Kanyadana

Kanyadana (Sanskrit: कन्यादान, romanized: Kanyādāna) is a Hindu wedding ritual.^[1] Inscriptional evidence of this tradition can be found on 15th century stones found in the Vijayanagara Empire in South India.^[2] There are different interpretations regarding kanyadana across South Asia.

Performance of the kanyadana

For the 1965 film, see Kanyadan (film).

The kanyadana ritual occurs before the sindoor ritual (sinduradana).

Etymology

Kanyadana is made of the Sanskrit words kanyā (maiden) and dāna (giving away), referring to the tradition of a father giving his daughter in marriage to a groom, symbolizing the transfer of responsibility and care from one family to another.^[3]

Kanyadana has 2 different meanings. The 1st means - father asserts that he no more holds rights over daughter (that every parent in even modern society holds over minor children) and is offering her for higher cause of society as she has grown up and ready for next phase of her life. While the second means - father asserts that he will offer whatever is necessary to his daughter to make her journey into new phase of life comfortable and meaningful.^[4]

Kanyadana songs

The wedding ritual may be accompanied by a variety of kanyadana songs. These songs may include the parents lamenting the loss of their daughter. Other songs focus on the groom, sometimes comparing him to Rama, portrayed in the Ramayana as the "ideal groom".^[5]

See also

• Vivaha
• Marriage in Hinduism