The Hindu : Other States / Bihar News : Tradition finds 'unsuitable' match in modernity

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Jun 22, 2004

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Other States - Bihar

Tradition finds 'unsuitable' match in modernity

Madhubani, Bihar, June 21. In an age when marriages are settled through Internet and solemnised mid-air, hundreds of Maithili Brahmins in tune with tradition have started congregating in an open field at Saurath village here to find ``suitable'' matches for their children.

The 700-year-old custom of `Saurath Sabha' has, however, fallen prey to the onslaught of modernity and has not been able to protect itself completely from rising consumerism.

This is evident from increasing instances of parents of bridegrooms wanting to settle marriages with hefty amounts of money, and the changing attitude of the youths who are not willing to sit under the open sky in order to get married.

Incidents of parents being cheated at the Saurath Sabha have also dissuaded many others from participating in the mass-marriage congregation, while special buses to the event have been discontinued since long.

However, these shortcomings have still not been able to deter the guardians of thousands of eligible boys and girls who come together to settle the marriages of their wards at the 10-day-long Saurath Sabha.

The registrars of the 10-day mass-marriage congregation said they expected settlement of at least 2,000 marriages this year, but admitted that the number of people attending the Sabha was on the decline.

Nearly one lakh Maithili Brahmins used to attend Saurath Sabha about 20 to 25 years back but the number has come down considerably over the years, they said.

Located near the Madhubani district headquarters, Saurath Sabha commenced from June 18 and is being organised in an area covering 22 bighas of land that was donated by the Maharaja of Darbhanga.

Historical records reveal that the Saurath Sabha dates back to 1326 when the formal registration of all Mithila Brahmins also started.

The Sabha owes its origins to the fact that parents had to cover long distances in inhospitable terrain to find a suitable match for their children as the Mithila region was criss-crossed by rivers and their tributaries. These difficulties prompted people to come up with a custom, which could make the task of guardians of prospective bridegrooms and brides easier and, hence, the Saurath Sabha came into being.

First, this marriage congregation was organised at Sambhaul village on Madhubani-Pandaul Road. After nearly 100 years, the venue was shifted to Saurath.

Saurath Sabha is only open to prospective bridegrooms. After getting the consent from parents of prospective bridegrooms, parents of brides visit offices of registrars which certify their eligibility to settle marriages.

Registrars went through the `family tree' of both parties to verify that the bride's family did not have any blood or nuptial relationship with that of the grooms side, up to five and seven generations respectively. Subsequently, the authority letter for the settlement of the marriage is given.

-- UNI

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Tradition finds 'unsuitable' match in modernity