Wild customs of India that shock Europeans

Indian culture is rich in rituals and rituals, here they exist for all occasions. Something you probably saw in the movies, or maybe you were lucky enough to see an Indian wedding with one eye while traveling. And it seems to us that these are vivid and beautiful rituals that demonstrate a deep reverence for their culture. But not everything is as it seems. Some ceremonies are unusual and even dangerous, and they will terrify the European. Here are the most incredible ones.

A wedding with a tree

In India, marriage to a tree is considered perfectly normal. The history of this tradition dates back several centuries.

True, they marry a tree in certain cases. So, according to customs, the eldest brother should be the first to marry. Well, if suddenly the first-born of the family does not get married, and the youngest meets his other half, then they arrange the wedding of his older brother with a tree. And they hold a real celebration, with all honors, without departing from tradition. After the holiday, a tree is cut down, saying that the man was widowed. Thus, the younger brother can freely marry, but the older wife will have a second wife.

And an Indian woman can marry a tree. But this rite has a different goal - to ward off evil spirits from the girl and her future husband, if she has obstacles to entering into an ordinary marriage. Most often this applies to those beauties who were born in a dysfunctional astrological period, it is believed that a girl can throw trouble on her chosen one. Because of this, no one wants to marry her. So the Indians are very wise, since they found such an unusual way out)

Worship of lingam and yoni

Lingam and yoni are symbols of the masculine and feminine, which also have a phallic meaning. And they are massively worshiped. So, some believe that the soul of a person is in yoni, and if a person concentrates on it, this will give him enlightenment. So in India there are many temples in which yoni worship.

Hundreds of temples are also dedicated to male statues. Lingam is worshiped by women suffering from infertility, as well as followers of Shiva.

Cow Urine - Elixir of Life

Of course, everyone knows that the cow in India is sacred. But sacred is not only a cow, but also ... her urine. It is believed that it has healing power, and many Indians with a glass of this umm ... morning drink begins. The elixir of life can be bought directly in the market or in a store in a bottle, even children bathe in it.

Sati: die with her husband

Sati is a funeral rite according to which a widow should be burnt at the funeral pyre together with her deceased spouse. The tradition is voluntary: widows in India were attacked for many centuries and were on the edge of the social ladder, they were considered unclean and guilty of surviving a husband. Therefore, to go on the last journey with a prematurely deceased spouse was sometimes the only way out. So the woman was beautifully dressed up, and she lay down next to her husband. Sometimes a widow herself even set fire to a fire. However, such a ritual was not always carried out on a voluntary basis: the widow was often tied so that she did not run away from the fire, and even broke her limbs. And speaking of the death toll, before the official ban in the 19th century, there were about 600-800 rituals annually. By the way, the ban was introduced several times over the last couple of centuries. But now, in some regions of India, widows participate in this rite. So, since 1947, about 40 cases of sati have been recorded in the country.

Young children are thrown from the temple tower

Another ancient and dangerous custom is to throw children from a height. This rite is performed in the Grishneshvor temple (Maharashtra state). From the tower of the temple, which is located at an altitude of about fifteen meters, young children are thrown. To visually present all the action, here is this temple:

Below, of course, they are caught on a stretched tarpaulin, but this rite does not become less dangerous. It is believed that those who have passed the ritual will have a happy life, they will be healthy, smart and successful. Mostly children under two years old are involved.