Rules of Marriage

No society gives absolute freedom to its members to select their partners. Endogamy and exogamy are the two main rules that condition marital choice.

Endogamy:

It is a rule of marriage in which the life-partners are to be selected within the group. It is marriage within the group and the group may be caste, class, tribe, race, village, religious group etc.We have caste endogamy, class endogamy, sub caste endogamy, race endogamy and tribal endogamy etc.In caste endogamy marriage has to take place within the caste. Brahmin has to marry a Brahmin. In sub caste endogamy it is limited to the sub caste groups.

Exogamy:

It is a rule of marriage in which an individual has to marry outside his own group. It prohibits marrying within the group. The so-called blood relatives shall neither have marital connections nor sexual contacts among themselves.

Forms of exogamy:

Gotra Exogamy: The Hindu practice of one marrying outside one's own gotra.

Pravara Exogamy: Those who belong to the same pravara cannot marry among themselves.

Village Exogamy: Many Indian tribes like Naga,Garo,Munda etc have the practice of marrying outside their village.

Pinda Exogamy: Those who belong to the same panda or sapinda( common parentage) cannot marry within themselves.

Isogamy: It is the marriage between two equals (status)

Anisogamy: It is an asymmetric marriage alliance between two individuals belonging to different social statuses. It is of two forms - Hypergamy and Hypogamy.

Hypergamy: It is the marriage of a woman with a man of higher Varna or superior caste or family.

Hypogamy: It is the marriage of high caste man with a low caste woman.

Orthogamy: It is the marriage between selected groups.

Cerogamy: It is two or more men get married to two or more women.

Anuloma marriage: It is a marriage under which a man can marry from his own caste or from those below, but a woman can marry only in her caste or above.

Pratiloma marriage: It is a marriage of a woman to a man from a lower caste which is not permitted.

Type of Marriages

Polygyny:

It is a form of marriage in which one man marries more than one woman at a given time. It is of two types --- Sororal polygyny and non sororal polygyny

Sororal polygyny:

It is a type of marriage in which the wives are invariably the sisters. It is often called sororate.

Non-sororal polygyny:

It is a type of marriage in which the wives are not related as sisters.

Polyandry:

It is the marriage of one woman with more than one man. It is less common than polygyny. It is of two types---- Fraternal Polyandry and non fraternal polyandry.

Fraternal polyandry:

When several brothers share the same wife the practice can be called alelphic or fraternal polyandry. This practice of being mate, actual or potential to one's husband's brothers is called levirate. It is prevalent among Todas.

Non - fraternal polyandry:

In this type the husband need not have any close relationship prior to the marriage. The wife goes to spend some time with each husband. So long as a woman lives with one of her husbands; the others have no claim over her.

Monogamy:

It is a form of marriage in which one man marries one woman .It is the most common and acceptable form of marriage.

Serial monogamy:

In many societies individuals are permitted to marry again often on the death of the first spouse or after divorce but they cannot have more than one spouse at one and the same time.

Straight monogamy:

In this remarriage is not allowed.

Group Marriage:

It means the marriage of two or more women with two or more men. Here the husbands are common husbands and wives are common wives. Children are regarded as the children of the entire group as a whole.

Marriage

Marriage is an institution that admits men and women to family life. Edward Westermarck defined marriage as the more or less durable connection between male and female lasting beyond the mere act of propagation till after the birth of offspring. Lowie defined it as a relatively permanent bond between permissible mates. Malinowski defined marriage as a contract for the production and maintenance of children. According to Lundberg Marriage consists of the rules and regulations that define the rights, duties and privileges of husband and wife with respect to each other. According to Horton and Hunt marriage is the approved social pattern whereby two or more persons establish a family. According to Anderson and Parker marriage are the sanctioning by a society of a durable bond between one or more males and one or more females established to permit sexual intercourse for the implied purpose of parenthood. According to John Levy and Ruth Monroe people get married because of the feeling that being in a family is the only proper indeed the only possible way to live. People do not marry because it is their social duty to perpetuate the institution of family or because the scriptures recommend matrimony but because they lived in a family as children and cannot get over the feeling that being in a family is the only proper way to live in society.