Griha Shanti
This is a very important religious ceremony. Both sets of parents are the primary figures in the invocation. On behalf of the parents, the officiating priests ask the deities to ensure stellar harmony and peace during the period of their son and daughter's wedding.The bride takes a coconut to her parents who are seated on 'patlas' (low stools) in front of the sacred fire and seats herself beside them. While the priest is performing the 'puja', which can take up to two hours - she hands this 'shriphal' (coconut) to her parents, who in turn hand it over to the priest for 'ahuti' (sacrifice). The coconut is consigned to flames, thus propagating peace and harmony between all the nine planets.
Similar ceremonies are conducted in the groom's home.