Marriage

Author(s): Natubhai Shah
Publisher: UK Jain Academy

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recites a Veda mantra to invoke the blessings of Maha Vishnu. Through these seven mantras, he asks Maha Vishnu to follow in the footsteps of his wife and bless her with food, strength, piety, progeny, wealth, comfort and health. At the conclusion of the seven steps, he addresses his wife with a moving statement from the Vedas summarized below: Dear Wife! By taking these seven steps, you have become my dearest friend. I pledge my unfailing loyalty to you. Let us stay together for the rest of our lives. Let us not separate from each other ever. Let us be of one mind in carrying out our responsibilities as householders (grihasthas). Let us love and cherish each other and enjoy nourishing food and good health. Let us discharge our prescribed Vedic duties to our elders, ancestors, rishis, creatures, and gods. Let our aspirations be united. I will be the Saaman and may you be the Rk (Saaman here refers to the music and Rk refers to the Vedic text that is being cast into music). Let me be the upper let you be the Bhumi or Mother Earth. I will be the Sukla or life force and may you be the bearer of that Sukla. Let me be the mind and let you be the speech. May you follow me to conceive children and gain worldly as well as spiritual wealth. May all auspiciousness come your way. This is a very important vow where bride and groom promise each other that they will not forsake each other in this world or the worlds above.
The Seven Marriage Vows The couple takes seven vows which are read out to the congregation by the priest:
+ They vow to remain together for the rest of their lives + The promise to embrace each other's families as their own + They vow to remain faithful to one another + They promise to support each other in times of trouble and rejoice together in times of
happiness + They promise to share each other body and soul + They acknowledge God's presence as a witness to their marriage
+ They vow to share religious duties, financial wealth and family duties. This followed by a prayer to make their union a permanent one. Step 10: Stepping on the grinding stone After pradhaana homam, the husband holds the right toe of his wife and gently lifts her foot and places it on a flat granite grinding stone known asma in Sanskrit. The stone stands at the right side of the sacred fire. The husband recites a Veda mantra when he places the right foot of his wife on the stone: May you stand on this firm stone. May you be rock-firm during your stay on this grinding stone. May you stand up to those who oppose you while you carry out your time-honored responsibilities as a wife sanctioned by the Vedas and tradition. May you develop tolerance to your enemies and put up a fair fight to defend your legitimate rights as the head of the household in a firm manner, equal to the steady strength of this grinding stone.
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