Arranged Marriages In India
India is one of the world's oldest civilizations, which is filled with rich cultural, historical, and spiritual customs. The essence of religion prescribes a form of worship and guides daily conduct. Hinduism is the largest sector of religion believed by the East Indian culture; other branches are Islam, Christianity, Buddhism, and Zoroastrian (Srivastava 1995). The general basis of Hinduism practices is implemented throughout most of the East Indian people. One of the most significant beliefs, exercised within the Hindu religion, is marital customs. Arranged marriages, religious affiliation, bestowing of the dowry, the caste and the extended family system are all strongly imposed upon Hindu religious couples upon and preceding marriage. The Indian family system, which is better known as the extended family system has always been an important aspect of the East Indian culture. The extended family system pertains to the husband's family, where the newly wed couple will reside and contribute to the family's livelihood (Srivastava 1995). Despite the many social, cultural, and technological changes within the India, the extended family system still continues to prevail in modern India. The males within the family are seen as the hi
Marriage in the Hindu culture is a lifelong commitment, and is not viewed as a means of attaining personal happiness. Arranged marriages, the dowry system, The extended families, along with the caste and religious affiliations, are all strong sacred aspects of the Hindu culture. Instead, family unity, sharing common goals, and maintaining the family traditions are the primary importance and personal considerations are secondary(Segal 1991). The East Indian culture is more shifted toward the bearing of male children, which are greatly desired and preferred over female children (Segal 1991). The classification of marriage within the Hindu culture is a unity between two individuals, and the establishment of an eternal bond between two extended families (Mullatti 1995). A women getting married must posses a number of traits to be considered for marriage, such as: she must be from a exceptional and honorable family, have adequate manners, be respectable and have no taint in her name, thus the male must posses a high status profession (Rao 1976). gher achy and protrude their dominance and control over all financial and economical needs (Segal 1991). According Webster dictionaries (1995) the term endogamy refers to the traditional custom where members belonging to a specific group marry among themselves and where marriage outside the caste is taboo. Since marital unions are one of the most important dimensions contained within the Hindu society, aspects of religion, political, and social conceptions, all play significant factors in marriages, which are ultimately arranged by the elders and extended family members (Rao 1976). The parents of the bride are required come up with a respectable dowry, if they don't follow though with a significant payment the groom can remarry another women for a higher or better dowry (Rao 1976). Traditionally, the bride and the groom would not see each other until the day of the wedding, but within today's society there is usually a small courtship that will take place (Rao 1976). Although the typical "love marriages" do occur in India, it is not the customary norm. The parents take care of their children, and the children obey their parents, thus in turn the parents find a suitable spouse(s) for their children from appropriate families (Srivastava 1995). One of most important determinants in marriage is the caste system; there are four main social groups in India, which are: The Brahmins, Ksatriyas, Vaishnavs, and Shudras (Segal 1991).
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