Kausar Iqbal love to share our rich eastern culture and traditions. Here we will share our artisans story & crafts techniques
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Mangni or Engagement first ceremony
In a typical arranged wedding the first ceremony is a proposal party at bride’s house, where the groom's parents and family elders formally ask the bride's parents for her hand in marriage. The families offer special prayer for the new couple then tea and refreshments are served. Sometime as a family tradition, the bride may be gifted with an jewelry or a dress and the groom were also presented with same type of gifts.
Then come the formal ceremony to mark the engagement of the couple called as An engagement (Mangni) It is usually a small ceremony that takes place in the presence of a few close members of would-be bride's & groom’s families. Rings and Jora (dress) are exchanged between the two families. Traditionally, the bride and the groom were not seated together and the rings are placed on the bride's finger by the groom's mother or sister and specail garlands are given to the bride with a bites of sweet offer to her by seven married women in the groom family. In recent years however, segregated functions have become a rarity and rings are usually exchanged between the couple.
Special prayer and blessings for the couple are then recited and the wedding date is also decided by the elders.
Then come the formal ceremony to mark the engagement of the couple called as An engagement (Mangni) It is usually a small ceremony that takes place in the presence of a few close members of would-be bride's & groom’s families. Rings and Jora (dress) are exchanged between the two families. Traditionally, the bride and the groom were not seated together and the rings are placed on the bride's finger by the groom's mother or sister and specail garlands are given to the bride with a bites of sweet offer to her by seven married women in the groom family. In recent years however, segregated functions have become a rarity and rings are usually exchanged between the couple.
Special prayer and blessings for the couple are then recited and the wedding date is also decided by the elders.
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Sunday, February 20, 2011
traditional Pakistani wedding
Traditional Pakistani Wedding Customs
Marriages in Pakistan are celebrated with a great deal of fervor, pomp and style hence it has evolved in an occasion of absolute glitz glance. As a result elaborate planning and preparation needs to be put in to fulfill every girl’s lifelong dream of being married in the most memorable and spectacular way possible.
Marriage in Islam in both a solemn part that is to be respected by two partners also an act of devotion to God. A Nikah is performed that is an Islamic official wedding ceremony that usually takes place at the bride’s home. Nikah is attended by close family members, relatives, and friends of groom and bride. The marriage contract (nikah-naama) is registered with city government, it’s containing several terms and conditions that are to be respected by the bride and groom. It can include the bride’s right to divorce her husband, Nikah-naama specifies Mehr, the monetary amount the groom will give the bride. The Mehr guarantees the bride's freedom within the marriage, and acts as the bride's safety net.
The fathers of groom and bride (waris) act as witnesses to the wedding or the senior male, brother or uncle performs the ceremony. An Islamic clerk (called maulana or maulvi in Urdu) reads the prophetic sermon for marriage which also consists of selected verses from the Quran and waits for the Ijab-e-Qubul (proposal and acceptance) of wedding. Usually, the groom's side makes proposal and the bride's side conveys her assent. Maulvi and witnesses (gavah) take the nikah-naama to the bride and read it to her aloud. She accepts the nikah-naama saying "qabool kiya," and signs it. The nikah-naama is then taken to the groom and reads aloud to him. He also accepts saying "qabool kiya" and signs the document. The maulvi and witnesses all sign the nikah-naama contract and the wedding becomes legalAfter the wedding is legally announced, part favor filled with dates and misri are served from the groom's family. The groom is then escorted to his bride for further ceremonies. .
Arranged marriages have been an integral part of Pakistani society for years and are still prevalent. Marriages are often arranged within the family or within the same tribe however nowadays, love marriages are slowly becoming more common and acceptable in Pakistan. Arranged marriages in Pakistan often take long periods of time to finalize. The time from preparation until wedding day may be more than a year. When the wedding date approaches, all close relatives are invited for a typical Pakistani wedding that requires a considerable budget in order to accommodate them. In some cases, wedding dates are even postponed until the important relatives are able to arrive to the location of the reception from abroad. The wedding customs and celebrations also differ significantly depending on the geographical location as well as the families involved. However, a typical Pakistani wedding has at least three main customs involving the Mehndi or Henna ceremony (Rasme Henna), the vows or the Nikah which is a part of the actual wedding or Shadi ceremony and a Valima offered by the groom's family.
Marriages in Pakistan are celebrated with a great deal of fervor, pomp and style hence it has evolved in an occasion of absolute glitz glance. As a result elaborate planning and preparation needs to be put in to fulfill every girl’s lifelong dream of being married in the most memorable and spectacular way possible.
Marriage in Islam in both a solemn part that is to be respected by two partners also an act of devotion to God. A Nikah is performed that is an Islamic official wedding ceremony that usually takes place at the bride’s home. Nikah is attended by close family members, relatives, and friends of groom and bride. The marriage contract (nikah-naama) is registered with city government, it’s containing several terms and conditions that are to be respected by the bride and groom. It can include the bride’s right to divorce her husband, Nikah-naama specifies Mehr, the monetary amount the groom will give the bride. The Mehr guarantees the bride's freedom within the marriage, and acts as the bride's safety net.
The fathers of groom and bride (waris) act as witnesses to the wedding or the senior male, brother or uncle performs the ceremony. An Islamic clerk (called maulana or maulvi in Urdu) reads the prophetic sermon for marriage which also consists of selected verses from the Quran and waits for the Ijab-e-Qubul (proposal and acceptance) of wedding. Usually, the groom's side makes proposal and the bride's side conveys her assent. Maulvi and witnesses (gavah) take the nikah-naama to the bride and read it to her aloud. She accepts the nikah-naama saying "qabool kiya," and signs it. The nikah-naama is then taken to the groom and reads aloud to him. He also accepts saying "qabool kiya" and signs the document. The maulvi and witnesses all sign the nikah-naama contract and the wedding becomes legalAfter the wedding is legally announced, part favor filled with dates and misri are served from the groom's family. The groom is then escorted to his bride for further ceremonies. .
Arranged marriages have been an integral part of Pakistani society for years and are still prevalent. Marriages are often arranged within the family or within the same tribe however nowadays, love marriages are slowly becoming more common and acceptable in Pakistan. Arranged marriages in Pakistan often take long periods of time to finalize. The time from preparation until wedding day may be more than a year. When the wedding date approaches, all close relatives are invited for a typical Pakistani wedding that requires a considerable budget in order to accommodate them. In some cases, wedding dates are even postponed until the important relatives are able to arrive to the location of the reception from abroad. The wedding customs and celebrations also differ significantly depending on the geographical location as well as the families involved. However, a typical Pakistani wedding has at least three main customs involving the Mehndi or Henna ceremony (Rasme Henna), the vows or the Nikah which is a part of the actual wedding or Shadi ceremony and a Valima offered by the groom's family.
Friday, February 18, 2011
Friday, February 4, 2011
Tea (Chai Culture)
Tea as its call in Urdu CHAI is traditional beverage in Pakistan and people are addict to this in such a extent that a day start with cup of tea, in a average family morning and evening tea is a must some family even drink tea after every meal. Whenever a guest arrives it’s a family tradition to offer hot tea with snack like biscuits, Samosas. Pakistanis are very hospitable by nature and love to entertain guest to their best. It’s a saying that best tea you get is at the trucks stand on the heavy way and they are called Chai Dhabas.
We are talking about chai culture so let me give some detail that the most basic form of chai is the black tea with milk and sugar. So we can say that There is no fixed recipe or preparation method for black chai and many families have their own special versions of the tea which make good blend but the key to make good black tea is to leave the tea leaves or mixture in the hot/boiling water long enough to get the flavor of the tea but not too long. Excessive exposure of tea to heat will release the bitter tannins in the tea leaves. Brewing the tea is a secret to make good tea so always use a teapot to brew the tea. Now day’s people are too busy and usually use teas bags but tea leaves have its own flavor. In my family tea time is very special as it’s the time we share each other company and discussion on different topics is a routine of the day.
There are many type of tea variations come to the table of Pakistani like Doodh patti chai or Pakki chai,Sulimain chai or Masala wali Chai,adhiya means half milk and water,subz(green )chai, Ginger(Adrak wali)chai,Qehwa & Kashmir chai. Let me share my family recipes for different type of teas
Doodh Patti Chai
21/2 cup of milk
2teaspoon tea leaves
2pieces of Cardamoms (choti illachi or green illachi)
Sugar to taste
Method: boil the milk on low flame then while boiling put the tea leaves and let it simmer by adding the cardamom which give a good aroma ,stir it a little and allow to brew a little then strained the tea leaves and pour in a mug or teacup and enjoy with rusks called in Urdu papa.
Green tea has a different kind of leaves from black tea it’s usually served after meal. But green tea you simply add leaves to hot boiling water and simmer a little then add lemon or sugar to it and drink hot.
Adrak Chai or Ginger chai
It’s good for stomach aches and usually given to children when they are sick.
1/2inch piece of gingercrushed,3teaspoon tea leaves,1/2teaspoon aniseed(snouf)!tablespoon basil leaves(tulsi ke patti)2/3cup milk,11/2cup water, sugar to taste,
Put water in a small pot on medium heat add ginger, basil, aniseed .bring the water to a boil. Reduce heat and let it simmer for 5 minutes with pot partially covered. Add the sugar, tea and milk to the mixture .boil a little then remove from heat strain and serve hot.
Kashmiri Chai, it’s a pink milk tea with pistachios and almond on top .mostly served in wedding or during winter season.
Method for preparation
1tablespoon green tea
4cups water
4ilachi or cardamom
Baking soda pinch
1/2litre milk
Sugar to taste
heat the water with green tea leaves until only two cups left in the pan add one cup of water more and keep boiling until it turn pink color add illachi and soda and simmer a little then remove from heat ,use a strainer and strains the tea water keep a side. In a separate pan heat milk mix the water mixture together and simmer a little then add pista and badam(almond)on top of your cups and serve hot.(tip the mixture of tea is pour into one mug to another mug many times as this will enhance the taste)
Masala wali Chai
11/2 cup water
11/2inch stick of cinnamon
8 cardamoms (choti illachi/green one)
6whole cloves
1/4fresh ginger root or 1/4tsp ginger powder
2/3cup of milk
6teaspoon sugar
3tsp of tea leaves (chai ke Patti)
Simmer water with all the spices for 10 minutes on slow heat then add milk, sugar and tea leaves and simmer again for five minutes remove from heat and strain the tea chai and enjoy but be careful as it very hot cup of tea.
We are talking about chai culture so let me give some detail that the most basic form of chai is the black tea with milk and sugar. So we can say that There is no fixed recipe or preparation method for black chai and many families have their own special versions of the tea which make good blend but the key to make good black tea is to leave the tea leaves or mixture in the hot/boiling water long enough to get the flavor of the tea but not too long. Excessive exposure of tea to heat will release the bitter tannins in the tea leaves. Brewing the tea is a secret to make good tea so always use a teapot to brew the tea. Now day’s people are too busy and usually use teas bags but tea leaves have its own flavor. In my family tea time is very special as it’s the time we share each other company and discussion on different topics is a routine of the day.
There are many type of tea variations come to the table of Pakistani like Doodh patti chai or Pakki chai,Sulimain chai or Masala wali Chai,adhiya means half milk and water,subz(green )chai, Ginger(Adrak wali)chai,Qehwa & Kashmir chai. Let me share my family recipes for different type of teas
Doodh Patti Chai
21/2 cup of milk
2teaspoon tea leaves
2pieces of Cardamoms (choti illachi or green illachi)
Sugar to taste
Method: boil the milk on low flame then while boiling put the tea leaves and let it simmer by adding the cardamom which give a good aroma ,stir it a little and allow to brew a little then strained the tea leaves and pour in a mug or teacup and enjoy with rusks called in Urdu papa.
Green tea has a different kind of leaves from black tea it’s usually served after meal. But green tea you simply add leaves to hot boiling water and simmer a little then add lemon or sugar to it and drink hot.
Adrak Chai or Ginger chai
It’s good for stomach aches and usually given to children when they are sick.
1/2inch piece of gingercrushed,3teaspoon tea leaves,1/2teaspoon aniseed(snouf)!tablespoon basil leaves(tulsi ke patti)2/3cup milk,11/2cup water, sugar to taste,
Put water in a small pot on medium heat add ginger, basil, aniseed .bring the water to a boil. Reduce heat and let it simmer for 5 minutes with pot partially covered. Add the sugar, tea and milk to the mixture .boil a little then remove from heat strain and serve hot.
Kashmiri Chai, it’s a pink milk tea with pistachios and almond on top .mostly served in wedding or during winter season.
Method for preparation
1tablespoon green tea
4cups water
4ilachi or cardamom
Baking soda pinch
1/2litre milk
Sugar to taste
heat the water with green tea leaves until only two cups left in the pan add one cup of water more and keep boiling until it turn pink color add illachi and soda and simmer a little then remove from heat ,use a strainer and strains the tea water keep a side. In a separate pan heat milk mix the water mixture together and simmer a little then add pista and badam(almond)on top of your cups and serve hot.(tip the mixture of tea is pour into one mug to another mug many times as this will enhance the taste)
Masala wali Chai
11/2 cup water
11/2inch stick of cinnamon
8 cardamoms (choti illachi/green one)
6whole cloves
1/4fresh ginger root or 1/4tsp ginger powder
2/3cup of milk
6teaspoon sugar
3tsp of tea leaves (chai ke Patti)
Simmer water with all the spices for 10 minutes on slow heat then add milk, sugar and tea leaves and simmer again for five minutes remove from heat and strain the tea chai and enjoy but be careful as it very hot cup of tea.
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