harmanjit_kaur
Waheguru Waheguru
A Sikh Wedding, Marriage
According to Sikhism, the purpose of human life is to reunite the human soul with the Supreme Soul - GOD. That can be done only if the human soul acquires the same noble characteristics as those of GOD. To do that humans must control the following five powerful natural tendencies: lust, rage or fury, greed, attachment or possessiveness, and ego or conceit. In addition, humans must earn their living by honest means, have high morals, and dedicate themselves to the service of mankind as much as possible. All these acts are very difficult to follow. However, they become much easier if we remember that GOD is always with us, sing His praise affectionately as taught by the Guru, and accept the will of God. The best way to do that is to act like the bride of the groom - GOD - and to act upon His advice as taught by the Guru. So, all Sikhs (males and females) are advised to behave like the brides of the only Groom - God so as to realize Him.
The Guru has explained four stages, called lavans, for the human bride to marry God i.e. to realize Him. The stages (lavans) are recorded on page 773 of the Sikh Holy Book -Guru Granth Sahib.
SIKH WEDDING So as never to forget God when we are rejoicing or celebrating our worldly pleasures, and to include God in all our affairs, the Sikhs recite the same four stages from the Holy Granth Sahib during weddings as advised by the Guru for the wedding of human brides with God.
The couple bows, and seats itself in front of Guru Granth Sahib with the groom on the right. After some other ceremonies, and after a few selected Holy Hymns have been read, the priest recites aloud the First Lanv. The couple bows to Guru Granth Sahib, and walks around the Holy Granth Sahib in clockwise direction with the groom leading. They again bow before Guru Granth Sahib, and take their seats.
The custom of walking around someone signifies that the central figure is very dear and highly respectable to the person walking around. The priest then recites the other three Lanvs one at a time and the ceremony continues until all the four Lanvs have been recited. During the whole ceremony, regis (musicians) keep singing the Lanvs in their melodious voices. After the ceremony, everybody joins in Holy Prayer.
MEANING OF THE LANVS
1. Oh dear Ram (God), I wish to lay down my life for Thee, Who through the Guru, has clarified and reiterated the first stage towards marriage with God. The Guru has advised that all sins can be dispelled by repeatedly singing the Bani (Holy Hymns) written by the Guru in praise of God. For a Sikh, Guru-s Bani is Brahma-s Vedas i.e. a Sikh does not need to read the Vedas. Also, there is no need to follow the Simrities, because Guru-s Bani covers everything. By following the teachings of the Guru and by singing the praise of God, the human bride can rid herself of all sins and evils. She will find remembering God to be sweet, and she will feel blissful because her mind will be in her control (it will not wander in different directions). (Guru) Nanak says that remembering God and singing Gurbani (God-s praise) is the foremost duty of human brides and is the first step (First Lanv) towards marriage with God.
2. As the human bride continues to follow the First Lanv, (sing the praise of God, and follow the Guru-s teachings), God-s Grace leads the human bride to the Guru. This is the Second Lanv. (Guru) Nanak says, “I am so thankful to Thee, oh dear Ram, that I wish to lay down my life for Thee because Thou hath very kindly led me to the Guru”. Because of the Guru-s teachings, the human bride develops a sacred fear of the Fearless (God) in her heart, thereby washing away the filth of selfishness and ego. Due to the sacred fear, and by singing Gurbani, the bride becomes enlightened and feels the presence of God everywhere. Because of the feeling of God inside and outside of her, the bride now sings the praise of God even more than ever before in the company of the Guru. In this Second Lanv, the bride feels so blissful as if she were hearing Divine music endlessly.
3. I feel like laying down my life for Thee, oh dear Ram, says (Guru) Nanak. In the Third Lanv the human bride feels detachment from the worldly things, and becomes impatient (her heart is filled with expectation) to become one with God. She also feels like laying down her life for dear Ram, and requests the lucky holy men who have realized God to help her do the same. The holy men explain that they were lucky that they sang the praise of God, and that the only way to realize God is to sing the praise of the Supreme Soul Which can not be described. Those who have signs of luck on their foreheads, develop craving for God, and sing His praise. (Guru) Nanak says that in the Third Lanv, the human bride feels detached from the worldly things and becomes impatient to be one with God.
4. Once the human bride feels detachment from the worldly things, and finds the memory of God to be very sweet through the Guru, she begins to love God. She continues to worship God by singing Gurbani in His praise, and this becomes an effortless or an involuntary act. God is in her memory all the time now, and her mind becomes completely immobile (is in her control). She reaps the desired fruit and her mind is in the best state of happiness and contentment, and musical notes of God-s praise originate in her heart. (Guru) Nanak says that he wishes to lay down his life for dear Ram because in the Fourth Lanv, He Himself initiates the wedding ceremony for the bride, and appears in her heart
According to Sikhism, the purpose of human life is to reunite the human soul with the Supreme Soul - GOD. That can be done only if the human soul acquires the same noble characteristics as those of GOD. To do that humans must control the following five powerful natural tendencies: lust, rage or fury, greed, attachment or possessiveness, and ego or conceit. In addition, humans must earn their living by honest means, have high morals, and dedicate themselves to the service of mankind as much as possible. All these acts are very difficult to follow. However, they become much easier if we remember that GOD is always with us, sing His praise affectionately as taught by the Guru, and accept the will of God. The best way to do that is to act like the bride of the groom - GOD - and to act upon His advice as taught by the Guru. So, all Sikhs (males and females) are advised to behave like the brides of the only Groom - God so as to realize Him.
The Guru has explained four stages, called lavans, for the human bride to marry God i.e. to realize Him. The stages (lavans) are recorded on page 773 of the Sikh Holy Book -Guru Granth Sahib.
SIKH WEDDING So as never to forget God when we are rejoicing or celebrating our worldly pleasures, and to include God in all our affairs, the Sikhs recite the same four stages from the Holy Granth Sahib during weddings as advised by the Guru for the wedding of human brides with God.
The couple bows, and seats itself in front of Guru Granth Sahib with the groom on the right. After some other ceremonies, and after a few selected Holy Hymns have been read, the priest recites aloud the First Lanv. The couple bows to Guru Granth Sahib, and walks around the Holy Granth Sahib in clockwise direction with the groom leading. They again bow before Guru Granth Sahib, and take their seats.
The custom of walking around someone signifies that the central figure is very dear and highly respectable to the person walking around. The priest then recites the other three Lanvs one at a time and the ceremony continues until all the four Lanvs have been recited. During the whole ceremony, regis (musicians) keep singing the Lanvs in their melodious voices. After the ceremony, everybody joins in Holy Prayer.
MEANING OF THE LANVS
1. Oh dear Ram (God), I wish to lay down my life for Thee, Who through the Guru, has clarified and reiterated the first stage towards marriage with God. The Guru has advised that all sins can be dispelled by repeatedly singing the Bani (Holy Hymns) written by the Guru in praise of God. For a Sikh, Guru-s Bani is Brahma-s Vedas i.e. a Sikh does not need to read the Vedas. Also, there is no need to follow the Simrities, because Guru-s Bani covers everything. By following the teachings of the Guru and by singing the praise of God, the human bride can rid herself of all sins and evils. She will find remembering God to be sweet, and she will feel blissful because her mind will be in her control (it will not wander in different directions). (Guru) Nanak says that remembering God and singing Gurbani (God-s praise) is the foremost duty of human brides and is the first step (First Lanv) towards marriage with God.
2. As the human bride continues to follow the First Lanv, (sing the praise of God, and follow the Guru-s teachings), God-s Grace leads the human bride to the Guru. This is the Second Lanv. (Guru) Nanak says, “I am so thankful to Thee, oh dear Ram, that I wish to lay down my life for Thee because Thou hath very kindly led me to the Guru”. Because of the Guru-s teachings, the human bride develops a sacred fear of the Fearless (God) in her heart, thereby washing away the filth of selfishness and ego. Due to the sacred fear, and by singing Gurbani, the bride becomes enlightened and feels the presence of God everywhere. Because of the feeling of God inside and outside of her, the bride now sings the praise of God even more than ever before in the company of the Guru. In this Second Lanv, the bride feels so blissful as if she were hearing Divine music endlessly.
3. I feel like laying down my life for Thee, oh dear Ram, says (Guru) Nanak. In the Third Lanv the human bride feels detachment from the worldly things, and becomes impatient (her heart is filled with expectation) to become one with God. She also feels like laying down her life for dear Ram, and requests the lucky holy men who have realized God to help her do the same. The holy men explain that they were lucky that they sang the praise of God, and that the only way to realize God is to sing the praise of the Supreme Soul Which can not be described. Those who have signs of luck on their foreheads, develop craving for God, and sing His praise. (Guru) Nanak says that in the Third Lanv, the human bride feels detached from the worldly things and becomes impatient to be one with God.
4. Once the human bride feels detachment from the worldly things, and finds the memory of God to be very sweet through the Guru, she begins to love God. She continues to worship God by singing Gurbani in His praise, and this becomes an effortless or an involuntary act. God is in her memory all the time now, and her mind becomes completely immobile (is in her control). She reaps the desired fruit and her mind is in the best state of happiness and contentment, and musical notes of God-s praise originate in her heart. (Guru) Nanak says that he wishes to lay down his life for dear Ram because in the Fourth Lanv, He Himself initiates the wedding ceremony for the bride, and appears in her heart
...par oh vi ithe dhake khandi firdi... ohnu vi pata hi huna..
deepu
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