Bovine marriage under Vedic rules

A newly married couple -- a bull and a cow - was blessed by a large number of guests
blowing conch shells and playing music after the marriage was solemnised at a tastefully decorated alter.

A pan chewing priest poured ghee in course of performing yagna and chanted sanskrit slokas while holy scriptures including Hanuman Chalisa, Ramacharitamanas and Panchamahayagna were read out in the Kedareswar temple at Berhampur on Sunday.

After solemnisation of the rituals, the invitees were treated to tasty vegeterian lunch by the host Hari Mohan Sahu. 

Septuagenerian Sarojini, wife of Sahu, had a wish to marry off a cow with a bull to conclude her long years of service to Gomata (cow). "I have been serving the Gomata for the last over 50 years. Now that I am old, I want to conclude the service by marrying off a cow with a bull," she said.

Pandit Bipin Chandra Tripathy Sharma, the priest who performed the marriage, said it was done as per vedic scriptures though the 'slokas' read out during the occasion were different.

As the animals could not be physically brought upto to the marriage alter, replicas of the bride and the groom made of silver, were kept, the priest said adding "the bull is
considered as the Dharamapurusha and the cow as the Adimata."

The couple covered with new clothes with vermilion paste on their head was seen at a distance.

Tripathy Sharma, said he had performed at least three such marriages in that particular temple during the last five years. The first one was held to invoke the rain god when
drought-like situation prevailed in the district while the second was done by a person to get peace in his life, he added.

Local civil officials said they did not interfere in such rituals, however bizarre that might be.