Believing that everything at the wedding went as it should, according to tradition, gives the couple confidence that nothing bad will befall their marriage. Those who believe in this should honour the ancient customs and follow them.
Everyone surely knows that the groom must not see his bride in her wedding dress before the ceremony – it brings bad luck. Nor should the bride look at herself in a mirror in her wedding dress. These days, however, there is a way round this custom: it is enough for the bride to take off, say, an earring or a bracelet, and then she can look in the mirror without fear.
The veil protected brides from envy and evil demons. This tradition dates back to ancient times.
Another superstition involves wearing something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue.
Few people know that in the old days, instead of rice or flowers, wheat was thrown at the couple as they left the church. It ensured fertility and prosperity in the marriage.
As many grains as land on the bride’s head, so many children she will have. The rest of the wheat should be carefully swept up and then placed near a cross or holy picture in the home. The bride should also put at least 3 grains of wheat in her shoe. So goes an age-old superstition.
Even in the 20th century, to conceive a child, young married couples would go out into the countryside and make love among the growing corn.
If the wedding fell in autumn or winter, 9 grains of wheat were placed under the sheet to ensure fertility.
Today the bride is carried over the threshold, but few know where this custom came from. In the past, the newlyweds could not step over the threshold of the wedding house if a dead person had once been carried out across it. So if there was no other way in, the groom would step on cushions while carrying his bride in his arms.
Another custom that has taken hold involves the mother or mother-in-law receiving bread; the couple each bite off a small piece and throw the rest over their shoulders. Then the groom would reach for salt and pour it into his jacket pocket, while the bride put it into the glove on her left hand.
Our distant ancestors saw the wedding night as a glowing fire. That is why bonfires were lit, or the newlyweds would gaze for a long time into the flames of the fireplace at home, imagining that their love would burn like that for centuries.
