International Research Journal of Social Sciences_____________________________________ ISSN 2319–3565 Vol. 3(2), 1-8, February (2014) Int. Res. J. Social Sci. International Science Congress Association 1 Traditional Marriage Customs in Rajasthan, India: A Study of Kayad Village of Ajmer District Reena Roy, Shoji Lal Bairwa 1 , Suresh Bairwa 2 and Lokesh Kumar Meena 1 1 Department of Agricultural Economics, BHU, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, INDIA 2 College of Home Science, Swami Keshwanand Rajasthan Agricultural University, Bikaner, INDIA Available online at: www.isca.in, www.isca.me Received 2013, revised 2013, accepted 2014 Abstract The present research study was conducted in Kayad village of Ajmer district of Rajasthan in the year 2013. This research article focused on the traditional marriage customs in kayad village and discusses various types of marriages, attitudes, perception about marriage in Rajasthan. Data were collected by personal interview and group discussions from each family of both Hindu and Muslims cast residing in the village and have different marriage rules, regulation and customs on the basis of their religion. In the study, observed a change in the stereotype thoughts of people that they prefer education instead of proposing early marriage for girls and now priorities of both bridegrooms and brides are getting shared and people are favour for intellectual and emotional relationships rather than lifetime compromises of marriage in kayad village. Keywords: Marriage customs, hindu religion, muslims, arrange marriage and kayad village. Introduction Marriage is an important event of one’s life. The rules, regulations and culture involved in a marriage vary according to their social status. The deity of fire has described the various forms of marriage in Agni Purana which are based on the social status of an individual. The process of marriage is a very good indicator of social trends. Marriage defined in many ways such as an institution, a gamble, the bedrock of procreation of family life, a life sentence or a heaven-programmed union is an ideal medium to gauge the value shifts in a society 1 . In the 1950s’ (i.e. before pre independence era), some of the important considerations in arranged marriage in India were that the girl and the boy should be of same caste, religion and the family of the bridegroom should be economically rich enough to support the bride. Arrange marriages are becoming flexible, adaptable based on contemporary, practical and realistic factors 1 . A woman can be given away only once in marriage. The Purana mentions that a woman can marry for a second time only under certain conditions i.e. moral degradation of husband, his death, renunciation by him of all worldly pursuits, his resorting to a monastery. A widow woman can marry with the brother of his husband or an alternative she may marry anyone of her choice. The deity of fire also mentioned in his description of the various rites involved in marriage that a man can not marry with a woman of same Gotra (family linage) or from a family acknowledging the leadership of the same Rishi as his own. According to the holy texts there are eight different types of Hindu marriages prevailed in ancient India and all have religious procedures. Among all, the last four types of marriages (Gandharva Marriage, Asura Marriage, Rakshasa Marriage, Paishacha Marriage) are not religiously defined and most of the times were condemned, while the remaining types of marriages (Brahma Marriage, Daiva Marriage, Arsha Marriage, Prajapatya Marriage) are not condemned. In India, the Hindu wedding takes place inside a canopy called a mandap. The bride is necessarily painted in elaborate mehndi (henna) designs covering her hands and feet before the ceremonies begin. The ceremonies like Ganesh Poojan, Arrival of the Vara Yatra, Grahashanti, Kanyadan, Hastamilap, Wedding Ceremony, Dhruvadarshan, bidhai and vadhupravesh are most popular ceremonies in the Hindu marriages and meant to honor the love couple's and ensure the success of their marriage by invoking the blessings of deities and joining the families in celebration. It is the bride's father who promises his daughter's hand to the groom, a ritual known as the Kanya-dhan. In India, Muslims generally follow similar marriage customs those are practiced by Muslims of the Middle East, which are based on islamic convention. These Islamic traditions were first handed down to medieval Indians by propagators of the Islamic religion that involved sultans and Moghul rulers at the time 2 . On the evening of the wedding day, a bridal service known as the henna ceremony is held at the bride’s home which is sometimes done before two days of actual wedding. During this bridal preparation ritual, both turmeric paste and mehndi is placed on the bride’s skin by mehndiwali (a female relative) for the purpose of improving and brightening her complexion. In India, muslim marriage ceremony is also preceded by a marriage convoy which known as the groom’s baraat and from this convoy arrives the groom, who will share a sherbet drink with a brother of bride at the marriage place ceremony which could either be at the house of either groom or bride. The drinking event happens as the sister of the bride does some tomfooleries