Community Magazine January 2016

TEVET - SHEVAT 5776 JANUARY 2016 49 Specific to the community of Aden is Talbis , male attendees revolving around the groom, as they honor him with song, while holding candles. The groom, meanwhile, is dressed in a gold suit. ALGERIA – The traditional Algerian wedding dress has layers of fabric in various colors such as reds, pinks, blues and yellows, adorned with gold and silver details. The bride also wears a conical hat and a draping lace veil. Celebrations include a bride’s sauna bath with female friends and relatives, a henna party that concludes with the tearing up of one of the bride’s dresses, and parading of some of the bride’s family’s belongings - which would eventually be given to the groom. TUNISIA – The pre-wedding festivities do not include the bride-to-be, and she does not speak until she officially becomes a wife. Many guests wear sandals, while the bride wears long earrings, weighted with pearls and diamonds. Her trousers are made of red velvet with gold braid, and her upper garment is also embroidered and braided with gold. Her veil and slippers are also gold-embroidered. The bride’s hair is treated with a dye that turns the hair to a bluish tint, her eyelids are blackened, and a thick line of red paint connects them. Her finger-tips and nails are painted with orange henna. At some Tunisian weddings, the gifts are exhibited for all to see, which often include dresses, perfumes, slippers, jewels, dyes, and scented soaps. AFGHANISTAN – The bride would sit in a special room, unveiled, while dressed in her gown, holding silver amulets. The groom – wearing a white robe, adorned with multi-colored flowers, stars and birds – is welcomed into the room with songs and sparklers. Attendees present the groom with a dish of fruits and sweets, while a young boy dances in front of him, as he balances a bowl of henna on his head. The chief rabbi administers the first henna on the groom. A mashade (hairdresser) dyes the bride’s eyebrows with indigo ( vasma ), and adds dots and lines on her forehead (and sometimes on her cheeks and chin) with a black soot ink called khetat . Her forehead is decorated with sequins glued on in patterns. After a festive meal, which includes a pilaf with mutton, they bring the khanche-ye hana , the henna tray, placed in a large brass bowl ( tashtak ) with candles and decorated iris leaves ( zambak ). Festivities also include sweets, and a large sugar cone decorated with colorful ribbons. INDIA – Indian Jews have the mehndi ceremony, where the bride’s hands are adorned with henna designs. As Jewish weddings tend to be on Sundays, the henna begins on Friday mornings. Other local rituals include the bride wearing a garland strung from jasmine flowers, and both the bride and groom are smeared with a yellow paste of turmeric on their faces, to bless the couple with fortune and prosperity. Instead of ring exchanges, they tie the mangalsutra – a gold and black bead necklace which symbolically keeps the couple safe from harm. The groom gives his bride a mangalsutra . M E