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Prayer Wheel Uses : Wedding Wheels
Many couples use a prayer wheel as a central part of their wedding ceremony. Often family and friends write blessings for the newly weds and put them into the vessel. Others add their vows. Over the years, a wedding wheel serves as a sacred vessel to hold a couple's additional prayers. Many wedding wheels are custom designed to reflect the interests the two people are bringing to the marriage.
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Our Son North and Daughter-in-law Ella's Wedding Wheel
In July of 2009 our son North married his long time sweetie Ella in an outdoor ceremony near the Trinity River in northern California. Some months prior to the event they requested a prayer wheel that would receive their written vows and the blessings of their parents, extended family and the many friends in attendance. The prayer wheel design reflected their love of the natural world, particularly for the Grand Canyon where they fell in love and continue to explore when ever they can find time.
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Our Daughter Yarrow & Son-in-law Steve's Wedding Wheel
Mountain Madness:
My daughter, Yarrow and son-in-law Steve's Wedding Wheel
My wife, Jennifer, and I designed this Mountain Madness wheel together – each carving portions. It was our wedding gift to Yarrow and Steve, so we both wanted to give something of ourselves. A spreading yew tree is the central symbol on the wheel. The yew tree's roots reach down to a river that flows around the base of the wheel. The branches reach toward the sun and a mountainous skyline. Eight phases of the moon show through the branches. Two ravens play in the sky. Two loons navigate the waters. On the lid is a brilliant sunburst.
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Beth & Victor
Beth tells how the wedding wheel was a vital part of the ceremony:
"We set the prayer wheel up en route to the guest seating area. It was on a table with blank note cards for people to write their prayers for us. My sister-in-law sat next to the wheel to explain how to use the cards and, for those interested, the wheel's symbolic artwork. Once guests wrote a prayer, they dropped the card in the wheel and found a seat.
Once everyone had taken a seat, Victor's best friends started off the procession by carrying the wheel up to the altar. Our Officiate began his sermon by telling everyone about the components of the prayer wheel. He told of how influential our grandparents were on us, and how those central figures had been represented on the wheel. He spoke of the river that wound around the wheel, and how it represented our union. During the ceremony my mother read "The Way of Love" from the Bhagavad-Gita, and put her reading into the wheel when she was done.
Victor and I wrote our vows and at the end of the ceremony we dropped them into the wheel and spun it, sending them, along with our guest's prayers, out into the universe. The wheel was a beautiful complement to our wedding, as it allowed us to tell others about ourselves, our families, and our love for one another. Now our wheel sits in our living room, and we plan to use it during other important occasions throughout our lives."
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Ant and Kerri
Our dear friend and former housemate Ant married his long time love Keri in an outdoor ceremony in Bellingham, Washington in the summer of 2008. They worked with Chris to design a special prayer wheel to use in the ceremony that would carry the memories of their beautiful day into their long years of marriage
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Margaret & Scott
Margaret and Scott fell in love at Multnomah Falls in the Columbia River Gorge. Their Wedding Wheel celebrates this special place. It depicts the 620-foot falls and the bridge they viewed it from, as well as the Gorge's lush evergreen and vine maple forests.
Central to the wheel is Mount Hood with a vine maple tree spreading beneath. Free-falling leaves made from impressions of living vine maple leaves give the wheel's landscape a three-dimensional feel. At the wheel's base, the Columbia River circles endlessly, teeming with migrating salmon.
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New Orleans Marries the Big Apple
This eclectic Wedding Wheel celebrates the couple's diverse interests.
The groom, a filmmaker, is shown with a movie camera. A pheasant symbolizes his passion for hunting. The bride, a cook in San Francisco with the nickname "Alligator," chases the pheasant. Mountains represent the couple's life in Colorado.
Their New Orleans wedding reception was held on a riverboat that cruises the Mississippi River flowing around the wheel. Wedding guests dance to jazz music. The couple's new destination - New York City - beckons at the top of the wheel.
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Second Spin Around
Our daughter-in-law's parents celebrated a second marriage in Arcadia, California. Second marriages deserve all the hope we summoned the first time around. A prayer wheel offers a symbolic and meaningful gesture when the entire family – from parents who have seen this all before, to adult children who are seeking to accept and honor new "step-parents," to sisters and brothers, tots, and, perhaps, former spouses (yes – it is possible, believe us) – wish to write blessings and place them in the prayer wheel to offer love and support.
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Brad & Christine's Wedding Wheel
This Tree of Life prayer wheel features an elm tree that grows above a confluence of two rivers. Two circling salmon form a yin yang symbol at the confluence. The river flows to the ocean where a gray whale and calf swim. Mountain peaks hover over the landscape. Two falling elm leaves show symbols of activities Brad and Christine love, such as backpacking. The domed lid pictures North and South America to represent the couple's love of travel.
