceremony, addresses the couple and
explains the duties of their new life. The groom is to vow fidelity to the
wife, while the bride is to vow fidelity to her husband. The husband
protects the life and honor of his wife, and in turn she remains content
with the lot of her husband. The Guru is an eternal witness to their
vows. The couple signifies their consent by bowing before the Guru
Granth.
Lavan
(Wedding Hymns)
The
groom’s scarf is placed in the hands of the bride. The Granthi then reads
the lavan—four nuptial stanzas accompanied by musical instruments. At the
end of reading each lavan, the groom followed by the bride |
walks around the Guru Granth in a clockwise direction while ragis
(singers) sing the hymn. The four nuptial stanzas explain in detail the
development stages of love between husband and wife and an individual
and God.
In the first stage, the Guru urges the couple to perform duties
to the family and the community and to practice Simran (meditating upon
God’s name). Simran washes away past sins and brings stability to mind.
In the
second stage, egotism and all fears vanish and one can recognize God’s
presence in everyone and everything.
In the third
stage, one begins to feel Bairaag, an intense longing for a complete
union with the Beloved. The final stage is Harmony, reached by one
whose mind, through Simran, has gained stability and for whom
remembrance of the Lord has become the sweetest of all pleasures. The
stage of Harmony is of complete oneness. The bride and the groom feel
and think alike and both completely identify with each other; they
become one soul in two bodies.
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