Wedding traditions with mirrors

A mirror reflects the face, and in many wedding customs it reflects luck and truth. It is held up to the couple, put in the bride's hand, or fixed to the clothes as embroidery. It guards against evil and brings a moment of looking.

Mirror in the Persian and Indian rite

At the Persian sofreh aghd a mirror, the ayeneh, is placed with two candles, and the couple look at each other in it, so that the first sight of the new life is of each other. In Bengal a mirror may be part of the shubho drishti, and in Rajasthan and Gujarat mirror-work embroidery decorates the bride's clothes. In Afghanistan the arsi mushaf rite has the couple look into a mirror under a shawl, with a Quran.

Mirror, luck and caution

In Western superstition a bride should not look in the mirror in full wedding dress before the ceremony, or should leave one item off. In Chinese tradition a mirror is hung at the door to deflect bad luck, and in Japan a mirror is an object of Shinto significance. A bride's mirror is a frequent trousseau item in Europe.