Specialties of the Arya Samaj Wedding

Swami Dayanand Saraswati founded the Arya Samaj in1875 on the tenets of Vedic Hindu philosophy. The Samaj is based on progressive philosophical teachings which sought to do away with the Hindu orthodox tenets and malpractices. It considers Vedas as sacrosanct and despite being centuries old, these are still believed to be the chief source of knowledge and wisdom for the Hindus. It is involved in a number of activities aimed at reforming the societal set up. The Arya Samaj Wedding ritual is one of its many such reformist activities which seeks to do away with the dowry system, caste system as well as child marriage.

The Arya Samaj wedding, based on Vedic rituals, is special in many ways. Some of these are outlined below:

1. These are highly simplistic in nature and shorn of any hyperbole which is commonly associated with the Hindu marriages. The whole process of the wedding takes only an hour or so to accomplish.
2. The Hindus, Sikhs, Jains and Buddhists are allowed to wed in this institution. The people belonging to other religions need to first convert to Hinduism before they can get married as per its rituals. This is done by a process called Shuddi or purification before being initiated into Hinduism.
3. There are no elaborate ceremonies and even the idols are not worshipped since it does not believe in idol worship.
4. It considers all the days to be equally auspicious. Therefore, the marriage can be conducted on any day of the week at the designated venues.

However, the marriages conducted are in accordance with the laws of the land.

The Arya Marriage Validation Act XIX of 1937 forms the basis of these marriages. The legal age requirements of 21 years for males and 18 years for females are followed. Therefore, there is a need to bring the documentary proof of the date of birth from each of the couple. In case of marriage of a divorcee or widower, the divorce decree and the death certificate of the spouse is required respectively.Since it is devoid of the elaborate ceremonies and the display of splendor and grandeur, there are huge savings to be made on the ceremony. It believes that the marriages are made in heaven and that these shall be solemnized with the simple rituals. The money saved can be used in many other productive ways.

Arya Samaj Delhi wedding has provided the avenue of marriages to those couples who are marrying against the deeply entrenched orthodox beliefs of their families and societies. It is also where the not so well-off couple can get married with due procedures of law and as per the Vedic rituals. At times, a number of marriages of the orphans and other such distressed and destitute people are organized in a single day giving them fresh hopes and a new meaning to their lives.

The noble tradition of the Arya Samaj wedding has always given an altogether new lease of life to the people who are down the societal ladder due to their humble origins and financial backwardness.