With the beats of the DJ playing the latest tunes, the beating of dhols and nagadas , the well-festooned stage with all sorts of enhancing the creativity of the planners, the scrumptious creative catering, the quirky wedding decor, passionate photographers, the matching couple couture we have come a long way to make the special even truly a larger than life extravaganza. Amidst all these something that is still existent among mounting trends of an Indian Hindu wedding is “ Saptapadi” generally called as the “sath pheras”. These seven vows are the core of the Hindu weddings without which the wedding is incomplete.
But like all the many wedding traditions this ritual has also lost little essence as it is commonly observed in marriage as it is only considered as a way to solemnize the weddings instead of deeply understanding the meaning of these pheras. The priests are seen chanting a few mantras while the bride and groom take the vows around the holy fire (which signifies the energy and the god being the witness in the union). Each phera around the holy fire holds its significance and it’s important to know the true meaning of these as it’s good to know what promises a couple is making to each other to keep the wheels of married life rotating.
The First Phera: Stipulation & Nourishment
Groom’s Promise: “Om esha ekapadi bhava iti prathaman”.
The groom promises to his bride which means that he will always love, cherish and nourish his wife and children and also wishes his wife to love, support and provide food to the family.
Bride’s Promise: “Dhanam dhanyam pade vadet”.
The Bride promises to honor the groom and share the responsibilities of the family and provide food, love and support to him.
The Second Phera: Peaceful Life and Good Wealth
Groom’s Promise: “Om oorje jara dastayaha” .
The groom promises to support his wife in ups and down forever and will protect the family
Bride’s Promise: “Kutumburn rakshayishyammi sa aravindharam”
The bride vows to stand side by side with her husband in protecting their family and home.
The Third Phera: Prosperity
Groom’s Promise: “Om rayas Santu joradastayaha”
The groom promises to work for the prosperity of his family. The groom also promises to be faithful to his wife and lead a spiritual life.
Bride’s Promise: “Tava bhakti as vadedvachacha”
The bride promises to be faithful to her husband and to support him.
The Forth Phera: Family
Groom’s Promise: “Om mayo bhavyas jaradastaya ha”
The Groom promises he will provide paramount support to their parents. He declares his good fortune and sancity in life at marrying the bride. He prays to God to bless them with a blissful life and good children.
Bride’s Promise: “Lalayami cha pade vadet.”
The Bride promises to love her husband in every way and dresses herself with jewellery and flowers to please her husband.
The Fifth Phera: Prayer For offsprings
Groom’s Promise: “Om prajabhyaha Santu jaradastayaha”
The Groom prays that the couple be blessed with every happiness and also their loved ones live long and enriched life. May God bless them with obedient, righteous and brave children. The groom also promises to nourish their relationship with love and respect.
Bride’s Promise: “Arte arba sapade vadet”
The bride promises to stand by this side at all times in joy as well as grief. She vows to trust him and support him in his responsibilities towards the children.
The Sixth Phera: Health
Groom’s Promise: “Rutubhyah shat padi bhava”.
The groom wishes for a happy and harmonious life together. He wishes for good health for them.
Bride’s Promise: – “Yajne home shashthe vacho vadet”.
The bride promises to be always by his side and will participate in all her endeavours.
The Seventh Phera: Friendship
Groom’s Promise: “Om sakhi jaradastayahga.”
The Groom promises that with the last step together from now on they will be a single entity and will be devoted towards his wife. They will be incomplete without each other
Bride’s Promise: “Attramshe sakshino vadet pade.”
The bride declares that she is elated on being his wife. She promises to be truthful and wishes for a happy life together. She pledges that all she along with her husband will do all the possible things to keep up the promises that have been made during the holy ritual.
These Seven Vows are not merely promised, but these seven vows are the seven wheels of married life which help to make the journey of married life a smooth ride to take on. These seven vows are the recipe book of what we call “A Happy Married Life. The mantra of a successful relationship is love, trust, respect and support and this is what these seven vows that we take are all about. So we must keep these seven wheels safe to enjoy the ride. Little roadblocks may come our way but it’s all about moving on together and the roadblocks make us stronger and a little bump is sure to bring you closer.
