Personal Journey: A Luxury Persian/Indian Wedding at The St. Regis Bal Harbour
PS Sabati
The personal journey, in terms of experience, usually means that the writer is often either a participant or an observer…
Sometimes weddings, usually considered celebrations of future joy and happiness, can be to some, poignant remembrances of things past, of promises unkept, forgotten, or of partners passed. But this one, that took place on September 1-2, two days, in Florida, seemed to combine a tinge of sadness (the groom’s mother passed away recently) with great amounts of expressed joy.
On the Mandap, or alter, a large image of the groom’s mother in a photograph was placed alongside her living husband, the father of the groom. So, through this image, her prescient presence was still felt. Sitting across from the father and image of the mother of the groom, were the parents of the bride. Sitting in front of both sets of parents were the bride and groom. And above all of them were the ceiling décor of roses and falling flower branches.
It was a pious, meaningful and to the Hindus, a holy ceremony, defining the serene rituals of a true Indian wedding. There was a call from the Pandit, or the Hindu Priest, to the spirits of the grandparents, the great grandparents, and all others in the groom’s and bride’s bloodlines to be there in spirit, blessing the couple with happiness and a long life. Then, there was the Granthi Bandhan - the tying of the marital knot, the lighting of the Sacred Fire, as they offered prayers to Agni, the God of Fire, to dispel all darkness, and ignorance, bringing light to the couple. The couple circle the Holy Fire, then take Seven Steps around it, as they commit to duty, prosperity, and responsibility.
Finally, the Sindoor and Manga-Sutra Ceremony was completed, announcing the bride and groom were now man and wife. For each step, there were prayers, and blessings. There seemed nothing secular about it, and for the hours we as audience reflected on the ritual being presented; we became part of the process, praying for their happiness for the future, hoping for the best, as, oddly, the rain outside from tatters of the hurricane, became less forceful, as if, even from the outside, the love inside conquered the weather outside, as we all pondered that love, at least for this magical time, conquered all. We were reminded of the great Indian poet Rabindranath Tagore’s lines in one of his devotional poems, and, especially after seeing this ceremony, the poetry took on a more profound meaning: