Page:Folklore1919.djvu/287

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The Folk Life of Afghanistan.
275

the house is not far distant the leader of the head of the Clan carries the bride in his arms, but perhaps a conveyance is used for this purpose. They all help the bride to mount the carriage, with bismillah—with the name of Allah—and imām zāmin—Saints be her guards. The bride thus accompanied with an old servant and an elderly lady and her sister or a friend depart in tears from her mother's house. Her mother is weeping bitterly.

The bride-groom follows his bride on horseback attired in his nuptial garments, and others, also on horses, make up a procession.

The dress usually worn by the Afghan bride-groom is not gaudy. It consists of a white or dove-grey silk turban adorned at the end with a few vertical golden stripes. He wears a loose garment like a dressing gown, called jubba, similar to that worn by the Arab Sheikhs. It is of black velvet or serge, there is gold work on the cuffs and on the dorsal surface of the arm near the shoulder, and a big leaf is embroidered on the back. Not infrequently, however, all work of ornamenting the jubba is done in red or blue silk.

A kamar-band is tied round his waist under his jubba, and in it is inserted a curved dagger. (Persian—kamar=waist, band=band, meaning a band for the waist.) He wears white baggy trousers with a thousand folds, something like the kind favoured by the Algerians. The shoes are most picturesque; they are like slippers, the toe point is curved up and tapers to a thread.

When the procession reaches the other house, the bride is taken to her new apartments, where she will remain for two or three days. Then her mother will come to take her away to her paternal home for a week. Afterwards she settles down in her new home, and unpacks her cases.

Her staff of servants is provided by her husband, with an additional kanīz (woman slave) or a ghulām (man slave) from her parents. Her house is not a separate one. The cooking is done in one kitchen for the whole family of her