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Pilipinong Kasal
Centuries old Wedding traditions and wonderful Philippine customs make
Filipina Weddings (Kasalan) some of the most beautiful wondrous
celebrations on earth. The Filipino culture's high regard for the
sanctity of Marriage has given the Philippine Wedding Ceremony many
customs and traditions that will be new to the American Gentlemen
Given the dollar peso exchange rate, if for no other reason it is a
wise decision to have your wedding in the Philippines. Wedding Ceremony
styles, Wedding Dresses, and receptions can differ widely in style and
price, but all factors considered you will receive 10 times for your
money what you could afford here in the United States.
In the traditional Filipina Wedding the groom is expected to burden all
of the cost as opposed to American traditions were it is the Bride’s
family that is responsible for wedding exspences. This has given way
slightly to some couples sharing the cost as it has here also in the
United States.
A few of the cost that will seem unexpected but are in keeping with Filipino Wedding traditions are
1.
Hotel rooms for valued guest that journey from distant islands to
attend your Wedding. In my case it was the VIPs such as her eldest
brother and her Maid of honor
2.
Transportation for all those who are to attend locally. We rented
a large “Power Cruiser” (Bus) or what would be a fully customized bus
complete with sound system and custom paint.
3.
Bride’s Maids dresses and Barongs for the groom’s men are usually
available for rent at the Wedding boutiques. Unlike here in the US
where many of the Bride's maids will purchase their own dress to keep
after the Wedding. Some will not be able to afford the exspence and
instead opt to rent them.
As customary with Filipinas she will be wearing her wedding ring on the
right hand and not the left as here in the United States. For the
Filipina, the Bible has stated “the Son sits at the right hand of the
Father”. So she will sit on the left and wear her ring on the right.
This tradition completely blindsided me as I had already presented my
fiancé’ with a beautiful engagement set and placed it on her left ring
finger. Just 4 days before the wedding she explained to me I would need
to buy her a wedding ring now for her right hand.
Filipino Wedding Ceremonies have some very wonderful traditions
different from the typical Wedding Ceremonies here in the United States.
There will be 3 sets of sponsors for the wedding couple, Ninang (male)
and Ninong (female). They are usually successful well respected couples
choosen by the bride. They will have many task and responsibilities
during the actual Wedding ceremony.
Veil Ceremony
The first set of sponsors are responsible for the pinning of the
Bride's Veil to the shoulder of the Groom. This is to symbolize the
wedding couple's clothes as one.
Cord Ceremony
The second set of sponsors will place the ceremonial wedding cord to
"Tie" the Bride and Groom together during the actual Wedding ceremony.
This is to symbolize the spiritual bonding of the 2 souls.
Candle Ceremony
Then the last pair of sponsors will light two candles on either side of
a unity candle, which the wedding couple getting married light together.
Arrhae or 13 Golden Coins
Lastly, the groom presents his bride the “Arrhea” also known as the 13
golden coins. They represent Love, Trust, Commitment, Respect, Joy,
Happiness, Harmony, Wisdom, Wholeness, Nurturing, Caring, Cooperation,
and Peace. The Arrhae will be blessed by the priest for a life of
faithfulness and prosperity and presented to the Bride. The "Arrhae"
and the Wedding Rings are usually carried by 2 small children, a boy
and a girl during the wedding march. The Wedding Dress Couture or
seamstres will also create 2 small matching pillows for the
presentation of the Arrhae and Wedding Rings.
Do not worry about the cost of the "Arrhae" too much as I did. These
are not actual Gold Coins. Often times token 13 golden coins "Arrhae"
are provided almost free by the jewelery shop you buy the Wedding ring
from in the Philippines
You will also find some Filipino superstitions associated with Wedding
Ceremonies and Newlywed couples. The Bride will not wear her Wedding
Dress before the ceremony or it will bring bad luck. Also if a bride
wants her husband to agree to her every whim she will step on his foot
on the way to the altar. This according to superstition will place him
under her spell of“Lihi”.
One of the most distinctive qualities of a Filipina Wedding are the
cathedrals. They are HUGE. Some capable of holding as many as 600 or
700 people. Often they are gigantic architectural wonders built of
concrete and stone with huge arches and towering steeples some times
100s of years old. You would have trouble finding a comparable
structure in the United States.
Wedding Receptions are also very affordable in the Philippines. My
Wedding Reception included buffet catering for 75 persons, 2 cases
wine, 4 cases soda pop, 3 Delux suites at the resort, banquet hall
complete with DJ, a Lechon (whole roast pig) all at a luxury Beach
front resort for less the $1000 Us dollars.
When we were finished with all the official toasting of the newly weds
(about 3 hours), we simply asked the resort staff to move the whole
party pool side where our reception lasted late into the night. Make no
mistake about it Nothing can quite compare to Filipina Weddings and
Wedding Receptions |