The auspicious bride stood at the threshold, radiant and full of promise. The gathered community was invited to behold her, to bestow upon her good fortune and to drive away all misfortune from her path. From every corner, blessings were invoked: may the charm and radiance of all women—whether hard to please or advanced in years—be gathered and offered to this bride, and may any ill fate be turned aside. A golden veil, bearing all forms of beauty, was brought forth, signifying the blessings of Sūryā, the daughter of Savitṛ, who now ascended to her new life, destined for great good fortune. With a cheerful heart, the bride was encouraged to ascend the marriage-bed, ready to bear children for her husband, to awaken each morning with alertness and light, as Indrani does at the coming of dawn. The ancient story was remembered: at the beginning, the gods withdrew, and the wives touched each other, sharing in the mystery of union. The bride was thus blessed to be manifold in form like the sun, majestic, fruitful, and united with her husband in harmony. The spirit Viśvāvasu, honored and invoked, was asked to seek kin among the ancestors, to remember the one who had been cast down, and to know his share by birth. The Apsarases, those celestial maidens who delight in feasts between the realm of offerings and the sun, were called upon. The bride was bidden to return to her origin, to those celestial beings, with the permission of the Gandharva, and homage was offered to all: to the Gandharva, to Bhāma, to the all-seeing eye, to Viśvāvasu. With sacred words, the bride was entrusted to the company of the Apsarases as she passed into her new life. Prayers were made for prosperity, for joyful minds and the calling forth of the Gandharva, who sits in the highest seat, as all gathered where life is renewed. The parents, as givers of seed, were asked to send forth the bride, to place her upon the marriage-bed, that she may prosper in offspring and wealth. Pūṣan, the divine guide, was invoked to lead her to the most auspicious place, where the seed of men is sown. The bride was blessed with strength, that her thighs remain firm and the bonds of weakness be cast away. The groom was instructed to take her hand, to place it upon his thigh, to embrace her joyfully, and together to create offspring, rejoicing in the blessing of Savitṛ for a long and fruitful life. Prajāpati was asked to generate offspring for them, and day and night, with Aryaman, to unite them without misfortune. All prayed to enter the husband’s world in safety, seeking welfare among all creatures, bipeds and quadrupeds. The bridal garment, a gift from the gods and Manu, was presented—a robe for the bride and a garment for the groom. Whoever gives this garment to a learned Brahmin drives away demons and misfortune from the marriage-bed. The couple, together and with the blessings of Bṛhaspati and Indra, were urged to offer this garment to the Brahmin. Bound together on the pleasant marriage-bed, laughing and rejoicing in their union, the couple was blessed to be well-protected, to have good children, to be good householders, and to live to see many dawns. Clothed in new garments, fragrant and well-dressed, they were bidden to rise and greet the dawn, released from all sin as a bird emerges from its egg. Heaven and earth, adorned and of kindly thought, with the seven sacred rivers flowing forth, were invoked to release all from evil. Homage was offered to Sūryā, to the gods, to Mitra and Varuṇa, and to all wise beings. The one who supports and joins, even without ritual—the many-gifted Maghavan—was remembered as the restorer of what was lost. All darkness, whether black, tawny, or red, and all burning afflictions were cast away, fixed upon a post, far from the marriage. Any harmful acts, snares of King Varuṇa, failures or non-successes at the wedding-seat, were likewise fixed upon the post and removed. The bride’s most beloved body was adorned with garments; the tree was asked to prepare her lower garment, so no harm would come. The garment, woven by wives with all its ends, threads, warp, weft, and yarns, was blessed to touch the bride with auspiciousness. The shining maidens, departing from the world of their fathers to join their husbands, released their consecration with the sacred utterance, “svāhā.” By the radiance, brilliance, strength, fame, milk, and essence that Bṛhaspati created and all the gods sustained in the cows, the bride was fashioned anew. If, in the house, long-haired people in their agitation caused harm by weeping, or if the daughter, with disheveled hair, shed tears, or if sisters or young women wept in distress, Agni and Savitṛ were invoked to release the family from any resulting sin. Any harm done by evildoers to progeny, cattle, or house was likewise cleansed by their power. As the bride prepared to depart from her father’s house, she spoke with hope: “May my husband be long-lived, may he live a hundred autumns.” Indra was asked to drive away discord between the couple, as he does with the chakravāka birds, so that, blessed with offspring, they might enjoy all of life together. Whatever wrongs or impurities might have been committed on the bedding or seat, or any ritual errors at the wedding or bath, were set aside. Any misdeeds or stains from the wedding or the carrying away of the bride were cleansed on the blanket of Saṃbhala; all evil was removed. Having thus purified themselves, the couple and their families became fit for sacrifice and pure, ready to cross over into a long and blessed life together.