Jojoda : A Unique Marriage System of Jaunsar-Bawar

I was grown and brought up in various small towns and cities,despite this,i am very much attached to my native place.I always believe: no matter where you go in your life,no matter what you become,how much you earn, you should never forget your roots.This sense of belongingness with your society always prompt you  to understand it, its tradition and its socio-cultural identity.

PC-  Chakrata- the heart of Jaunsar-Bawar

I belongs to an ethnic tribe called 'Jaunsari', which traces its origin from the Pandavas of Mahabharata & Rajputs of Rajasthan.We are called descendants of Pandavas.Topographically hilly,Jaunsar-Bawar area is situated in Dehradun district of Uttarakhand state,having two parts:lower part is called Jaunsar and upper part is called Bawar.This area remained cutoff from external world for centuries,that leads to the retention of our unique tradition and culture till now.

Every society has its unique tradition and socio-cultural system which is different from others.When anyone outsider encountered with any such system,it seems weird  to them in the first instance.But that weirdness vanishes when they understand and  analyse its uniqueness as the truth of the story always lies in the details.Like that, Jaunsar-Bawar also has some unique culture and tradition that differs it from other neighbouring societies.But here,i want to emphasis the unique marriage system i have seen and observed in my area.


The marriage system prevalent in this area is called 'Jojoda' in local dialect.I also  got many opportunities to attend these marriages.Unlike in marriage system prevalent in other areas,villagers and relatives from bride's side go to groom's village as 'Jojodiye'(Barati).During my childhood,i always got confused to understand this system.Once i attended 'Jojoda' of one of my aunt.On marriage day,five people came from groom's side.First,i was confused as very less people came from groom's side,i was also anxious to see the groom and was wondering here and there in search of him.Curiously, i asked my mother,"Where the groom is ?",she didn't say anything but laughed.I was too immature and young to understand her laugh.I asked the same question from others also but didn't get any satisfying answer from any of them.As i grew older,age cleared all my doubts.


The whole marriage system in hilly communities in general and Jaunsari in particular is unique in its own way.Cooperation among villagers is immense during marriage and whole village take responsibility of it.It is the matter of honour and prestige for whole village of efficient and smooth functioning of marriage.Before marriage,meetings are organised among villagers and all the affairs of the marriage are discussed in these meetings.They also form different groups based on expertise and experience of each individual and assign works for each group.There are separate groups for cooking different cuisines,groups for taking care of guests,groups for serving food,water,salad etc.Each member of each group take full responsibility of the work assigned to him.Based on the menu decided by the host family,they make list of all the required items and raw materials.All the Kitchen utensils are provided by village Panchayat free of cost,in fact, in some villages,tents and chairs are also provided by it. Fire woods are also collected from nearby forest by villagers long before the marriage.On marriage day,different groups of village girls are also formed to prepare Chapati for feast night.All the members,who take part in all these functioning of marriage are called 'Suwaar'  or 'Rasuwaar' i.e.- Rasoiye as a whole.All the guests in the marriage are divided in different segments and each segment is assigned specific  location for lodging and bedding called 'Dera' i.e- there are specific 'Deras' provided to the guests from the groom's/bride's side.

First marriage of eldest son of any generation of each family is very special and grand which is called 'Aagla Jojoda' or 'Bariya ka Jojoda' i.e- the marriage of generation.During this not only village but whole 'khat' is invited for the marriage celebration. Territory of Jaunsar-bawar is divided into many small territorial unit called 'Khat',which consist of several villages;khat is similar to the district of current administrative setup. There are many rituals and traditions which are specific to this marriage. One of such ritual is called 'Raeniya Jimana'.All women who are married to the men of that village are called  'Raeniya'.Jaunsari community treats its women with great respect and dignity. Generally, women of any family don't attend the marriage of other family unless they are treated  with great respect and honour. During first marriage, all 'Raeniya' of that village are invited and special feast is organised for them. If any woman is absent in the village,her share is given to her family,even if any woman is pregnant,the share of her un-born child is also given which consist of 'Ghee'.
Another ritual which is specific to this marriage is called 'Suwaar Biyai' or 'Rasuwaar Biyai'.As i mentioned earlier,'Suwaar' consists of all who are engaged in the management of marriage.Due to their work,they are not able to enjoy the marriage celebration, they also get tired due to hectic work. So,special dinner feast is organised for them on next day or third day of the marriage.

Dances and music are also an integral part of any Jaunsari marriage celebration . Harul,Jhainta,Raso are some famous folk dances. In most of the dances, both men and women together move in two semi-circles, singing together, holding each others arms, and slightly bending their body forward as they move, however, some dances are gender specific. During marriage, these dances are performed at the panchayat-angan with local musical instruments like Dhol, Damana, Ransheengha etc.             

Now a days, you can observe some new trends in these marriages- DJs and modern music systems are gradually replacing our traditional instruments and music, which is a matter of concern for us.

I have never seen this kind of cooperation among villagers in any community during marriage.Whole village stands like a wall to take full responsibility and ownership that eases the burden of host family.I came across so many people, who found this system very weird and awkward,but,what look awkward in first instance is actually very wonderful.No doubt, there may be some flaws in this system also,and for someone it may not fit in the contemporary scenario,yet it has many positive sides, it gives a glimpse of the rich cultural tradition evolved and preserved by our ancestors .There is no such thing as a perfect culture or society because different people have different values at different times.Any culture is inevitably going to have both advantages and disadvantages. I really feel proud that i am also a part of this rich culture.