Assisted marriage rather than arranged marriage is the phrase Sikhs would prefer to describe the procedure of choosing a husband or a wife. The family assists in finding a partner. Suitability should have as its criteria virtuous qualities, temperament and age. Social status, economic position and caste considerations also play an important role.

A formal betrothal (kurmai) is unnecessary but if both parties desire, a token betrothal can be made by the girl's parents visiting the boy's parents on a day which has been mutually agreed.

After this the boy's family comes to the girl's house for Chunni (wedding veil). The girl is also given a ring, clothes and jewellery.

A custom peculiar to the Sikhs is maiyan - the confinement of the bride and groom for a few days before marriage, where they are not allowed to go out or change their clothes. Gana (auspicious red thread) ceremony takes place during this period. It is tied on the right hand of the groom and in the left hand of the bride.

A night before the actual wedding the girl's maternal relatives carry diyas (lamps) to all their relatives at night who then put some oil in the diyas as a custom. They go singing and dancing all the way. This is followed by Mehendi and Sangeet. On this occasion the girl's hand and feet are adorned with beautiful patterns. A lot of singing and dancing takes place on this night.

A couple of days prior to the wedding in the Vatna ceremony a scented powder consisting of barley flour, turmeric and mustard oil called vatna is applied to the bride. The same is done at the groom's house. They are then scrubbed clean under the shade of a bagh (a phulkari cloth).

On the morning of the wedding day the groom's sister-in-law and other female relatives go to a Gurduwara to fill an earthen pitcher or gharoli with water which is then used to bathe the groom. Thereafter khare charna is performed in which the groom is made to sit on a stool for his bath and four girls hold a cloth to his head. A similar bathing ritual is performed at bride's house as well. The bride is then made to wear 21 bangles in red ivory and kalerien (dangling golden metal plates).

A wedding may be celebrated on any mutually acceptable date; looking for auspicious days or using horoscopes is contrary to the Sikh belief. A Sikh wedding is celebrated in the morning. The congregation gathers as if for a normal service. When Asa Di Var, the morning hymn, has been sung the groom comes forward and takes his place at the foot of the Adi-Granth. The bride then joins the congregation and sits at the left side of the groom attended by a friend. The couple and their parents are asked to stand and a short hymn is sung. The bride and groom publicly assent to the marriage by bowing towards the Guru Granth Sahib.

A hymn composed for use at Sikh weddings is sung while the couple slowly walks round the Guru Granth Sahib in a clockwise direction, the groom leading, for four times. The service concludes with the singing of the first five and the last stanzas of the Anand followed by the Ardas (prayer). The congregation is then served Karha Parshad.

A few hours after the wedding as the bride departs from her parents house, she throws back grains of rice, thereby wishing prosperity for the family that she leaves behind. The bride is taken home in a palanquin (Doli).