Recommended Traditional Thai Wedding Ceremony by EB Wedding
Nowadays, weddings have been adjusted to be more concise, simple, and often completed within a single day. This is true for the order of the traditional Thai wedding ceremony, which, while modernized, still retains its beauty and customs. The traditional sequence of a Thai wedding has been preserved, making it a memorable occasion.
To make planning a wedding easier, we would like to introduce 7 steps of a traditional Thai wedding ceremony, covering every step with complete details. (The order of ceremonies may vary slightly depending on family traditions.)
1. The Monk Ceremony
For good fortune in married life, the first step in a traditional Thai wedding is often a Buddhist ceremony, following the belief of "making merit together for future lives." The ceremony usually begins by inviting nine monks to perform the rituals, which proceed in the following order:
The couple lights incense and candles to pay respects to the Triple Gem, requests the five precepts, and receives the blessing. They then present a holy water bowl and candles to the monks, who will bless the water to be used later in the ceremonial pouring of holy water.
After the monks finish chanting blessings, the alms-giving ceremony begins. In this part, the couple uses the same ladle to jointly offer food into the monks' bowls, symbolizing making merit together for future lives. This act represents their wish to remain together forever.
Once the alms-giving ceremony is completed, the offering of food begins. It starts with the offering of rice to the Buddha, followed by presenting the meal to the monks.
After the monks finish their meal, the couple offers the four necessities to the monks, performs the water-pouring ritual to transfer merit, and receives holy water from the monks. They then bow three times to the monks, marking the completion of the Buddhist ceremony.
2. Khan Maak Procession
It is a ceremony sequence that will create the most color and fun for the guests. The bride and groom must prepare the main and secondary trays for the guests to use. To make the procession of the groom's hand in marriage fun and most impressive, couples should talk to their guests beforehand about who will hold what and where to stand. The steps are as follows:
Set up the procession with a distance from the bride's house or the ceremony venue to allow time for singing, playing, dancing. The procession should start with the main tray, the dowry tray, the engagement ring tray, the incense and candle tray (for the groom), the banana tree tray, the sugarcane tree tray, and the secondary tray of the procession, which consists of sweet and savory food and auspicious desserts.
The procession begins with loud cheers and music as it moves toward the bride's house. As the procession approaches, the volume is lowered to allow the groom's representative to negotiate passage through the symbolic Bronze Gate, Silver Gate, and Gold Gate. Small envelopes of money are given as tokens to pass through each gate.
When the procession arrives at the door, the bride's side should prepare a young girl to welcome them or unmarried women to hold a betel tray (a tray for inviting the groom's betel tray) to welcome them and invite the groom's betel tray into the house.
3. The Engagement
After the Khan Maak Procession is complete, the master of ceremonies will take the procession to arrange it neatly on the ceremonial table and then invite the parents or respected elders of both parties along with the elders to sit in the ceremony, with the bride's side on the left and the groom's side on the right. Then proceed with the ceremony as follows.
The master of ceremonies introduces the groom’s family to the bride’s family. Then, the bride's mother is invited to count the dowry and engagement gifts. Once the dowry counting ceremony is completed, the bride’s family grants permission for the groom to go and bring the bride to join the ceremony.
After the bride joins the ceremony, both the groom and bride should bow to their parents. They start by bowing three times to the groom's parents, followed by three times to the bride's parents. Afterward, the couple sits in the center to continue with the next part of the ceremony.
The master of ceremonies will invite the bride's mother to tie the dowry tray securely and lift it onto her shoulder. She is expected to act as if the dowry is very large and heavy After this, the dowry is taken to be safely stored in a room.
4. Engagement and Ring Exchange Ceremony
Engagement ceremony, this ring exchange is considered another romantic moment of the wedding. When the auspicious time comes, the groom will be the one to put the engagement ring on the bride first. When receiving the engagement ring, the bride must bow down to worship at the groom's lap. When finished, the bride must put the engagement ring on the bride and do the same, the engagement ceremony of both families is complete.
5. Respect Ceremony
Respect Ceremony is where the bride and groom show respect and formally introduce themselves to both families. Typically, they start by honoring the groom's family first. The couple proceeds in order of seniority, paying respects in the following manner:
The couple will bring incense sticks to pay respects to their elders, and say a blessing for good fortune. Then, they will tie a sacred thread around the wrists of the bride and groom to welcome them.
Couples will give incense sticks and candles to the elders. When they receive them, they will give gifts of money, gold, and valuables for the bride and groom to use as capital to start their married life.
6. Water Pouring
At the auspicious time as determined, the bride and groom light incense and candles to pay homage to the Triple Gem, the bride seated on the left and the groom on the right. Ensure all necessary items are ready, including hand cushions, a conch shell for pouring water, and a tray to catch the sacred water.
The first step of the ceremony involves the host of the event placing garlands around the necks of the bride and groom and tying the twin-loop headpiece on both of them. The host then pours holy water from the conch shell onto their hands while offering blessings for their married life. Once the host finishes, the parents of both the bride and groom, followed by the elders, family members, and friends, take turns pouring the water and giving their blessings in the same manner.
7. Bridal Bed Ceremony
The bridal bed ceremony is a tradition believed to bring good fortune to the newlyweds' married life. The bride’s parents invite a married couple who have never divorced and, importantly, have children, to perform the ritual of preparing the bed and arranging the pillows. This symbolizes passing on blessings for a prosperous and harmonious marriage to the bride and groom.
The two elders arrange the bed and pillows neatly, they place auspicious items on the bed, which typically include the following:
- 1 grinding stone
- 1 walking stick
- 1 wax gourd
- 1 for a bag of beans and a bag of sesame seeds
- A set of popped rice and flowers
- Silver and gold coins
- 1 white or gray cat figurine
- 1 white chicken figurine
- 1 water bowl
- A holy water bowl with a sprinkler
While arranging the bed, the two elders will give words of blessing and advice for a long-lasting married life. When everything is arranged, the two elders will arrange the pillows close together and lie down as an example before getting up to set an example for the bride and groom to follow. This completes the bed-making and pillow-arranging ceremony.
When all the Thai wedding ceremonies are completed, there will be a wedding reception ceremony, which the bride and groom can choose according to their convenience. During the reception, it will mostly be about socializing and there will be no formal order. Lastly, if you are searching for a perfect wedding venue, don't forget to use EventBanana!
