*****Culture of Himachal Pradesh*****

Part 1

By PinnacleHPteam

Naming Ceremony in Himachal Pradesh

MURA (Gur or Parched Rice or Wheat Grains ) is distributed in the naming ceremony.

Among the KOLIS, the boys are often named after the day or month. e.g. Manglu for a boy born
on Tuesday (Mangalvaar). Chaitu or Chet(march-june)

A common practiseamong thesepeople is to give a single name to child such as Panji, Dhaniya,
Tiaroo , Maggoo, for men and Choori, Lachhi,Suinpa etc for women.

Upper castes have compound names Ram "Lal ,Das,Chand" where as Rajput use the term
Singh.punjabi Suffix are Prakash, kumar.

Thakur , Verma ,Sharma are also common.

The situation with Regard to the surname is quite confusing today as can be observed by

1.a sub caste of immigrants hindu Rajput ruled in hills

2. The descendants of a Khasia Rajput clan

3.also by some tribes

The descendants of a man are sometime are named as e.g son ofGanga ram are called
Gangata , son of Balak ram is called as Blaik.

New family names are given in Kholis and khasha tribes.

They use such as Bhag mal Sauhta, thakur

Kinnauri people often use the suffix NEGI after names of the child.

In Shimla district, sons are often named after the father.

Among the Khashas and Kolis, taking up a new family name is prevalent.

Birth Ceremony:
The Umblical chord is cut by mid-wife holding a SILVER-COIN or a Silver Instrument.

GURANI Mixture of Ghee and Milk. After the birth, the mother is made to drink Gurani.

BADHAI Relatives congratulate the Birth by offering Turf leaves with one Rupee.

SUTAK or SAKOR days Period of impurity of mother and family ( Generally 10 days)

Local musicians of temple called as Dhakis or Turis play the music called as Shabad.

Mother is supposed to be polluted for 10 days.

GUNTR or Dassotan Infants First Ceremony.

After Guntr house is washed with Pnchamrit I.e mix of Curd,sugar,cow urine,milk and ganga
water and also sprinkled on clothes. This mix also tasted by all the men of the house.

On some auspicious day family priest is called to begin the preparation of tge child horoscope.

Hair cutting ceremony

This ceremony takes place in 3rd , 5th or 7th year after. Birth .It is of great religious
significance..The n hairs are offered in shrines. Goats also sacrificed in some area of Lahul and
kinnaur on this day

Marriage Ceremony in Himachal Pradesh:

High class people marry within their own Gotra.they don't marry girl related on father side up to
7th generation some time12th.

Dheri The payment made by Boy father to Girls father for defraying the expenses of marriage.

Two kinds of Marriage Ceremony takes place in Himachal Pradesh:

1. Orthodox Form usually conducted with Hindu rituals. It is called as BARNI in Upper classes.

In lower classes, this is called as SAGAI or SOTHA. Also known as BANDHA DENA in CHAMBA

and BARINA in Mandi.

2. BATA-SATA It includes inter-familial exchange. No money is exchanged but Marriagable

boys and Girls are exchanged. Father promise his girl's hand to boy .Sometime there are 5 to 6
people in chain but this leads to confusion.when once a betrothal has been settled it is hardly
possible to cancel it .Otherwise one of the party responsible must pay all expanses of ceremony.
A betrothal is cancelled only if party is attacked by leprosy or incurable disease marriage rule in
hills are not strict like plains .

Three Kinds of Marriage in Himachal Pradesh:

1. Biah It is the regular kind of marriage according to the Shastras. Genearally followed by the
prosperous people of the state.

2. Jhajra and Gaddar This marriage takes place without holy fire or Shastra. It is typical in
Pahari Areas. Bridegroom with relatives visit Girls House taking NATH (nose-ring) with them.
The Priest inserts NATH in the Girls Nostril. Then the girl comes along to boys house. Gharasni
(eating of GUR) takes place and the marriage is completed. Then after 3 days, Brides parents
visit her. This visit is known as MURAPULL. In KULLU, this type of marriage is known as
PUTTIMANAL, where instead of NATH, a Cap is put on the brides head. GADDAR marriage is
same as JHAJRA except there is no GANESHA Worship in Gaddar.

3. Jhind Phuki (in Chamba) or Jhara Phuki It stands for Bush Burning. It is a kind f run-away
marriage found among the Gaddis of Chamba.

Some other forms of Marriage in Himachal Pradesh:

1. Haar When a boy kidnaps a girl or a girl elopes with her lover. In Kinnaur, Haar is known as
DUBDUB or KUCHIS or KHUTU KIMA.

2. Reet Marriage When a married woman elopes with lover.

Reet System of Divorce- First husband is re-imbursed by the new husband or the girls father.
Sometimes , a small stick called as Dingi is broken by divorcee to complete the Divorce. In
Lahaul, couple prepares a thread of wool and breaks apart to complete the divorce.

3. Widow Re-marriage In Chamba and Kangra, it is called as JHANJHARAR or GUDANI. In

Shimla, it is called as KAREWA.