RITE OF PASSAGE

The Malay marriage is a regal affair. The bride and groom are treated as king and queen for a day. The pre-wedding meeting between the bride's and the groom's parents will determine the dowry that is to be given to the bride as well as the date of the solemnization. This may be as early as a year before the wedding itself so that arrangements could be made in advance. Often the wedding is held on one convenient weekend so as to accommodate relatives who live far away and to reduce costs. The henna application ceremony is held prior to the wedding. The bride's palms and feet are 'decorated' with the dye from the henna leaves. Sometimes this is followed by the costume changes and the bride and, less often, the groom will don different clothes for photography. The raised dais will be beautifully decorated for the purpose
The pre-wedding meeting between the bride's and the groom's parents will determine the dowry that is to be given to the bride as well as the date of thesolemnization. This may be as early as a year before the wedding itself so thatarrangements could be made in advance. Often the wedding is held on one convenient weekend so as to accommodate relatives who live far away and to reduce costs. The henna application ceremony is held prior to the wedding. The bride's palms and feet are 'decorated' with the dye from the henna leaves. Sometimes this is followed by the costume changes and the bride and, less often,the groom will don different clothes for photography. The raised dais will be beautifully decorated for the purpose.
Guests are invited to partake of a meal on Sunday. This is usually held in the void deck of a housing board flat so as to accommodate the large number of guests invited. Besides cutting down on costs, holding the feast in the void deck also enables the guests to view the bridal chamber and the sitting in state ceremony often held in the bride/groom home. The wedding preparation is often based on the got cooperation among friends and relatives, for which the Malays are most well known for. Again in Singapore, simplicity has given way to tradition and requires that such tasks be undertaken by caterers.

ACADEMIC WRITING

My brother’s wedding was an interesting ritual.. The ceremony started with “akad nikah” or marriage vow, which was overseen by the imam in front of some witnesses. The most challenging session for the groom was the "akad nikah" time where the groom was needed to express a verse in order to marry the bride legally. This was the most rerrifying time for the groom which would make the groom's hand sweating all over and there were butterflies in his stomach for sure. Then, other event in the wedding day was the” bersanding” ceremony that might take longer time depending on the number of guests and family members who wished to partake in the “tepung tawar” session. The guests were served with various kinds of food and also “bunga telur” as token gifts. The ceremony finished with photography session among family members with the king and queen of the day. The ceremony resembled in the Grand Continental Hotel. Plus, turquoise was the theme colour for this ceremony. Moreover, there were six guests for each table per serving. A part from that, the symbolic object tied between the special spouses of the day was two jewel rings. It represented the symbol of love through their marriage. The My brother's wedding is most interesting ritual that I never forget in my life.