Spoonful of Love

Last weekend ( 27/12/08) I attended a Bintulu Malay wedding ceremony. One of the highlights of the wedding is the customary 'makan nasi temuan' where the wedding couple competed to feed one another. A total of three attempts are permitted. Upon the lifting of the food cover, each person will rush to scoop the yellow rice and attempt to quickly spoonfeed the other. It is better if on all attempts the bridegroom gets all the chances. Alternatively, if the bride scores on all counts, it is believed that the young bridegroom will be 'queen control' later, or so it is believed. The custom did make the ceremony fun for the invited guests and indeed memorable for the wedding couple.

Bintulu Malay Wedding ceremony ( Part 2 )

After all the formalities and the legalities of the wedding were done yesterday, it's time for more festivity.

Today I attended the second wedding reception at a well known hotel in town. In the above picture invited guests, friends and relatives are welcomed by members of the family.

At around 11.00 am the bride and bridegroom entered the hall and then sat on a specially made wedding platform called 'pelamin' in the local Malay dialect. Here they are accompanied by two bridemaids and treated like a King and Queen ( for a day at least). At the second reception it is now customary to be dressed in western bridal gown and as for the man in a lounge suite.

A few close members of the family and VIP guests take their turn to sprinkle flower petals and rose scented water as part of the wedding blessing ritual.

After the tradisional blessing , it's time for the wedding couple to cut their wedding cake. This indicates the modern influence on Malay weddings in Bintulu nowadays besides the bridal gown and lounge suite.

Nowadays anybody can become photographers. Soon the professional wedding photgraphers will be out of job!

This would be a kind of Japanese influence in Malay wedding these days. Any interested guests are most welcomed to belt out any karaoke numbers for entertainment while the guests have lunch.

Today's wedding was well planned and ran smoothly. As they say 'All's well that ends well '. Now, let's ponder what kind of love blossoms in the future.

Bintulu Malay Wedding ceremony

The couple on the wedding dais and ritually blessed by well wishers.

Today I attended a Bintulu Malay wedding. The couple met in cyberspace. The bride is a teacher from Bintulu, of mixed parentage ( Melanau+Kelabit+Malay + Dutch)  and the bridegroom is a Sri Lankan working in Japan.

 

Members of both families pose for a group photo after the marriage vow ceremony.

Earlier in the morning the bridegroom had to pronounce his marriage vow to an authorised religious official ( 'juru nikah ') and witnessed by many others at the local mosque named Masjid Assyakiriin.

Once the marriage vow is uttered it's official. They are husband and wife in body, spirit and soul.

Once there was puppy love.For many it was love at first sight. Now it's cyber love.

All my best wishes to the wedding couple and congratulations to both families.

The religious official reads out a short marriage sermon to the bridegroom and audience present.