A family celebration in Bellary, Karnataka

Last week I was invited by my neighbors to their village to attend the half-sari celebration for their eldest daughter. It is a coming of age Hindu ceremony that recognizes that when a girl reaches the age of 11, she is just a step away from becoming a woman. The religious portion of the ceremony is done with a priest and the family at a pre-determined “auspicious time” according to Hindu tradition. It is my understanding that the alignment of the stars and planets at a particular time constitute an auspicious time. However, it may also relate to a person’s birthday though that may be more important with respect to weddings and the associated horoscopes of the people getting married. At any rate, I took an overnight train that arrived in time for the public portion of the half-sari celebration. This was a colorful and beautiful event; much like the Indian weddings I have attended.

It truly was a family affair as both sets of grandparents were able to be there to enjoy the celebration. Most of the men who came wore flowing white, cotton kurtas, but the ladies wore beautifully colorful saris that were incredibly embroidered. All the girls in the family had these amazing saris handmade for the occasion and also had henna covering their arms, hands, and feet.

For the duration of the ceremony, the girl sat on a stage in front of the crowd with a bright light shining on her.  Then with time, the 300-400 guests made their way up to the front to offer their blessings by putting rice in her hair. This didn’t last more than a 90 minutes or so and after it was over, everyone was served a variety of delicious South Indian cuisine. I did my best to soak it all in, but unfortunately, very few of the conversations were in English.

Most of the crowd left by 4pm, so I managed to sneak in a trek to the top of the central hillock in Bellary upon which an 18^th century fort is perched.  The 20 minute hike provides a nice panoramic view of the village and surrounding area. Unfortunately, I had to cut the visit short because my overnight train was leaving early that evening.

I learned two things from my trip to Bellary:

First, don’t ever take back-to-back overnight trains if you can avoid it unless you want to be a walking zombie for a day or two.

Second, I was reminded of the many ways God has blessed me through the people He has brought into my life. Loyal, trustworthy, gracious, and loving friends are but a taste of the life to come…