In every human society, marriage plays a key role and this is despite how backward or isolated it is. The wedding ceremony may not always be as colorful as the normal weddings you may have witnessed today. However, you’ll be attending something that resembles a wedding. That being said, you can be assured it will not be what you’d normally expect. It’s very likely going to be confusing, terrifying, gross or any mix of the three. Without much ado, here are 10 wedding traditions you won’t believe exist.

1. Blackening The Couple

In Scotland, there’s a particularly a not-so-pleasant pre-wedding tradition which involves the newlyweds being bombarded with food trash. And this includes rotten fish and eggs. The Scots believe that when a couple withstands this, then their marriage will withstand all challenges thrown their way.

2. Marrying a Tree

In India, a woman is thought to be cursed if born as a Manglik(a combination in astrology when Saturn and Mars fall in the 7^th house). Such a woman is said to have a likelihood to cause early death to her husband. So, to help remove the curse a Manglik must first marry a tree. That tree is destroyed as a way of breaking the curse.

3. Chick Liver Tradition

There’s a tradition in Daur, China, that requires an engaged couple to cut open a chicken and check it’s liver: when the chick liver is healthy, the two can go ahead and set a date. When not, they can’t proceed with their wedding plans until they find a liver that’s healthy.

4. Hold It In

Another wedding tradition is newlyweds not being allowed to use the bathroom. And that’s in the next three days and nights following their nuptials. The Tidong community is renowned for having many unusual traditions when it comes to their weddings. Of their many sets of rules, the one that stands out is one that doesn’t allow couples to use the bathroom or leave their homes for three days and nights. After this time elapses, they’re then allowed to take a long bath to wash up.

5. Two Children Tradition

In the Nuer tribe of Southern Sudan, it is believed that a union isn’t complete until a woman gives birth to two children. when she fails to do this, the groom is allowed to get a divorce.

6. A Trashy Time

Another tradition is from France and it involves friends of the couples collecting all the leftovers after a wedding ceremony. This includes bits of trash and things they view as adequately gross and place these in a toilet bowl. They then would force the newlyweds to drink from it. Though nowadays the trash is oftentimes substituted with chocolate, you’ll still be drinking brown stuff from a real toilet bowl.

7. Traditional Shoe Thieves

In some parts of India, a groom is supposed to approach the wedding altar without his shoes. Once he removes his shoes, this is seen as a sign for a battle to begin. In that everyone from the groom’s side is expected to protect the shoes since the bride’s family will try to steal them. Should the bride’s family succeed in this task, the groom is then expected to pay up a ransom to have his shoes back. To paint a better picture for you to imagine a rugby game with 300 players on each team.

8. Beating Groom’s Feet

The Korean tradition decrees that a groom is to have his feet beaten with a stick or fish prior to his first night of married life. This can be painful, though this is much fun than cruel and is over quickly. This tradition is meant to guarantee that he doesn’t disappoint on the wedding night.

9. Tooth Tearing

In Balinese culture, a tooth is torn as a religious ceremony. This is since the teeth of both partners are considered to be symbols of greed, lust, jealousy, and anger. They soften them to signify passage from puberty to maturity, additionally, they free people from negative treatment which might hinder their spiritual growth.

10. A Cabin For The Bride

In the Keung tribe, when a girl reaches the maturity age, the search for a suitable husband for her begins. At this time, her father is obligated to build her a cabin. In this cabin, the girl is to have as many sexual encounters until she picks out the one partner she likes to be her husband. And the man chosen is obliged to accept and marry her, even when he doesn’t want to.

In Conclusion

The above-mentioned wedding practices are not the typical ones we all used to, but they help us appreciate other people’ s cultures and believes. Even then, they are aimed at giving you insight into different practices from around the world.