A tale of sparkling bangles
image 2
Well, bangle is the ornament which adorns the arm. They are traditionally a part of the Solah Shringar of Indian brides. It is mandatory for the newly-wed brides and the would-be-brides to wear bangles made of glass, gold or other metals as they signify the long life of the husband. They also signify good fortune and prosperity. They are traditionally considered a significant accessory of the married woman.
image 3
The tradition of wearing bangles in India started way back in ancient times and the figurine of a dancing girl wearing bangles on her left arm, excavated from Mohenjadaro, is a proof to this... Bangles were then made from sea shell, copper, bronze, gold, agate....
image 4
Even today, women love to wear bangles in various colors and types to enhance their feminine grace and beauty. image 5
In our house, on the day of Gowri, the first day of the Gowri-Ganesha festival, as a part of the traditional ritual every female member in the household was made to wear the bangles of their choice bought from the bangle seller who would come hawking his ware from house to house.
He would carry his tinkling luminous wares strung on threads and held together on his shoulders...
We girls would be fascinated by their colourful display... the shiny, bright, delicate, rainbow tinted that glowed like circles of light when the rays of light descended on them... Each time he came, we were eager to see what new type would he be carrying. image 6
image 7
On his arrival, a reed mat would be spread in the verandah and each person before getting to choose would make a survey of his ware touching it for the any sharp edges and then for the uneven surfaces and later on for the sheen and the degree of transparency... The bangle seller had enough stuff to cater from the toddlers to the youth to the doyenne to the wizened hands that had seen the time of life... He would make sure everyone was satisfied with their choice...
image 8
Each of us took turns to sit before him and he would press our hands sideways to determine the size and gauging and choosing the right size he would slip on our choice into our arms with the ease... That was the time I introduced to the application of even number counting in reality... He would always count in even numbers and if ever we took just one piece we could get a pat on our wrist... image 9
Maybe it was his way of telling us the spiritual and symbolic significance of the bangles and this simple ritual... Once we had our bangles resting on our arms we would jiggle it and our glee at the resonating tinkle, twinkle and sheen, would make his tanned face with askew teeth, alight with a gratified smile... Each one of us would bow to him before we rose from the mat... He was a simple man who loved his work and was doing it with utmost love and care and... customer satisfaction was his priority... Once all of us were done, mother would give him the cash along with some raw rice and fruits in gratitude for his services... Then we would ask him the inevitable question already knowing the answer as to when would he come next... He would predictably say Deepavali and our face would light up like the diyas itself...
Maybe it was his way of telling us the spiritual and symbolic significance of the bangles and this simple ritual... Once we had our bangles resting on our arms we would jiggle it and our glee at the resonating tinkle, twinkle and sheen, would make his tanned face with askew teeth, alight with a gratified smile... Each one of us would bow to him before we rose from the mat... He was a simple man who loved his work and was doing it with utmost love and care and... customer satisfaction was his priority... Once all of us were done, mother would give him the cash along with some raw rice and fruits in gratitude for his services... Then we would ask him the inevitable question already knowing the answer as to when would he come next... He would predictably say Deepavali and our face would light up like the diyas itself...
In the Indian culture, different coloured bangles traditionally signify different aspirations... Red signifies energy and prosperity, while Green denotes good luck and fertility... Blue stands for wisdom/tranquility and Purple symbolizes independence... image 10,11
Yellow bangles are meant for happiness, White is for new beginnings and Orange is for success... Silver bangles denotes strength and Gold bangles are the ultimate symbol of fortune and prosperity... And the choice of shades of these colours is huge...
image 12
Every region has a seperate set of rituals that are associated with bangles. Be it a bride or a pregnant woman, bangles are a part of the rituals carried out on these auspicious occasions. Even Tamboola has glass bangles as a part of it when given on auspicious occasions like festivals and other functions.
In South India, gold is considered as extremely auspicious. In some communities the bride wears green bangles along with the gold ones.
image 14
In Bengal and Odisha, a new bride wears a conch shell bangle and a red coral bangle which are called shankha and pola...
image 15
In Rajasthan, Gujarat and Jammu and Kashmir, the brides wear Ivory bangles or Chooda....
image 16
In Punjab, brides-to-be wear Ivory and Red bangles also called Chooda...
