Wedding news
Dowry and giftsDLSA Secretary calls for wider student awareness on Dowry Prohibition ActMass weddingsWhy South Africans won't stop spending on celebrationsDowry and giftsNow Solar Panels given as dowry in PakistanRitesFrom brides’ hands to a Starbucks cup: Meet Manii Basran, the mehendi artist who turned her art into a viRitesJefferies Sees A Reason for Indian Hotels To Cheer Louder In The Upcoming Wedding SeasonLawSamuel Alito blames marriage equality for America’s ‘decisive’ turn ‘against religious liberty’LawSupreme Court Justice Samuel Alito says marriage equality turned US "against religious liberty"LawSupreme Court Justice Samuel Alito Calls Marriage Equality Ruling a Turn 'Against Religious Liberty'DressMiss Manners: Modern weddings are less about tradition, more about celebrationMass weddingsLaoag City’s ‘Alisto I Do’ seals decade-long promise for 42 couplesDowry and giftsDLSA Secretary calls for wider student awareness on Dowry Prohibition ActMass weddingsWhy South Africans won't stop spending on celebrationsDowry and giftsNow Solar Panels given as dowry in PakistanRitesFrom brides’ hands to a Starbucks cup: Meet Manii Basran, the mehendi artist who turned her art into a viRitesJefferies Sees A Reason for Indian Hotels To Cheer Louder In The Upcoming Wedding SeasonLawSamuel Alito blames marriage equality for America’s ‘decisive’ turn ‘against religious liberty’LawSupreme Court Justice Samuel Alito says marriage equality turned US "against religious liberty"LawSupreme Court Justice Samuel Alito Calls Marriage Equality Ruling a Turn 'Against Religious Liberty'DressMiss Manners: Modern weddings are less about tradition, more about celebrationMass weddingsLaoag City’s ‘Alisto I Do’ seals decade-long promise for 42 couples
EveryShaadi

Wedding traditions with rice and grain

Rice is the grain of plenty, and in many parts of the world a wedding without it would be strange.

Rice is the grain of plenty, and in many parts of the world a wedding without it would be strange. It is thrown, offered in fire, poured into hands, eaten as the first meal and stored as a sign of a full house.

Throwing and offering

Throwing rice at the couple is common in Western and Asian weddings as a wish for fertility and abundance, and many venues now ask for petals or birdseed instead. In Hindu weddings the bride's brothers place puffed rice in her hands, and she offers it to the fire in the laja homa. Bengali and Maharashtrian weddings use rice grains in the tilak and akshata. In Pakistan and India, a bride may throw rice backward over her head as she leaves her family home, a gesture of repaying her parents.

Rice as food and gift

Chinese families give rice cakes and rice dishes. Indonesian and Thai families offer rice at temples, and in Japan a bowl of rice is shared in some regions. Korean weddings include dates and chestnuts in the pyebaek. In Vietnam and the Philippines rice is served to show prosperity. In many cultures the new couple's first meal includes it.

About this page

Written by the EveryShaadi desk with AI assistance. Background on Rice and grain (symbol). Customs differ from place to place and family to family. If this is your tradition and we have it wrong, tell us.

RegionSouth AsiaSoutheast AsiaEast AsiaCentral Asia and the CaucasusMiddle EastNorth AfricaSub-Saharan AfricaEuropeNorth AmericaLatin America and the CaribbeanOceania
KindRiteVowBetrothalGift customAttireAdornmentPerformanceFeast customBlessingPlayFamily roleSettingModern
StageFinding a matchEngagement and betrothalThe weeks beforeThe eveProcession and arrivalThe ceremonyThe wedding feastReception, dance and giftsAfter the wedding
🇮🇳 Bhuj, India and 1 moreBandhani A traditional Indian tie-dye method that creates intricate dot patterns by binding small sections of cloth before dyeingAttire · Engagement and betrothal 🇲🇱 MaliWeddings in Mali Multi-day Malian wedding traditions blending Islamic rites, civil law, and local customs with bazin attire.Rite · Engagement and betrothal 🇲🇲 MyanmarMarriage in Myanmar A blend of Buddhist rites, astrological timing, and family negotiations that defines union across Myanmar's diverse ethnRite · Finding a match 🇮🇳 India and 1 moreAiburo Bhaatআইবুড়ো ভাত The final bachelor feast for the bride and groom before their Bengali weddingFeast custom · The weeks before 🇮🇳 IndiaMeitei weddingLuhongba (ꯂꯨꯍꯣꯡꯕ) The traditional union of the Meitei people, marked by clan exogamy and specific courtship rituals.Rite · Finding a match 🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 2 moreWhite wedding A formal Western ceremony marked by a white bridal gown and traditional Christian rituals.Attire · Engagement and betrothal 🇮🇳 IndiaTelugu Hindu weddingతెలుగు వివాహ వేడుక A multi-day Telugu Hindu marriage marked by seven vows around fire and family rituals.Rite · Finding a match 🇮🇳 IndiaZoroastrian wedding A Zoroastrian marriage ceremony featuring hand-fastening, rice sprinkling, and shared meals.Rite · Engagement and betrothal 🇨🇳 China and 4 moreChinese wedding door games堵门游戏 (dǔmén yóuxì) Challenges set by bridesmaids for the groom at the bride's home to prove his devotion.Play · Engagement and betrothal 🇮🇳 IndiaOdia Hindu weddingBahaghara (ଓଡ଼ିଆ ବାହାଘର) The traditional Hindu marriage ceremony of the Odia people in Odisha, India.Rite · Engagement and betrothal 🇳🇬 NigeriaIgbo traditional marriageIgba Nkwu The multi-stage Igbo marriage process that formalizes a union through family negotiations and the wine-carrying ceremonyRite · Finding a match 🇮🇳 Delhi, India and 4 moreSindoorसिंदूर (Hindi) The vermilion powder a Hindu husband applies to his wife's hair parting to mark her marriage.Adornment · Engagement and betrothal 🇲🇲 Myanmar and 1 moreMayu-Dama The Kachin kinship system that defines who can marry whom through wife-giver and wife-taker rolesBetrothal · Finding a match 🇳🇵 NepalSherpa marriage The astrological matching and barley beer offering that binds a Sherpa couple.Betrothal · Finding a match 🇨🇳 ChinaHebao荷包 (Hébāo) A traditional Chinese embroidered pouch used for gifts, medicine, and romantic tokens.Adornment · Engagement and betrothal 🇰🇷 South KoreaChaesang채상 (Chaesang) Woven bamboo boxes used to store dowry items in traditional Korean weddingsGift custom · Engagement and betrothal

Photo credits on this page

The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

The weekly EveryShaadi

Every week: one wedding tradition from somewhere new, the wedding days coming up around the world, and one idea explained.