Ranglagan Anuha

Ranglagan Anuha ("face painting" in the old Daskari language) is a wedding tradition of the Emirate of Daskar in which a bride and groom, the afternoon of the day before their wedding, meet to paint one another's face with colorful patterns and designs. Depending on the couple, it is a time of fun and good-natured teasing, or it can be a time of deep meaning and intimacy, or often, it is something of both.

Execution

The afternoon on the day before their wedding, the bride and groom meet to paint one another's face with colorful patterns and designs. As part of the tradition, the bride's bridesmaids provide the groom with paint, brushes, flowers, and other items to decorate her face and hair, and the groom's groomsmen provide the bride with paint, brushes, flowers, and other items to decorate his face and hair.
The groom paints his bride's face first. It is in his interest not to make her look silly or ridiculous and to make her look as beautiful as he can, as she will paint his face afterwards, in what is called "the bride's revenge." It is an opportunity for the couple to express their creativity, and they are encouraged to work together to paint matching or compatible designs on one another's face.
The bride and groom meet for the Ranglagan Anuha in a private place, so that they may talk privately and be affectionate with one another. The tradition is meant to encourage intimacy and trust between a young couple, and it is often quite effective.
On the evening before their wedding, after the couple finishes their face painting, they attend a banquet held in their honor so that their families and friends can see the results. It is a time of fun and celebration for all that goes on for many hours. Especially creative and matching face paint designs gather much praise by the guests. At the end of the evening, the groom's parents welcome their new daughter-in-law, and the bride's parents welcome their new son-in-law. Before they retire for the evening, the groom's parents help him remove the face paint, and his father talks to him about his obligations and responsibilities as a husband. The bride's mother does the same for her daughter, preparing her to be a wife.

Components and tools

The groomsmen provide the bride with paint, brushes, and other items to decorate the groom's face and hair. Often, there are one or two humorous things included - animal horns, funny ears, or paint in especially gaudy colors - to make them laugh and help the couple break any tension they might have. Likewise, the bridesmaids provide the groom with paint, brushes, flowers, jewelry, and whatever else he might need to paint her face and decorate her hair. Often, the bridesmaids will give small gifts to the groom to present to the bride as tokens of their love and friendship for her.

Observance

In the old Emirate of Daskar, the Ranglagan Anuha was done before nearly every wedding; however, since the founding of the Kingdom of Sudland by King Haakan Larssen after The Battle of Daskar, the influence of the old Daskari culture has declined. Only by the most traditional of the old Daskari noble families still perform the Ranglagan Anuha ritual.

Daskari bride with face paint by Peter Nelson (Zero Sum Games)

A Daskari bride with her face painted for Ranglagan Anuha

Primary Related Location

Daskar