What’s the strangest tradition you have heard about or witnessed in your life?
Traditions from around the world keep opening our mouths wide, of course, they have their reasons.
In 2019, some Hindu believers in Karnataka’s Udupi, India arranged the wedding of two frogs because it didn’t rain for some long.
The wedding which stands as a ritual called Mandooka Parinaya was done in other to appease the gods of rain.
It is believed that as soon as the marriage is carried out, the gods will send down rain.
In order to organise the wedding, two frogs – a male and a female – were brought from two different villages and elaborate arrangements were made with over a hundred guests attending the ceremony.
The frogs, in fact, were dressed in custom made outfits for their wedding while the ceremony was performed as per Hindu traditions.
“The wedding of male frog “Varun” from Kalsanka and female frog namely “Varsha” from Keelinje near Kolagiri was performed as per the Hindu tradition,” the members of UCF were quoted as saying by a news agency.
After their wedding, the frogs were sent to Mannapalla, near Manipal, for their honeymoon.
For a while, the wedding between the frogs did just what the community wanted, their wish was granted.
However, the marriage didn’t last as they were forced to divorce quickly with the belief that the frogs’ connection was too strong. The strong connection brought too much downpour to the community
One member of the group who married them in the first place explained to The New Indian Express:
‘The prayers were answered within a few days as the elusive monsoon started ushering its might over Bhopal and adjoining regions.
‘But with rain now turning destructive, another ritual of separating the frog couple before the god was performed with a strong hope of ending the enduring spell of destructive rain.’
During the symbolic separation ceremony held at a Shiva temple, the frogs were not present, instead, they used two clay frogs which were placed before the Shiva statue.
They were then separated from each other amid chants.
