Introduction
The dictionary’s definition of a wedding is “a marriage ceremony, especially considered as including the associated celebrations”. Marriage can be defined as the legal or formally recognized union of two people as partners in a personal relationship. Marriage has been around for centuries, in fact, the first recorded evidence of marriage ceremonies dates from about 2350 BC.
Buddhism
Brief background and core beliefs: Buddhism was founded in North-Eastern India by a Prince named Siddhartha, in the sixth century BC. The religion Buddhism is widely practised in Cambodia, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Myanmar and Laos. It is estimated that this year, there are approximately 535 million people around the world that practise Buddhism. This number of people would represent between 8% and 10% of the world population. Those who follow Buddhism are called Buddhists. Buddhists believe that nothing is fixed or permanent and that change is always possible. Buddhists can worship both in their temples and at home. Buddhists believe that there is no personal God, so their religion is not centred on their relationship with a God.
Description of religious weddings: Buddhists do not have a particular religious ceremony that takes place during weddings. Marriage is not seen as important in Buddhism, as Buddha did not believe marriage was necessary to be whole. Marriage is personal to each couple and is a choice rather than a necessity. It is custom for the parents of the couple to choose who they want their children to marry and both families will make an agreement. This is an old tradition and it is more common now-days for men and women to choose their partners. The proposal progress is known as Khachang. The man will visit the families house of the woman he wants to marry. He will usually bring a scarf and wine as gifts. The two families will decide whether or not their children will be a good match for each other by comparing horoscopes. If an agreement is made, a date for the wedding is then set.
Significance of religious wedding: The Buddhists views on marriage are very general. Weddings are more of a personal and individual concern, rather than a duty, as the religion Buddhism does not require people to marry. It says nowhere that a follower needs to marry because they need to start families or because they need to prove they are faithful. It is up to the individual and the significance is up to them too.
Islam
Brief background and core beliefs: According to the religion itself, Islam was officially dictated by their prophet Muhammad, but did not originate with Muhammad. According to their religious text, the Qur’an, the religion was given by God through an angel named Gabriel. The religion Islam is the main religion in Central Asia and is found most commonly in places such as Indonesia, the Middle East, North Africa and the Sahel. It is estimated that this year, there are approximately 1.8 billion people follow the religion of Islam, around the world. This means that Muslims make up around 24.1% of the total world population. Those who follow Islam are called Muslims. In Arabic, the word Islam means submission, surrender, commitment or peace. By this, Islam can be described as the path to obtaining peace through submission to God. Muslims believe in the one God called Allah, who is all-powerful. They believe in Holy books such as the Torah, the Bible and the Qur’an (Koran). Muslims also have a belief in many prophets such as Jesus, Noah, Moses and Muhummad, although they do not believe in Jesus the same way Christians do.
Description of religious weddings: An actual Muslim wedding is known as a Nikah. This is a simple ceremony, at which the bride doesn’t have to be present, she only needs to send two witnesses to the drawn-up agreement. Normally, in a Muslim wedding, the ceremony consists of reading from the Qur’an, and the exchange of vows in front of witnesses for both partners, though it is quite common for the couple to listen as their officiant speaks about the meaning of marriage and their responsibilities to each other and Allah instead. An Islamic wedding ceremony is officiated by a priest known as the Maulvi. The fathers of both the bride and groom also need to be present at the wedding ceremonies.
Significance of religious wedding: Islamic weddings are important to followers because it is a way to acquire spiritual perfection. Muslims participate in marriage because they believe is it an act that declares one-half of a single Muslim’s faith. Weddings are a significant part of the religion Islam because marriage makes an incomplete human complete, because it is necessary for making families, and because it provides peace, security, love and happiness.
Differences between religious weddings between Buddhism and Islam
The main difference between Buddhist and Islamic marriages is that the Buddhists believe that marriage is not important, it does not make a person whole. Buddha believes that marriage is not necessary between two Buddhists, so, therefore, weddings are a choice. Islam, on the other hand, sees marriages as a very important part of their religion. They see it as a way to be granted spiritual perfection and it is a way for one person to be completed and have love and happiness in their lives. Marriage in Buddhism requires the man to go to the house of the woman he wishes to marry. Gifts of scarfs and wine are usually brought to the house in which the two families will decide whether the two children would be a good match, this is based on their horoscopes. If they are deemed worthy of marriage then a time and date will be set for the ceremony. Comparably, in Islam, the bride doesn’t even need to be at the ceremony for it to be underway, only two people that have witnesses to the bride draw up an agreement.
The two religions Buddhism and Islam have differing views on weddings and marriage as a whole. As Buddhism doesn’t have a particular ceremony, unlike Islam, there are few similarities between their beliefs on weddings. Overall, weddings are viewed as important at least to the couple because it bonds them together and allows them to start families, and provide peace, security, love and happiness to each other.