Arrange Marriage...

First Comes Marriage, Then Comes Love

"Marriage only brings a woman closer to man, and they become friends in a special sense, never to be parted either in this life or in the lives to come." - Mohandas K. Gandhi

Some people are fortunate enough to have found their soul-mates while others have their soul-mates selected for them. In South Asia and the Middle East, arranged marriages are preferred over love marriages, which is the predominant system in the West.People of the West reason that only the person who is to marry can decide whom s/he wishes to spend the rest of his/her life with, which leads to a successful marriage. On the other hand, people of South Asia and the Middle East claim that the elders of the family have the final say over the marriage for they have seen the world and know that a successful marriage is not just a uniting of two people, but of two families.

What is a marriage? Dictionary definition....a legally recognized relationship, established by a civil or religious ceremony, between two people who intend to live together as sexual and domestic partners.”

What is an arranged marriage? It is usually perceived as a marriage that one is being forced into but, in all truth, it is not. It is a merging of not only two people, but of two families through the process of agreement. Now, in today’s modern world, there are two types of arranged marriages: arranged-love marriages and pure-arranged marriages. An arranged-love marriage is where the couple loves one another and wishes to marry, receiving the permission and advice of their respective parents and family elders. Here, caste and dowry are not as important as status, both economic and social, and family reputation. A pure-arranged marriage is followed by a specific, traditional procedure: the man’s parents investigate the girl’s family history and caste before beginning any talks with her parents. The man’s family checks to see if the girl’s family is of the same caste, has relatively the same social and economic status, is of a reputable family and has no physical or mental disabilities or deformities.

Arranged marriages are not as cruel as they are viewed. The arranged system is one that both peacefully and lovingly unites not only two people but two families, showing that having one’s soul-mate selected for him/her is not all that bad. Those who willingly go through an arranged marriage know the rules and expectations of such a union helps them in making their marriage last – a quality that is lacking in many Western marriages, since over fifty per cent of them end in divorce. As Gandhi stated, a successful marriage is one that the couple will relive time and time again because “matches are made in Heaven.

I found this very interesting "Tips of Arranged marriage" :
www.sulekha.com/groups/postdisplay.aspx?cid=261248&forumid=756919
Ending couldnt be any better... Never do anything to others that you don’t like for yourself..

so easy & thought provoking to read... is it that easy to follow ?

Much Married

A man and a woman who have never met before find themselves in the same sleeping carriage of a train.

After the initial embarrassment they both go to sleep, the woman on the top bunk, the man on the lower.

In the middle of the night the woman leans over, wakes the man and says, "I'm sorry to bother you, but I'm awfully cold and I was wondering if you could possibly get me another blanket."

The man leans out and, with a glint in his eye, says, "I've got a better idea... just for tonight, let's pretend we're married."

The woman thinks for a moment. "Why not," she giggles.



"Great," he replies, "Get your own damn blanket!"

Husband Shopping Centre...

Recently a "Husband Shopping Centre" opened in London, where women could go to choose a huband from among many men. It was laid out in five floors,with the men increasing in positive attributes as you ascended.

The only rule was, once you opened the door to any floor, you HAD to
choose a man from that floor; If you went up a floor, you couldn't go
back down except to leave the place,never to return. A couple of
girlfriends went to the shopping centre to findsome husbands...

First floor:

The door had a sign saying, "These men have jobs and love kids." The
women read the sign and said, "Well, that's better than not having a
job, or not loving kids, but I wonder what's further up?" So up they
went.

Second floor:

The sign read, "These men have high paying jo bs, love kids, and are
extremely good looking. "Hmmm, said the ladies. But, I wonder what's
further up?"

Third floor:

This sign read, "These men have high paying jobs, are extremely good
looking, love kids and help with the housework. " Wow! said the women.
Very tempting, BUT, there's more further up! And up they went.

Fourth floor:

This door had a sign saying "These men have high paying jobs, love kids,
are extremely good looking, help with the housework, and have strong
romantic streak. " Oh, mercy me. But just think! What must be awaiting
us further on! So up to the fifth floor they went.

Fifth floor:

The sign on that door said, "This floor is empty and exists only to
prove that women are impossible to please."