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A Gandharva Marriage (Sanskrit: गन्धर्व विवाह, ''pronounced gənd̪ʱərvə vɪvaːhə'') is one of the eight classical types of Hindu marriage. This ancient marriage tradition from the Indian subcontinent was based on mutual attraction between a man and a woman, with no rituals, witnesses or family participation. The marriage of Dushyanta and Shakuntala was a historically celebrated example of this class of marriage. ==History== The Smritis of Hinduism recognize eight methods of marriage, one of them being Gandharva marriage. The other seven are: ''Brahma'', ''Daiva'', ''Arsa'', ''Prajapatya'', ''Asura'', ''Raksasa'' and ''Paisacha''.〔Hindu Saṁskāras: Socio-religious Study of the Hindu Sacraments, Rajbali Pandey (1969), see Chapter VIII, ISBN 978-8120803961, pages 153-233〕〔The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism: A-M, James G. Lochtefeld (2001), ISBN 978-0823931798, Page 427〕 Gandharva marriage is, according to ''Apastamba Grhyasutra'' - an ancient Hindu literature, the method of marriage where the girl selects her own husband. They meet each other of their own accord, consensually agree to live together, and their relationship is consummated in copulation born of passion. This form of marriage did not require consent of parents and anyone else. According to vedic records, this is one of earliest and common form of marriage in Rg vedic times.〔 In Rg vedic opinions and classical literature, the commonly described marriage method was Gandharva, where the bride and the groom had met each other in their ordinary village life, or in various other places such as regional festivals and fairs, begun to enjoy one another's company, and decided to be together. This free choice and mutual attraction were generally approved by their kinsmen. A passage in the ''Atharvaveda'' suggests that parents usually left the daughter free in selection of her lover and directly encouraged her in being forward in love-affairs. The mother of the girl thought of the time when the daughter's developed youth (''Pativedanam'', post puberty), that she would win a husband for herself, it was a smooth and happy sort of affair with nothing scandalous and unnatural about it.〔Hindu Saṁskāras: Socio-religious Study of the Hindu Sacraments, Rajbali Pandey (1969), see Chapter VIII, ISBN 978-8120803961, pages 162〕 The translated version of the ''Atharvaveda'' (STRIKARATÂNI, ii.36) passage is:
In Mahabharata, one of two major epics of Hindus, Rishi Kanva - the foster-father of Shakuntala - recommends Gandharva marriage with the statement, "The marriage of a desiring woman with a desiring man, without religious ceremonies, is the best marriage."〔See Mahabharata, iv, 94.60, as translated by Rajbali Pandey (1969)〕 Elsewhere in Mahabharata (iii:190.36), the epic says, "No man any longer asks for the daughter, nor does a father give away his daughter, they (girls) find the man for themselves." 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Gandharva marriage」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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