Balinese Hindu Wedding Ceremony
- Melisandra Yunita
- Feb 8, 2021
- 4 min read
Updated: Mar 21, 2023
A truly remarkable wedding must be hosted in an exotic location and must be a very special occasion.
This explains why so many Westerners decide to be married in Bali. It has mystique, romance, and a distinctive culture. Based on Balinese Hindu rites, the Balinese Wedding Ceremony is a distinctive wedding procession.
Humans will never forget the Balinese Hindu Wedding Ceremony, which includes Hindu wedding customs, traditional laws, and the ideal day determined by the Balinese Hindu Calendar. During the procession, the newlyweds will wear stunning uniforms that have all been locally modified. Marriage is one of the most significant events in a Balinese person's life, particularly for Hindu Balinese, since it signifies the end of the Brahmacari stage of life and the beginning of a new one.
The medik procedure, in which the bride's family meets with the groom's family to ask the bride if she wants to marry the groom, is the first step in the Balinese Hindu Wedding Ceremony process. If the answer is affirmative, the bride and groom will visit the home of the bride's family. The couple will then perform a wedding ceremony where many members of both families, friends, and the villagers will attend (either that day or a few days later).
The newlyweds and their family bid their goodbyes at the bride's home after the wedding ceremony. In Bali, the guy accepts responsibilities as a member of society when he marries. He is required to carry out social obligations, such as participating in community events and attending temple rites, and he has the right to speak in Banjar (community body) meetings. By doing this, he will gain the respect of the other Banjar members and be given the chance to assume more responsibility inside the Banjar.
Couples' marriage will not be recognized in society if it is carried out without a traditional sacred ceremony according to Hindu religious beliefs. Additionally, the couple will be ostracized from their village.
There are three types of Balinese Hindu Wedding Styles in Bali:
1. Ngerorod (elopement):
The most typical type of interracial relationship involves a man and a woman planning to meet somewhere they won't be seen by the girl's parents and spending the night at a friend's house. It is made sure that there is enough publicity so that people are informed of what is happening. In these situations, the girl was not permitted to go back to her parents and resume her normal life; yet, the girl's parents were typically unsurprised. They however put on a big pretend of rage against the son and his family for attempting to harm their daughter.
2. Memadik (more revered):
This type of marriage takes place in Bali and involves the boy's parents and other family members respectfully visiting the girl's parents and requesting their daughter. Due to the numerous ceremonies and offerings, this process cost a lot of money, but it also received much more support from the girls' parents than covert, nocturnal elopements did. From the man's perspective, though, it was riskier because his future wife's parents had to approve.
3. Nyentana
is a Balinese system of marriage in which the guy moves permanently into the home of his bride. He then becomes a member of the girl's family. The man was essentially adopted into the family to carry on the male line at a time when the girl's parents had no sons to care for their property. In this instance, the boy's parents must provide their approval.
A priest conducts a brief ceremony called "mekala-kalaan," which is comparable to a tiny civil wedding in the west, the morning following the proposal or elopement. The pair is dressed in only the most basic traditional Balinese attire because this is a very private event. Then they were formally wed.
Frequently, the groom's family would hold a more formal, ornate Balinese wedding ceremony, with everyone dressed in traditional Balinese attire and a priest officiating. The groom typically hosts gatherings for the couple's acquaintances who are not invited to the formal wedding. Western-style reception is used.
The boy's family paid a visit to the girl's family, at whose home the Ketipat Pillow ceremony was taking place, three days after the wedding procession. The two families merge at this event. In the hopes that the sperm and egg will be free from the devil's control and that he won't interfere with the embryo's development, spells are chanted and offerings are made to purify the sperm and egg.
The Balinese royal era had a highly rigid marriage system back then. To preserve the integrity of the caste system, only couples from the same caste were permitted to get married. Anyone who disobeyed this marriage law was banished from their town and frequently forced to spend the remainder of their days in the jungle. The caste system no longer controls the Balinese, though they still hold it in high regard, and more latitude is given. We will feel lucky and special to witness this one-of-a-kind and lovely Balinese wedding while on a Bali tour.
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