Origin of Arranged Marriages

Among the Hindus, vivaha or marriage is considered a sarira samskara, i.e., sacraments sanctifying the body, which every individual has to go through in life. In India, marriages are often equated with arranged marriages particularly due to the social structure. It is one such topic that is controversial and widely debated.

When you watch elaborate Indian arranged marriages and analyze the complexity and effort involved to make it successful, you may wonder how and when this practice started.

Interestingly, a recent research has brought to light the finding that arranged marriages in India originated during the Vedic period of Indian history. The ceremony and the institution of arranged marriages also took its shape during this time.

The Hindu Dharmashastras

ccording to the research, Hindu marriage is said to be derived from laws interpreted in theDharmashastras or sacred texts,which has its roots in the Vedas, the oldest surviving documents from the Vedic era. Therefore, arranged marriages can be said to have initially risen to prominence in the Indian subcontinent when the historical Vedic religion gradually gave way to classical Hinduism.

These scriptures are said to have been written by male Aryan sages who inhabited the areas across the Indus river, long before the word "Hindu" came to be associated with religion. "Hindu" was simply an evolved Persian word for the people who lived across the river "Indus" or "Indu".

The Laws of Manu Samhita

The Manu Samhita that was written in around 200 BC, is known to have laid down the marital laws, which is followed even today. Manu, one of the most influential interpreters of these scriptures, documented the Manu Samhita. Traditionally accepted as one of the supplementary arms of the Vedas, The Laws of Manu or Manava Dharma Shastra is one of the standard books in the Hindu canon, presenting the norms of domestic, social, and religious life in India.

The Four Aims of Life

These texts mention the four main aims of Hindu life: Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha. Dharma represented the harmony between "temporal interests and spiritual freedom".Artha referred to the "acquisitive instinct, and signified man's enjoyment of wealth". Kamarepresented the instinctive, and was connected with satisfying the emotional, sexual, and aesthetic urges of man.Moksharepresented the end of life and the realization of an inner spirituality in man.

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