Five Days of Partying At Middle Eastern Weddings
A wedding celebration in the Middle East is unlike any other wedding you would have ever attended.
Being one of the oldest civilizations, the traditions that have been passed down from generation to generation are thousands of years old and the beauty of it is that most of these traditions are still followed very reverently by the locals even in these modern times.
One must remember however that Middle East consists of so many countries that have different cultures of their own, and therefore even in the ME, celebrations held in different countries or even regions can change from place to place.
The flavor of the Middle East however has pervaded all the regions and this is easily recognizable if you ever attend one of their wedding ceremonies.
What is even more mind boggling is that one marriage ceremony can have five separate parties, and it commences with the engagement itself.
All I can think is that it's a good thing that this particular custom stops with the Middle East because no one else can afford to throw five parties let alone one big party these days.
Like in all ME parties its a case of feasting and dancing to which everyone is invited.
The bride is said to change her attire at least five times during the party! Exactly the same things happen at the second party which is on a slightly higher scale, because this is the day the couple goes to courts to sign their contract of marriage.
Once again the bride changes her clothing five times in the night.
The party on the third night is on the day before the wedding and on a grander scale than the first two and is called the "Henna" party where the bride's hands and feet are tattooed to ward of evil.
Another tradition that takes place at this party is to hold a piece of white cloth over the heads of the couple while two lumps of sugar are ground together and a plea made to Allah to banish all evil spirits from the lives of the couple.
The bride usually wears a green ensemble on this occasion and therefore does not change her attire.
The grandest of all parties takes place on the day of the wedding itself when rings are exchanged.
This party however is the same as any wedding celebration held anywhere with feasting, drinking, singing and dancing followed by many speeches with each person trying to outdo the other in singing the praises of the couple and their respective families.
The only difference is that the guests are presented with five pieces of almond to signify health, wealth, happiness, fertility and longevity for the couple.
The last of the five parties takes place after 7 days of the marriage and is somewhat like our wedding showers.
Only women attend this party at the home of the bride where the guests bring their gifts and the mother of the bride presents the daughter with all her traditional gold jewelry, diamonds and other valuable gems.
Like I said earlier, these are only the basic customs which can vary or even be slightly different depending on the region and its culture.
One thing however is that no matter where it is held, a wedding celebration in the Middle East is an absolutely wonderful experience to have and you'll be bemused, but charmed by everything that takes place during one of these weddings.
Being one of the oldest civilizations, the traditions that have been passed down from generation to generation are thousands of years old and the beauty of it is that most of these traditions are still followed very reverently by the locals even in these modern times.
One must remember however that Middle East consists of so many countries that have different cultures of their own, and therefore even in the ME, celebrations held in different countries or even regions can change from place to place.
The flavor of the Middle East however has pervaded all the regions and this is easily recognizable if you ever attend one of their wedding ceremonies.
What is even more mind boggling is that one marriage ceremony can have five separate parties, and it commences with the engagement itself.
All I can think is that it's a good thing that this particular custom stops with the Middle East because no one else can afford to throw five parties let alone one big party these days.
Like in all ME parties its a case of feasting and dancing to which everyone is invited.
The bride is said to change her attire at least five times during the party! Exactly the same things happen at the second party which is on a slightly higher scale, because this is the day the couple goes to courts to sign their contract of marriage.
Once again the bride changes her clothing five times in the night.
The party on the third night is on the day before the wedding and on a grander scale than the first two and is called the "Henna" party where the bride's hands and feet are tattooed to ward of evil.
Another tradition that takes place at this party is to hold a piece of white cloth over the heads of the couple while two lumps of sugar are ground together and a plea made to Allah to banish all evil spirits from the lives of the couple.
The bride usually wears a green ensemble on this occasion and therefore does not change her attire.
The grandest of all parties takes place on the day of the wedding itself when rings are exchanged.
This party however is the same as any wedding celebration held anywhere with feasting, drinking, singing and dancing followed by many speeches with each person trying to outdo the other in singing the praises of the couple and their respective families.
The only difference is that the guests are presented with five pieces of almond to signify health, wealth, happiness, fertility and longevity for the couple.
The last of the five parties takes place after 7 days of the marriage and is somewhat like our wedding showers.
Only women attend this party at the home of the bride where the guests bring their gifts and the mother of the bride presents the daughter with all her traditional gold jewelry, diamonds and other valuable gems.
Like I said earlier, these are only the basic customs which can vary or even be slightly different depending on the region and its culture.
One thing however is that no matter where it is held, a wedding celebration in the Middle East is an absolutely wonderful experience to have and you'll be bemused, but charmed by everything that takes place during one of these weddings.
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