The Jain 1992 04 Special Issue

Author(s): Natubhai Shah, Vinod Kapashi
Publisher: UK Jain Samaj Europe

Page 32

THE
=Jain
4. MARRIAGE PROCESSION.
Bathed, dressed in his best clothes and ornaments, with a tilak on his forehead, the bridegroom worships the divinities and together with his relatives starts the journey towards the place where the ceremony is to be held. Traditionally he would ride on a horse or elephant accompanied by musicians and singers.
Nowadays, the ceremony is performed in a hall, and the groom's party go there by car. However, for the last 100 yards or so it has been the custom for them to walk ceremonially towards the front door of the hall. The priest who is to perform the whole ceremony says the mantra.
The mantra praises Lord Adinath, the first Tirthankara, the originator of the arts, customs and institutions of humankind.
He is the shelter, welfare, remover of all miseries, all sins, the one who is the essence of the universe, without form, without bonds, without fault. He is the one who has risen above mind, speech and body, one without material limits.
May the teaching of Lord Adinath give you all peace, contentment, health, happiness, friendship and all prosperity.
The bride's party has already arrived at the hall to welcome the groom's party.
The groom comes to the front door. He stands on a small stool and the bride's mother. together with other ladies, welcomes him with symbolic gestures or the waving of a lamp (arti) and puts a red cloth or garland around him. It is, however, the custom nowadays for the bride to welcome the groom first with a garland.
The groom then enters the hall, stepping on and breaking two earthenware bowls which have been placed in his path. This guards against the influence of evil spirits during the ceremony. He is then taken in to the mandap or chori. Two seats are placed in the chori and the groom sits on the left hand side. His bride now arrives with due ceremony at the mandap and takes her scat facing him.
32
5. AUSPICIOUS PRAYERS
Lord Mahavir is the auspicious one. Gautam is the auspicious one. Sthulibhadra is the auspicious one. The Jain religion is the auspicious one.
Let Lord Adinath, other Tirthankaras, Bharat and other Chakravartis and all Vasudevas and Prativasudevas protect me.
Let fathers of Tirthankaras like Nabhi and Siddhartha
who have ruled their empires justly protect me.
Let mothers like Maheshvari and Trishla who have spread joy everywhere in three worlds protect me.
Let the omniscient disciples like Pundarik, Indrabhuti protect me.
Let the virtuous noble ladies (Satis) like Brahmi and Chandan bala protect me.
Let the goddesses of the Jain-Sashan like Chakreshwari and Sidhayika, who can destroy all the obstacles protect me and give me the fruits of victory.
Let the brave Yakshas who are capable of destroying all obstacles of all Jains - Karpadi and Matang - protect
me.
6. HASTA MELAP
After a series of prayers, the priest will place a single garland of cloth around the couple's necks. Then the bride's parents wash the groom's feet, wipe them and put flowers on his feet. Then, the priest will put the palm of the bride's hand on the groom's palm into which a small amount of sandalwood paste and other auspicious things will have been placed.
The priest recites "Aum Arham. O Jiva, you are the one with soul. May you two become partners with the same time, mind, karma, shelter, body, action, love, desire, wishes, joy, sorrow, longevity, with the same hunger and thirst. May you have similar progress; may you enjoy the same good things; words, forms, scents, touch, ashrava, bandha, samvara, nirjara, moksha (effects of Karma). May you obtain a lasting relationship and unity by way of this joining of your
hands".
7. TORAN PRATISTHA (Honouring the arch of the Mandap goddess Lakshmi).
The priest gives some rice, sandalwood and flowers into the hands of the bride's parents and says this mantra;