Mangala Dosha

Mangala Dosha (IAST: Maṅgala-doṣa), also known as Mangal Dosh because of schwa deletion, is a Hindu superstition,[1][2] prevalent in India. A person born under the influence of Mars (Mangala) as per Hindu astrology is said to have "mangala dosha" ("mars defect"); such a person is called a Mangalika (or Manglik). According to the superstition, the marriage between a Manglik and a non-Manglik is disastrous.[1]

People who believe in this superstition think that a Manglik person will cause their non-manglik spouse's early death. To prevent this disaster, the person may be married to a tree (such as banana or peepal), an animal, or an inanimate object. This mock marriage custom has different names depending on the "spouse" used in the ceremony; for example, if the person is married to a clay pot (kumbha), the ceremony is called "kumbh-vivah" ("wedding with a pot"). It is believed that all the evil effects resulting from the Mangala Dosha befall on the mock "spouse": the person is thus freed from the consequences of being a Mangalik, and their subsequent marriage to a human is expected to be a happy one.[3][4][5]

  1. ^ a b K. Anand (1965). "An Analysis of Matrimonial Advertisements". Sociological Bulletin. 14 (1). Indian Sociological Society: 69. doi:10.1177/0038022919650106. JSTOR 42864633.
  2. ^ Shalu Nigam (29 August 2019). Women and Domestic Violence Law in India: A Quest for Justice. Taylor & Francis. p. 291. ISBN 978-1-00-069203-7.
  3. ^ Eleni Gage (2018). Lucky in Love: Traditions, Customs, and Rituals to Personalize Your Wedding. Crown Publishing Group. pp. 34–35. ISBN 978-0-525-57390-6.
  4. ^ Roy Bainton (2016). The Mammoth Book of Superstition: From Rabbits' Feet to Friday the 13th. Little, Brown Book Group. pp. 312–313. ISBN 978-1-4721-3747-0.
  5. ^ Alisha Haridasani Gupta (9 July 2020). "The True Story of My Marriage to a Pot". New York Times. Retrieved 15 July 2020.