A Pakistani Wedding

Outlines:
A Pakistani wedding is a traditional ceremony.
It is a jolly arrangement, with a lot of fun.
There are many pre-wedding customs and rituals.
1. Mangni
2. Mayun
3. The Dolki
4. The Baraat and Nikah
A Pakistani wedding is a traditional ceremony which rejoices on the marriage of a bride and
groom. It brings together the families of the bride and groom in the many occasions that
take place. In Pakistan the wedding ceremony is of immense importance. Various cultures
have different ways of celebrating the marriage. A Pakistani wedding is a jolly arrangement,
with a lot of fun. There are many pre-wedding customs and rituals.
The first custom is known as a Mangni. This is a small ceremony takes place in front of
few family members of the bride and groom. Prayer and blessings are recited.
The next ceremony is the Mayun it is a custom where the bride enters a state of isolation
for 8 to 15 days prior to the wedding. She is free from doing all household tasks. This is
when the beautification rituals begin. Uptan is the next small event in which a paste is
formed using sandalwood powder, herbs and oils, which the groom's mother brings for the
bride. She blesses the bride and applies the uptan - mixture on her face and hands. The
uptan ceremony is also held for the groom, in fact uptan is supposed to make the bride look
pretty and she applies it daily until the wedding.
The Dolki is a signing ceremony and traditional wedding songs are sung. In these events
the bride is officially treated as a bride or a dulhan. She wears a traditional Pakistani yellow
outfit and her siblings and friends escort her to the event. The mehendi is actually a hena
party which takes place before the wedding. Ladies apply henna on the bride and each
other. They sing and dance and sadka is performed on the bride- that is they ward off evil
from the bride. After the ceremony there is dinner, and traditionally the bride veils her face
in the ceremony. Mehendi is done on the groom's side as well.
The Baraat and Nikah usually happen together or one after the other. It is the official
ceremony of the wedding; it is when the grooms family and relatives or friends make way
to the bride's home. They are warmly welcomed. It is there that they share juices and foods
and meet and greet each other. This mainly happens in the baraat. The nikah is the purely
Islamic ritual, it is attended by only close members, men and women are seated separately.
The nikah nama contains certain terms and conditions which are written and agreed upon
by both the parties. The next ceremony is the rukhsati in which the bride fare wells to her
family and is taken to her in laws house. The last ceremony is the Valima which is more
like a wedding reception. Hence Pakistani weddings are extensive consisting of many
rituals and customs, thus they are colourful and amusing for all.
 A man can be destroyed but not defeated. Discuss it.
The old Cuban fisherman, Santiago, faces two major challenges in this novel. The
first challenge is his contest with the big fish, marlin, whereas the second is his battle
against the sharks which is the real challenge for the old man.
Santiago is extremely exhausted due to his dreadful fight with the giant fish, marlin.
He is all alone and without much food. However, he is resolute and kills the marlin.
After only one hour the first shark attacks him. Old man fights bravely. However shark also
takes away the old mans harpoon and rope. Thus, the old man is now unarmed.
The old man uses his gear and every other possible means to kill the attacking marlin.
The sharks were snatching away every bit of its flesh and the old man could do nothing.
However, he continues his struggle against the opposite forces to save the achievement of
his life. He fights beyond his physical strength.
He kills these hunter beasts in a constant fight using his oar, tiller, knife and club.
However, the old man is unable to save his beloved big fish, marlin, from the sharks. He
reaches back to the coast with only skeleton. Nevertheless, he proves his utterance true that,
A man can be destroyed but not defeated.
Like a true hero, he does not give up until the last moment, even when he has no hope for
the marlin. Interestingly enough, he does not mind the loss of the fish and, when asked by
the boy, he expresses his will to go back for fishing.
Although, he loses the Marlin due to sharks, he is spiritually victorious and emerges as
Jesus Christ.