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Marriage
Marriage as an institution is recognised by all the tribes and castes
of Orissa. Marriage is not an occasion for happiness in
Orissa. When the bride takes leave of her parents and elders and companions, sorrowful verses are recited dolefully by the bride and
sometimes by others of whom she takes leave. These verses, recited while
weeping are known as 'Kandana'. Many folk tales and folk songs take as
their theme the day-to-day family scene in a typical joint house hold. The newly-wed
young bride must not only cater to the varying tastes and humour the
changing moods of the various in-laws, but also observe the family
customs, rituals, fasts and other observances peculiar to her husband's
family and village.
Some of the forms of marriage prevalent among the tribes are
marriage
by capture or institutionalised force (often a mock capture arranged
by agreement between the parties), marriage by intrusion when a partner intrudes
into the family of the unwilling partner or unrelenting parents-in
-law, or marriage by elopement when two lovers elope into the forest or to some
distant place because their marriage was opposed by their relatives, marriage by
agreeing to serve in the bride's parents house either on a trial basis or
under a custom of bondage. In most of the tribal groups the very fact of living
together of a man and woman through any of the traditionally recognised manners
constitutes a marriage for all social and economic purposes.
Before marriage,
in
some tribal communities such as the Juang, the Bhuniyan, the Ho, the Kond, the
Oraon, the Bondo and the Gadaba, youth dormitories offered
opportunities for a lot of sex-play and experimentation in companionship. Pre-marital sex relationship is also known to be common among the
Santhals, the
Saora and certain other tribal groups. Even then this pre-marital
sex is disciplined and institutionalised through observance of certain
social taboos on sexual contact between girls and boys belonging to the same
clan. But faithfulness in marriage at least on part of the wife is
insisted upon and rigidly enforced. All over tribal India, divorce is
granted on persistent cases of adultery and the wronged husband, often
also the wronged wife, has the right to claim compensation or restoration
of the money and goods given to the other party at the time of marriage.
In the former princely states,
as also in the zamindaries till their
abolition soon after independence, concubinage was a recognised custom. The
concubine or 'poili' or 'rakhni' was given a
social status much lower than that of the married wife, but placed higher
above the prostitutes. The children of the concubine were customarily
given some share in the property of the father and the concubine had the right
of maintains from her man and her sons and step-sons. The custom was so
widespread that it was often institutionalised.
In tribal
societies or among the Hindu peasants in Orissa,
to
remain unmarried is a curse, not only for the boy or the girl, but
also for the parents and the other relatives. Similarly widowhood is
considered as a punishment for some serious sin committed either in this
life or in the previous life. For, among the higher castes in Orissa, widows were
not given in marriage and had to undergo a number of fasts and
penances and a veritable self-denial, closing their eyes to all the
pleasures of life. They were not treated well either in their father's
house or in their husband's, as they were considered inauspicious
persons and hence a burden. The widows among the so called lower castes and among the
tribals did not have to face such an ordeal, provided they were of a
marriageable age and if they were not considered witches. Widow remarriage
was usually practiced apart for the inheritance of the elder brother's
widow by one of the younger brothers.
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