(IN): Two minor girls married off to frogs

[Guest guest]

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/Two_minor_girls_married_off_to_frogs/ar\

ticleshow/3994895.cms

 

Two minor girls married off to frogs

17 Jan 2009, 2301 hrs IST, TNN

 

 

 

 

PUDUCHERRY: In a bizarre ritual, two minor girls, both seven, from the

remote Pallipudupet village in Tamil Nadu's Villupuram district were married

off to frogs on Friday night. The ceremony, an annual feature during the

Pongal (harvest) festival, is conducted " to prevent the outbreak of

mysterious diseases in the village''.

 

The girls, Vigneswari and Masiakanni, dressed up in traditional bridal

finery -- gilded sarees and gold jewellery -- married the frog 'princes' in

separate, elaborate ceremonies at two different temples in the presence of

hundreds of villagers.

 

Amidst chanting of vedic hymns, the temple priests garlanded the

brides<http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/Two_minor_girls_married_off_to_f\

rogs/articleshow/3994895.cms#>and

tied the magalsutras on behalf of the frogs pronouncing the two as wives of

the amphibians before the sacred fire at the auspicious hour.

 

The villagers threw themselves into the ceremonies with gusto. While

residents living in the western part of the village acted as relatives of

the brides and those from the eastern part play-acted as relatives of the

grooms. The ceremonies had all the usual elements of a traditional

marriage<http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/Two_minor_girls_married_off_to\

_frogs/articleshow/3994895.cms#>

including

a sumptuous feast.

 

However, unlike the fairy tale `Frog Prince', where the ugly toad turns into

a handsome prince when the princess kisses it, the Villupuram village belles

bid their

amphibiangrooms<http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/Two_minor_girls_married\

_off_to_frogs/articleshow/3994895.cms#>

goodbye

and lead a normal life thereafter. As for the terrified frogs, they are

thrown back into the temple ponds after the ceremony.

 

Earlier the 'relatives' of the brides came in a procession to the grooms'

houses in the eastern part of the village to fix the marriage and later went

to the temple pond to catch the frogs. The frog princes were tied to long

sticks decorated with garlands for the marriage ceremonies.

 

An elderly woman of the village said the ritual was practised traditionally

for several generations to ward off evil spirits and diseases from the

village.

 

Villupuram district collector R Palaniswamy told TOI that he had deputed a

team led by the district social welfare officer to visit the village and

submit a detailed report. " The district administration proposes to evolve

comprehensive schemes to motivate and enlighten the villagers against such

evil and ignorant practises, " he said. But all these years the strange

practice has been going on unchecked.

 

--

http://www.stopelephantpolo.com

http://www.freewebs.com/azamsiddiqui