Sunrise ceremony on summer Solstice
This ceremony was designed from discussions with Julia and Stephen for their pre-wedding ritual. This is a spiritual exploration of life and birth following the journey of the Sun. Hindu traditional ritual was customized by Rita Pandey (reeta00@gmail.com) in collaboration with Vivekanand Pandey Vimal (vvimaldhye@gmail.com, https://sites.google.com/view/vivekanandpandeyvimal).
The ceremony began with walking to the open field where we can see the rising sun. Everyone walked without talking and maintained total silence. They immersed themselves in the flow of nature, the movement of animals, the chirping of birds and the aroma of the earth while waiting for the sunrise.
The silence, represent the Birth of Humanity, the beginning of thought and the genesis of destiny in the darkness of timelessness before the big bang.
We welcomed the sunrise by doing the surya namaskar. Then we offered water, flower, rice, and roli (red powder).
The sunrise represents the birth of Life before the existence of humanity. The surya namaskar is a collection of yoga asanas traditionally performed to welcome the sun. The offerings represent the primordial soup from which Life was conceived.
Next, we created fire which represents the birth of humanity and began to talk softly. Being able to talk, after silence, represents the awakening of humanity.
We made three offerings to the Fire:
1. Offering to the Sun while I recited the Gayatri mantra to guide our intellect towards enlightenment.
2. Offering for detachment-“This is not mine, I offer this to the fire; everything belongs to the fire/nature” (Rig Veda)
- Stephen offered cutting of his Beard which represents detachment. Hair is also a record of time, and shaving it represents a new birth and new journey.
3. Offering for ancestors- Our journeys are woven into the journeys of our ancestors. Remembering them at the moment of new beginning is vital for our development.
Every one received a dot on the forehead that was made out of sandal paste. This represents the awakening of third eye.
We all took one intention to carry out throughout the day and tied a red thread on the wrist as a reminder.
Vivek concluded the ceremony with blowing the Shankha which is the awakening sound of the universe and creates positive vibes. I chanted peace mantra.
We safely brought the fire back to main area where it was sustained throughout the day. We offered at noon and at the sunset also. This was motivated from the Trisandhya ceremony. Many perform this as their daily practice.
To complete the cycles of Energy from Light to Dark and back to Light, from Life to Death and back to Life, at sunset we will thank our ancestors while remembering our intentions and the transitory nature of life. During this time we will re-express the fire and untie the threads from the morning.
Julia's wedding.pdf