The treatises on
religious responsibility are one of the eight types of marriage recognized in
the dharma canon.
When a man and woman have sexual intercourse by mutual
agreement but without consulting anybody else, they form a Gandharva marriage.
The gandharvas, who are demigods and heavenly musicians, are
thought to be the witnesses to the marriage.
Despite the fact that the gandharva rite resulted in a
lawful marriage, it was seen as one of the four immoral (aprashasta) kinds of
marriage since it was conducted without parental approval, without religious
rites, and was based on desire.
These weddings were acknowledged in order to provide the
lady with the legal status of a wife, not to condone and legitimize promiscuous
conduct.
Despite the fact that Gandharva weddings are abundant in
Sanskrit literary sources—perhaps the most famous being the marriage of King
Dushyanta and Shakuntala—it is unlikely that this type was ever frequently
performed.
See also the eight classical types of marriage.
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