Chitpavans Marriage Part VII

Sunmukh or looking in the daughter--in-law's face comes after the offence-taking. The women the boy's house take to the girl's a silver plate with ornaments and other plates and baskets containing a now robe, a bodice, cocoanuts, sugar, dates, almonds, turmeric, and redpowder. When they reach the girl's house the boy and girl are seated in the marriage hall on low wooden stools. The contents of the baskets and plates are shown to the women of the house, the boy's feet are washed by some elderly woman, and the girl is presented with turmeric and red-powder. The silver plate is set before the boy who takes from it a nosering and a necklace and puts them on the girl. Women relations deck the girl with other ornaments, dress her in a new robe and bodice, and fill her lap with wheat, cocoanuts, almonds, apricots, and dates, and the rest of the women are given turmeric and redpowder pieces of cocoa-kernel mixed with sugar and betel packets.

The boy's mother and grandmother are presented with robes and bodices and his sisters either with bodices or with bodices and robes. After dinner the boy's relations return. Then comes the sadi or robe-giving when women relations and friends start from the boy's house wth two plates, one with jewelry and the other with sixty-three betelnuts, turmeric roots, about a pound of rice, a cocoanut, a rupee in cash, a bodice cloth and a robe, and go to the girl's house accompanied by music. After a short time they are followed by the boy's father, brothers, and other relations and friends. When they are seated the priest sets two low wooden stools opposite each other. The boy and girl sit on the stools in a square marked by lines of quartz powder. One of the women relations places the plates which they brought near the boy, and he takes a nosering and puts it in the girl's nose and a necklace and fastens it round the girl's neck. The boy's sister decks the girl with other ornaments, and dresses her in the new bodice and robe, and fills her lap with a cocoanut, sixty-three betelnuts, turmeric, and rice grains. A married girl should not remain at her parent's more than three hours after the robe-giving.

Next comes the rasnhane or festive bathing when the girl's mother bathes the boy's mother and other kitiswomen at the girl's house. A swinging cot is hung in the back part of the house adorned with tree is set at each corner of the cot. Taking a present or amboan, the girl's mother and her kinswoman and friends go to the boy's house and seat themselves in the women's hall, and either the girl's mother or some other elderly married women goes to the boy's mother and other elderly women and asks them to come to her house and have a bath. A low stool is set in the middle of the marriage hall, the boy's mother is seated on the stool, her feet are washed by the girl's mother with milk and water, and she is presented with a yellow robe and a white silk-bordered bodice. Termeric and redpowder are handed to the boy's mother and other women and their laps are filled with rice and cocoauuts.

All start in procession with music. Before they start the washerman spreads cloths for the women to walk on and continues lifting the cloths over which they have passed and laying, them in front till the party have reached the girl's house. The washerman prevents the boy's mother putting her foot on the cloth until she gives him a present for removing the evils that overhang her head. This is called ovalni or keeping off. For this he is paid 2s. (Re.1). As she moves, wreathed poles called nakshatramalas or star-garlands and abdegir palchhatras or guardian umbrellas are held over her head, and every now and again she is seated on a high wooden stool in the street, and with other relations her lap is filled and she is presented with turmeric and redpowder. Fireworks are let off, sometimes guns are fired and torches are lighted, and musicians sound drums and fifes. With this pomp the procession passes to the girl's house. Near the door of the marriage hall the musicians stop the way and refuse to let the boy's mother enter until she pays them an ovalni or guarding fee, and she pays them about 2a. (Re. 1). Then the boy's mother refuses to enter the marriage hall unless the girl's mother pays 2s. to 10s. (Rs, 1-5).

When this is paid she goes into the hall. The girl's mother pours milk and water over the boy's mother's feet, presents her with turmeric powder and redpowder, and seats all the guests in the marriage hall. The boy's mother is seated on a low wooden stool, and the girl's mother, bringing a basket of rice, pours it over her head, and while she bends in getting up throws a robe over her shoulders. Then a square is traced in the marriage hall and a low wooden stool is set in the square and a bangle-seller is asked to come with glass bangles of different colours and kinds. When the boy's mother has taken her seat the bangle-seller is asked to sit and the boy's mother throws a sash over him. Then he asks her what bangles she likes and takes her hand to try the size. But she refuses to let him put any glass bangles on her wrist unless she first gets gold bracelets. If the girl's famliy is rich they yield to her wish; if they are poor she has to be content with glass bangles. Then all the other women are presented with glass bangles. The cost to a rich family varies from £.5 to£ 10 (Rs.50-100), to a middle-class family from £.2 to £.2½ (Rs.20-25) and to a poor family from 10s. to £.1 (Rs.5-10). Then the guests, beginning with the boy's mother, are rubbed with spices and oils and bathed by the girl's mother and by female servants. After the guests have been bathed the girl's mother is rubbed with sweet scented powders and oils and her head with scented powders and cocoa-milk. She is seated on the swinging cot and a women standing near swings the cot, and hence the name the swinging bath or jhokenhane. Sweetmeats are served, betel is banded, and the guests withdraw.