💍 Vivah Sanskar
Also called Vivah Sanskaar · Hindu wedding pooja · विवाह संस्कार
Vivah Sanskar is the wedding ceremony itself — the sixteenth and, in most families, the most elaborate of the Hindu sanskaras. What binds the marriage is not the reception or the guest list but a sequence of rites performed before the sacred fire, in which two families are joined and the couple make their vows to each other with Agni as witness.
Pick a date and time and pay — our team assigns a verified pandit who specialises in this ritual.
The main rites of the ceremony
The ceremony opens with Ganesh puja and the punyahavachanam, followed by the var mala exchange and the couple being seated at the mandap. Kanyadaan comes next, in which the bride's parents give her hand to the groom, and Panigrahan, in which he accepts it with the mantras that state what he undertakes.
The vivah havan is then lit. Around it come the mangal pheras — four or seven circuits depending on the tradition of the family — each dedicated to one of the aims of a shared life: dharma, artha, kama and moksha. Saptapadi, the seven steps taken together, is the rite that legally and ritually completes the marriage. Sindoor daan and mangalsutra dharan follow, then the showing of Dhruva, the pole star, as an image of constancy, and finally the ashirvad of the elders.
Traditions differ, so tell us yours
Vivah vidhi varies a great deal by region and community. The number of pheras, the order of kanyadaan relative to the havan, whether the ceremony includes Gath Bandhan or Shilarohan, which family songs accompany which rite — all of this differs between a Uttar Pradesh household, a Maharashtrian one and a Bengali one, and between sampradayas within each.
When you book, tell us the community and the vidhi your family follows, and any customs you want observed or left out. We assign a pandit who performs that vidhi, not a generic one — and he will speak with the family before the wedding day rather than arriving to find out.
Planning and timings
A full Vedic wedding runs around five hours, and the muhurat frequently falls late at night or before dawn. The pandit fixes the exact lagna after matching the couple's birth details, and will tell you which rites can be moved and which must fall inside the muhurat window.
Book early. Wedding season concentrates thousands of ceremonies into a handful of auspicious dates, and a pandit who performs your family's vidhi is far easier to arrange two months ahead than two weeks. Related ceremonies — Sagai, Haldi, Ganesh puja before the wedding — can be booked alongside so the same pandit sees the family through.
Vivah Sanskar — common questions
How long does a Vedic wedding ceremony take?
About five hours for the full Vivah Sanskar. It can be shortened where a family wishes, but saptapadi, kanyadaan and the vivah havan are the rites that complete the marriage and are not omitted.
Can the pandit perform our specific community's vidhi?
Yes. Tell us the community and sampradaya when you book and we assign a pandit who performs that vidhi, and who will speak with the family beforehand about the customs you want observed.
Do you provide the mandap and samagri?
The pandit brings the ritual articles and sends a samagri list in advance. The mandap, seating and decoration are arranged by the family or their event organiser.
How far in advance should we book a wedding pandit?
Two months or more during wedding season. Auspicious dates are heavily booked, and early notice is what lets us match a pandit to your family's vidhi rather than to the calendar.
Ready to book your Vivah Sanskar?
Choose your date and time and pay online. We arrange the pandit and confirm your booking.
Book this pooja →Other poojas
Griha Pravesh Pooja · Satyanarayan Katha · Navagraha Shanti Pooja · Rudrabhishek Pooja · Ganesh Puja · Mahamrityunjaya Jaap · Bhoomi Pujan
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