I like to call it The Chicken Pehra. Basically it goes something like this.
Dulha steps out of his home on the way to the nikkah (usually held at the masjid while his sweetheart is nowhere near…some civilized families like to do it so that the sweetheart can experience her own friggin’ nikkah, but well, of course most Pakistani families are not civilized, especially those that I hail from … but that is besides the point)
Okay, back to the picture I paint for all of you…
Dulha steps out of his home on the way to the nikkah and as he steps out of his door (or his mother’s door, but that AGAIN is besides the point), an elder of the family grabs a live chicken by the ghardan (neck) and proceeds to spin the chicken around the head of the dulha 3 times or so. While this is happening, the chicken is trying its best to fly away as it is quite confused as to why these people are spinning him or her around the head of a human man and why he is not being placed on a butcher’s board (“maybe this is a new form of torture”, thinks the chicken). Also, during this interesting rasam I’ve seen many a dhula flinch away from the chicken in fear. You never know. The chicken might drop a little present on the dulha’s new glistening pink sherwani (I KID you NOT - indeed, it was pink!).
Well, I’ve never seen what happens to the chicken after this rasam, but the family informed me that the chicken is taken aside and butchered (the chicken’s fears confirmed), and the meat is distributed to the needy and that this is a form of good luck, or manner of incurring blessing, or some such purpose.
Is it just a memon thing or do you guys see this as well?
hmmm that is the utmost jahil tradition. It is only Allah who gives and takes luck from our lives. So better pray to him than torturing a poor chicken which will only give u bad dua instead of good wishes!
Nothing weird about it. It's a sign from the wise folks to the dulha, sort of a final warning that this is how the coming days will be like. Actually, the dreaded chicken is a reflection of the woman who is about to become an integral and bounding part of this 'free man'. It's telling the dulha that the new woman will be circling his sorry ass just like that ugly kukRRee and if he doesn't submit, his end will be similar to that of the chicken...butchered and served.
It's so fascinating to see how these wise old folks try to take the blame off of their shoulders by giving an early warning. It's actually kind of cute in a naughty kind of way.
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*Originally posted by TommyKnocker: *
sounds more like a vodoo than a rasam. You sure the chicken they used in the rasam was not made of rubber?
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you have been watching too much monty python.
btw shouldn't it be murghi Phera and not pehra anyways
I have seen this happen and I have no clue of the reason they do it. The wya you explain it, it does tiptoe on the definition of shirk. Rest Allah knows best.
very strange. i guess the idea would be to take chicken out as sadqa? the magic idea isnt far off, somehow chickens are especially associated with magic. I used to live in Muscat, which has quite a lot of tradition in magic (rumour: saamri jadugar was buried here) and every thursday/friday night you'd find lots of dead chickens on the beach (thrown away after a magic ritual).
… but that is besides the point)
Gosh I don’t know if I should feel bad for the spinning chicken or the dulha