Dejhoor (or Deji-Hor) is an dangling ear ornament worn by Kashmiri Pandits married women, from the day before they are wed in holy matrimony.[1]
The jewelry is placed in the cartilage piercing of the ear in a red thread and later the thread may be replaced with a gold chain known as an ath bought by her in-laws at their house. The thread or chain is about 8-12 inches. The bottom part is athur, which will be of gold, gold /silver threads or pearls, is added attached to the dejhoor. The ornament is not worn by Muslim Kashmiris [2] or any other Hindu community.[3]
It symbolizes union between two Kashmiri Pandit families. The dejhoor ornament is always hexagonal and it symbolizes a yantra denoting Shiva and Shakti.[4][5]
An interpretation of the term Dij is that it represents "dvija" and is thus the female counterpart of a yajnopavita in the Brahmin community.
Its function is similar to that of a mangal-sutra or sindoor in other regions of India. However a dejhoor is provided by the girl's family and worn even after the death of the husband.
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