By Betty Vedrine
Guardian Lifestyles Reporter
For the first time ever in The Bahamas, a couple tied the knot twice in one day! Bahamian and Indian cultures merged a few weeks ago in Nassau, when Darius Unwala exchanged vowes with Rashmi Prakash Lodha in a Parsee wedding ceremony, followed by a civil ceremony in the same location. More than 200 guests gathered to witness the union between this lovely couple.
"My wife grew up in a traditional Indian family and although my father is Indian, I grew up as a Roman Catholic. So we decided to honour both traditions, by featuring both cultures on our wedding day," said Darius Unwala, the groom.
Unwala, who is a Surgeon, met Lodha, a Dermatologist at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami, Florida, where they both work. Unwala said that he fell in love with the beautiful Lodha the moment they met. He said that he knew that it was going to be a tough job because Lodha is extremely intelligent. He had to devise some serious strategies in his pursuit, as he embarked on a mission to win over her heart. He did everything he could to get her attention, including having his younger brother, Jehan, send her flowers anonymously because he is hopeless with the Internet. After several attempts, he got her phone number and they started to talk. They became friends and the rest, as they say, is history.
"Darius is a man who can use a high-tech Uretersope in the morning but be completely incapable of using the phone book at night. It's exactly that human quality that makes being around Darius so fun, entertaining and filled with the unexpected. It's that human quality that gives Darius his charm," said Jehan, his brother and best man.
The day of the wedding, the civil service took place first, complete with a musical tribute to the bride and groom by Francis Richardson, with whom Darius and Jehan had played the trumpet for years. After the civil ceremony, the Parsee ceremony was held. As they were unable to find a Parsee priest in The Bahamas, one was flown in from Florida. The ceremony entailed two parts, Ara Antar and Ashirvaad.
Wearing a traditional Indian gown in persimmon, with intricate beading details, the bride was radiant. The groom wore a two piece white suite with a red necklace made of flowers. The first part of the ceremony, called Ara Antar entailed the groom being escorted to the stage where a white sheet separated groom's chair from the bride's chair, so that they were unable to see other each other.
Then the bride arrived. The priest then placed some rice into the right hands of the bride and groom and joined their hands together. Rice was also placed in the left hand of the bride and groom.
The sacred psalm "Yatha Ahy Vairyo" was recited by the priest, while tying a white thread around the clasped hand of the couple. The recitation continued, as the white thread was tied outside and around the chairs of the couple seven times.
Their hands were tied to symbolise their union and each act was performed seven times, to symbolise seven archangels, seven heavens and seven continents known to ancient Persians. The couple then threw rice from the left hand onto each other. The thread ceremony was then completed and the sheet was taken away.
After this, the couple sat side by side, facing the congregation and the priest began the main Ashirvaad ceremony in Pazand, the old Persian language.
He recited the prayers while showering the couple with a mixture of rice, coconut chips, pomegranate seed and rose petals. These signify fertility, good fortune, wisdom and beauty. The Ashirvaad also included blessings for fertility, wealth, longevity and loyal friends.
"I had so much rice and rose petals in my hair after the wedding! It was so exciting," said Rashmi Unwala with a beaming smile on her face. After the religious ceremony was over, the wedding continued with the reception. As India is a land of diversity, including various religious groups, special attention was paid to the menu.
Hindus do not eat beef, Muslims do not eat pork and Parsees have no dietary restrictions. How-ever, from the time that they arrived in India, the Parsees refrained from eating meat at weddings because they didn't wish to offend the Hindus. In keeping with this tradition, salmon was served instead. Then the guests were treated to cake prepared by the groom, who worked at Super Value as an apprentice baker when he was younger.
Parsee is the name given to Persians who fled from Persia to India, when the Muslims conquered Persia some 1200 years ago. The Parsee religion was the dominant world religion during the Persian empires. This is the first major religion to espouse belief in one God and is greatly influenced by Judaism and therefore Christianity. Parsees believe in "Good thoughts, good words, good deeds" as a cornerstone belief.
Followers of the religion Zoroastrianism, the Parsees fled from Persia after its conquest by the Arabs and settled in India in the eighth century AD. About 100,000 Parsees now live mainly in the former Bombay State and the rest of the Parsee population (about 1.2 million strong world-wide), live mostly in Iran.
Fire is central to Parsee worship and the flames - which are revered as the "Son of God", signify purity and continuity. In Parsee temples, perpetual fires fuelled by sandalwood burn constantly. The religion dates from around 1000 BC, when it was founded by Zoroaster, sometimes called Zara-thushtra. Zoroastrianism is a monotheistic religion, believing in one God and an eternal afterlife, if you are good in this one. There are approximately 100,000 (1991) Zoroastrians world-wide; membership is restricted to those with both parents belonging to the faith.
The Unwalas spent their honeymoon on the beautiful island of Exuma. Smiling from ear to ear, Darius Anwala said, "I wanted my wife to experience the best of The Bahamas, so I just had to take her to Exuma." His wife was so impressed with Exuma, that she said that she just has to return there again soon. "Exuma was so beautiful, with its pristine and tranquil beaches. It was a totally relaxing trip for us."
The couple will be returning to The Bahamas in two years and both plan to continue their work in the medical field here.
