Chinese Wedding Night Ritual

     The night after a wedding celebration is that of one filled to the brim with smiles, laughs, and love. In certain cultures though, the night after a wedding is far more important and means much more. Take the Chinese culture, for example. After a traditional Chinese wedding, the couple in question is to follow special rituals and customs throughout the duration of the night. Each ritual has a specific reason to it and symbolizes quite the lot.

     After a Chinese couple's wedding celebration ends, the couple is put into a room in which they spend the entire remainder of the night. This room will be filled with lit dragon and phoenix candles, which are believed to drive away evil spirits and ensure a healthy and undisturbed marriage. The newlyweds spend their night drinking wine from two glasses tied together by a red string. This symbolizes the formal wedding vow in Chinese culture. They also feast on all sorts of food, including half-raw dumplings. These dumplings, although not very tasty, ensure happiness and indicate family prosperity. In between it all, small games, dances, and other such activities are done by the couple throughout the entire night. All in all, the newlyweds simply enjoy each others company, which is ultimately the most important factor of the night. 

By Julia Dankov

Old, New, Borrowed, Blue

     Something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue; does this sound familiar? Most couples would say so. The tradition of having the bride wear something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue on her wedding day is quite popular. It dates back to Victorian times, when it was invented to offer a few symbolical signs of happiness, health, wealth, and more. Nowadays, as the purpose of the tradition remains the same, many couples choose to incorporate it into their wedding.

     Something old should traditionally come from a happily married woman, so as to transfer happiness and wisdom. Something new should be the wedding gown or other such apparel, symbolizing a new beginning. Something borrowed should usually be an object of gold, so as to guarantee wealth and fortune. Something blue signifies the heavens and true love. Put all together, the objects are a symbol of all that a married couple should ever hope for. This tradition is a sweet and fun way of portraying such hopes, and so it's quite popular all over the world as well as in my own family!

By Julia Dankov

The Flower Girl

     Young, innocent, whimsical, those are all words people have come to associate with flower girls. It is because of this that they symbolize so much at weddings. It is also because of this that they have been around for so long, for they have been incorporated into just as many weddings nowadays as ever. When you think about it though, you come to wonder how the tradition started in the first place.

     In medieval times, it was customary for royal weddings to have large amounts of particularly young guests. It became tradition of sorts for these young guests to bring herbs and flowers of all kinds with them to scatter before the wedding reception as a way of adding a bit of sweet and subtle beauty to the marriage ceremony. The flower girl we see nowadays mainly evolved from such traditions seen at Victorian weddings, back in the mid seventeenth to early eighteenth centuries. Then, a young girl was chosen to walk down the aisle right before the vows and exchanging of the rings wearing a white dress with a colored sash, carrying a decorative basket filled with flower petals. This same tradition is seen quite commonly all over the world now, as many people cannot help but wish to incorporate such a sweet and innocent image into their wedding celebrations.

By Julia Dankov

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Gorka!

     Most would agree that all the real fun at a Russian wedding begins after the rings have been exchanged and the vows have been spoken. It's only then that the bride, groom, and wedding guests begin their feast and celebration. It's also then that the wedding guests weave a particularly old however heartwarming tradition into the celebration. With their glasses raised, they make a special toast in honor of the bride and groom, and begin to shout "gorka", meaning bitter. They repeat this over and over until the bride and groom have shared a kiss, or a few at that.

     This tradition has been around for several centuries, however its message continues to remain the same. The tradition stands as a symbol of how any bitterness can be easily diminished by a few simple kisses, a few plain acts of love. To this day, many choose to incorporate this tradition into their wedding, and by doing so choose to symbolize something quite sweet and heartfelt.

By Julia Dankov