Farzana Shaikh, applies henna to Indian visually impaired brides at the Andh Kanya Prakash Gruh institute as part of a ritual ahead of their marriages in Ahmedabad. 
A bride rides to church in the western Macedonian village of Galicnik. 
Belorussian brides take part in an annual Bride Parade in central Minsk. 
Rows of newly-wedded brides and grooms stand and mingle at the Unification Church's mass wedding held at its headquarters in Gapyeong, east of Seoul, on February 17, 2013, that saw some 3,500 couples matched by the church tie the knot. 
An Indian Muslim bride gestures during a mass wedding ceremony at the ancient Sarkhej Roja in Ahmedabad. 
iReporter Mikael Ruttkay Hylin shared this striking photos from his trip to Mbour, Senegal, where he witnessed a traditional Muslim Senegalese wedding. 
Pakistani brides attend a mass marriage ceremony in Karachi. Some 110 couples participated in the mass wedding ceremony organised by a local charity welfare trust Al Ghousia. 
Brides line up with their husbands to be during a group Valentine's day wedding at the National Croquet Center on February 14, 2013 in West Palm Beach, Florida. The group wedding ceremony is put on by the Palm Beach Country Clerk & Comptroller's office and approximately 40 couples tied the knot. 
Bride and groom couples prepare for marriage during a mass wedding ceremony on December 12, 2012 in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Twelve couples participated in a mass wedding as that day saw a surge in marriage across the globe to mark the once in a century date of 12/12/12. 
A Jewish bride is surrounded by relatives during her wedding to the great-grandson of the Rabbi of the Tzanz Ultra-Orthodox Hasidic community in Netanya. 
In Jerusalem, bride Hannah Batya Penet dances with her relative during her wedding to Rabbi Shalom Rokach, the Grandson of the Belz Rabbi. 
A Japanese bride and her groom sail through a canal for their wedding procession at the irises garden after their wedding ceremony at Katori city in Chiba prefecture. 
A bride checks her messages while getting ready for a group picture after a mass wedding outside a Chinese temple in Kuala Lumpur on December 12, 2012. 
Musali Mohammed al-Mujamaie a 92-year old Iraqi farmer sits next to Muna Mukhlif al-Juburi, his new 22-year old wife, the new wives of his grandsons and one of his grandsons during celebrations following their group wedding in his home village of Gubban, just south of the central Iraqi city of Samarra. 
A crowd cheers as a Lebanese bride and groom pose for pictures at the site of a car bomb explosion just days before in Beirut's Rweiss neighborhood . 
Syrian soldiers celebrate with their their brides during a group wedding in the Latakia province, western Syria. 
A dozen brides wait to be married during a ceremony for a radio station contest at the Little Chapel of the Flowers on December 12, 2012 in Las Vegas, Nevada. 
Bride Lini Sasanto waits to fill out marriage papers at a busy City Clerk's office on December 12, 2012 in New York City. 
A bride walks holding her wedding dress at the Gandan monastery on a special day on the Lunar calendar for wedding ceremonies October 18, 2012 Ulaanbataar, Mongolia. 
Luz Carmen Gonzalez marries Jesus Chacon in the last Maya wedding before the end of the Maya Long Count Calendar --Baktun 13-- and the beginning of a new era on December 17, 2012 in Merida Mexico. 
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- Wedding rituals tie us to our cultures.
- Objects and food often play a symbolic role.
- Some of these have fallen out of favor, but couples still participate.
(CNN) -- For as long as couples have been tying the knot, the rites and customs of their cultures have been integral to marriage ceremonies. These rituals uphold tradition as time marches forth and families meld -- and they're a wonderful opportunity to celebrate ancestors, origins and faith.
While some of these traditions have fallen out of favor and are no longer the norm, couples around the world still incorporate these age-old outfits, sounds, foods and activities as they celebrate their wedding day ... or days ... or week.
Iran
Symbolic objects play an important role in a traditional Iranian marriage ceremony. The "Sofreh-ye Aghd" is a collection of items spread out on the floor on a luxurious cloth usually passed from mother to daughter. Two candelabras are placed on the cloth on either side of a mirror, representing the brightness of the couple's future together. Seven herbs and spices guard the bride and groom against spiritual harm, and a copy of the couple's holy book is included to represent God's blessing over the proceedings. Married female family members hold a scarf or shawl over the couple's heads while two sugar cones are ground over them to shower the union in sweetness and joy.
Tunisia
Weddings in Tunisia are typically lavish, joyous, raucous, multi-day affairs, including henna applications on the hands and feet of the bride in the company of her female friends and family, and thrones on which the happy couple sits for the bulk of the proceedings. While customs vary per region, the bride will usually be walked to the ceremony accompanied by the songs and zaghareed (ululations) of friends and relatives. She will often, on one night of the proceedings, wear a heavy gold dress (which is sometimes rented, though some girls start making one in their teens), on which shapes like fish or the hand of Fatma (daughter of the prophet Muhammed) are embroidered. While it is rarely the case these days, in centuries past, the bride-to-be would be spun around while wearing the dress, to finally face her future husband for the first time.
Sephardic Jews
These traditions have certainly faded over time, but some Sephardic Jews employ fish in various aspects of their wedding ritual. On the Balkan Peninsula, a bride may step or jump over a dish full of fish in order to encourage fertility. In Morocco, the seventh day at the end of the wedding week is the Day of the Fish. The groom, in his new role as the head of the household, will purchase an excellent fish from the market. Once it is prepared, he will take a bite, then give the rest to his wife -- also a gesture toward fertility, and proof that he can provide for his future family.
Japan
San-san-kudo is a family affair, and it comes in threes. During a Shinto ceremony, the bride, groom and both sets of their parents each take three sips of sake from each of three stacked cups, for a total of nine sips. This ritual is meant is to create a bond between the two families and deepen the couple's union.
Wicca
This modern pagan religion draws heavily from Celtic tradition when it comes to tying the knot. Some practitioners refer to the wedding itself as "handfasting," but the specific ritual entails binding a couple's hands to one another with a ribbon, cord, rope or cloth to form a unity symbol and seal their bond. Colors, patterns and charms may be specially chosen to represent various attributes wished for in the marriage.
Mexico
Mexican tradition also involves binding partners together. There's it's done with a "lazo" -- often a ribbon or a rosary -- draped in a figure eight around the couple's shoulder after their vows in order to strengthen their connection and symbolize their never-ending love. It's removed at the end of the ceremony, and given to the bride as a keepsake.
Sikh
"Anand Karaj" translates to "blissful union" and the joy may be spread out for anywhere from one to three days. The ceremony itself cannot take place at a hotel or banquet hall, but is usually conducted at a Sikh place of worship -- a Gurdwara -- or often at the bride's home. Food often demarcates the start and finish of the religious proceedings. Families come together to greet one another over tea and light snacks during a "Milni," and then enter the space where the rite occurs. After a gift of cash from the groom to the bride's family, prayers, readings, vows and several walks by the couple around the room, Karah Prashad -- a sacramental pudding -- is distributed to all to indicate the end of the ceremony.
Hawaii
Both brides and grooms in native Hawaiian tradition wear flower garlands as a physical manifestation of their love for one another, and to some, the twining of the stems is reflective of two families now becoming one. A more tourist-friendly version established in the past couple of decades involves winding the leis around the couple's hands to bind them together. In the rarer ho'ao ceremony, the betrothed are draped in a blessed cloth (traditionally made of bark, but now more frequently fabric) called a kapa, to bring abundance, health, wealth and, if desired, many children.
Is there a ritual that is particular to your culture, or did you incorporate any of these into your ceremony? Share your story in the comments below.
