Misri
A Hindu Wedding is not simply an exchange of vows and rings. It includes a number of religious rites before and during the nuptials, which are performed in the presence of family deities. These represent the importance of the bond between a husband and wife. A Hindu marriage or «Vivaha» is incomplete without the blessings of a spiritual or divine element.
All prayers in Hindu ceremonies start by invoking the blessings of Lord Ganesha (Lord Ganesha unlike all the other Hindu deities has an elephant head as a result of the unfortunate conditions explaining Lord Ganesh’s elephant head – his own father axed off his son’s head and then replaced it with that of the first animal he saw – the Hindu devout shows his lack of preference between the Lords by making his preliminary prayers to Lords, Ganesha). Seven married ladies (portraying 7 forms of God for each day of the week) use red powder to make a Ganesh sign (clockwise swastika) on a pot of misri (crystalline sugar) asking him to bless the couple and make the ceremony run well. The ladies also sew designs on a white piece of cloth to ward of any Nazar (evil eyes cast) that may come upon the happy occasion. This cloth is worn by the couple on the wedding day. (Note some couples leave the preparation of the white cloth until the Ghari puja.)
A puja is done by the couple and their parents welcoming God in different forms and asking for his blessings. They pray to Lord Ganesha, Varun Devta, Laxmi & Narayan, the Gods on governing the 9 planets, and Om (i.e. Triumverate Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva).
Garlands are exchanged by the couple in order to welcome each other into their lives. This part of the ceremony is known as the Varmala.
As gold lasts for ever, rings made of gold are exchanged by the couple in order to represent a long married life. It is believed that the fourth finger of the hand has a vein leading directly to the heart. Hence the groom wears the ring on the fourth finger of his right hand and the bride wears hers on the fourth finger of her left hand in order to form a complete heart.
The groom’s family places a basket of fruits, clothes, cosmetics or ornaments on the girl’s lap (in her jholi) to represent their acceptance into her family and bestowing her with happiness and prosperity.
The groom’s family gives a verbal promise of marriage and feeds misri (crystalline sugar) to the girls family to confirm the engagement. The eating of sweet is considered auspicious by the Hindus and thus is eaten on all happy occasions.