Traditional wedding costumes and rituals become popular in Tianjin

Taking off their suits and glasses and putting on traditional red costumes, 29-year-old Bao Zhigang transforms into "Mr. Bao, new son-in-law" and Chen Jing has become "bride Chen". On November 8, the young couple interpreted a wedding ceremony in the ancient style.

Both the bride and the bridegroom are ordinary office workers. They are interested in history, so they chose a traditional style wedding ceremony. Red carpet, totem design on the background wall, inscriptions paying sacrifice to heaven and ancient poems, together with slow music played on Chinese instruments brought the wedding ceremony into ancient times. During the ceremony, both sets of parents wearing traditional costumes sat at the front of the big hall; the master of the ceremony was called the propriety guider; the bridesmaids and groomsmen became servants, and the organizer of wedding ceremony who usually works behind the scenes had to walk onto the stage and was called a "chaperone".

The master of the ceremony abandoned his active style and started to recite ancient poems. The new couple looked constrained as ceremonial bowing is strictly required, so they raised their hands to their eyebrows and crouched down on the floor. For the "sharing of the sacrifice", the new couple shared the meat of a livestock, symbolizing their ability to share happiness and setbacks; the "sharing of the nuptial wine cup" refers to drinking from the nuptial cup; and the "tying of the hair" involves cutting a little hair from the couple's heads, braiding it together and putting it into a sachet, with the knot representing husband and wife…

Mr. Zhang, the master of the ceremony, told reporters that recently he has presided over many traditional style wedding ceremonies. This style has become popular, as many young people are becoming more interested in history and think that a traditional wedding ceremony is more solemn.

Translated by LOTO