Sarmi and Zach’s wedding was split over two different days. First, they had the traditional Hindu ceremony, complete with all the traditions. It was fascinating to listening to the priest’s chanting as the words flowed into a melody. All of the various parts of a Hindu ceremony are rich with symbolize, like the varmala (a sacred string) that was placed around Sarmi and Zach’s necks to protect them from evil influences or when Zach put sindoor (a red powder) on Sarmi’s forehead to symbolize their union and his love and promise to protect her.
For their American ceremony, only the henna on Sarmi’s hands and the holy threads on their wrists showed a hint of their Hindu ceremony. They choose a very western-world location: a golf course country club. Even though the rain kept the ceremony indoors at the last moment, the day turned out beautifully.
We loved being a part of both ceremonies. It was a riveting look inside another culture’s traditions, which was both educational and entertaining.