 - Last login: 7 weeks agoPersiana
- Shireen (Shirin) is a 32 year old married woman from Shiraz, Iran.
- Likes 4,942 pages, 229 videos, 387 photos • 762 fans • Received 261 reviews
- Member since Jan 04, 2006
I'll be posting links and photos of Iran's archaeological and historic treasures. I think they are fascinating and belong to all humanity. Viewing them teaches one a great deal about the history, beliefs, arts and ways of living of ancient people. 11 12 15 17 19 22 25 27 30..33
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Culture of Iran: Iranian Marriage Ceremony, Its History &Symbolism
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Nov 2, 2006 6:12pm
2 reviews
•http://www.iranchamber.com/culture/ar...
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Iranian Aghd (wedding) ceremony in a historical Persian Miniature painting (likely a 17th century)
The basic rituals of wedding ceremony in Iran has remained the same for over two thousand years. It has retained its uniquely Zoroastrian traditions and identity for ages.
Iranian culture is rich with symbolism and so is the wedding ceremony. Everything is symbolic; when the bride enters the room she has her veil covering her face. Once the bride sits beside the bridegroom she removes her veil so that a groom's view of her is a reflection in the mirror. A special wedding fabric, is spread before the mirror and candelabras (to represent "light and fire" two very important elements in the ancient Zoroastrian religion) laden with many symbolic foods and items, including: seven herbs to drive away evil spirits; pastries and flatbread with sayings written in saffron ink (to bring prosperous feasts); a basket of decorated eggs and a basket of decorated almonds, walnuts and hazelnuts in the shell (to symbolize fertility); a basket of apples and pomegranates (to bring health and happiness), rose water (to perfume the matrimony), and the Koran (to bless the couple).
You may be interested to read the full details at Iranian marriage ceremony, its history & symbolism and here too.
First the groom is asked if he wishes to enter into the marriage contract. Then the bride is asked the same question. Here, the bride plays shy and makes the groom wait by not answering the question. The lady guests scream in the background, "SHE IS NOT HERE!", "SHE'S GONE TO PICK FLOWERS!" or "THE BRIDE IS THINKING!". She remains silent and doesn't answer until it is asked a third time. She then says a shy "yes!" on the third try and they are pronounced husband and wife.
After the contract is signed, two happily married women hold a silk fabric over the couple while a third scrapes sugar loaves, causing sweetness to "rain down" on them. Two edges of the same fabric are symbolically sewn together with needle and thread "to tie the wedding knot". Another woman sews a piece of cloth with seven threads to figuratively "sew up the mother-in-law's tongue." Next, the couple hold their right hands together, and feed each other some honey "for a better and sweeter life".
After the ceremony, there are lavish feasts, dancing, music and entertainers. Before they enter their home, the bride kicks over a bowl of water placed in the doorway "for good luck and safety". A friendly competition starts between the couple as the bride tries to enter the house, in the process stepping on her husband's feet. This makes the bride "the boss in the household."
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