Wedding Ring

The Symbolic Meaning of Wedding Rings

The wedding rings that you and your partner choose are one of the most important purchases you'll make in your life. After all, your wedding ring is much more than a piece of jewelry

A wedding ring is a symbol of your marriage and is used as an outward sign of your love and commitment to each other.

It symbolizes eternity, endlessness, and something that can not be broken. Wedding rings are given as a token of unending love for each other. Traditionally, as a symbol of strength in the marriage.

Wearing your wedding ring shows the world that your love belongs to someone else. Wedding rings are also wrapped up with many other ancient traditions. Almost without exception, a wedding ring is worn on the finger (the fourth finger of the hand counting from the thumb). This dates back to classical times when the Egyptians believed that it contained the vena amoris or "vein of love" that traveled straight to the heart. Over time it became acceptable and then custom to wear a wedding ring on this finger in order to declare your love for your spouse. The only variation is the hand that the ring is worn on.

Some countries, cultures and religions favor the left hand while others favor the right hand, but ultimately it comes down to personal preference. Where the woman prefers to wear both her wedding and engagement rings, some traditions suggest that the woman wears her wedding ring below her engatement ring to signify that it is closer to her heart. In contrast, other customs involve wearing the wedding ring on top of the engagement ring to include the spirit of engagement into the marriage. But again, it's a case of personal preference.

As an alternative, some jewelers in the US offer theree ring sets; the his wedding ring, her engagment ring and a thin band that it added to the engagement ring at the time of the wedding, thus converting it into one combined wedding ring.

In past generations, women wore wedding bands much more frequently than men did, but that has gradually changed. Today, both men and women commonly wear their wedding rings on a day-to-day basis, except for work related or safety reasons. But the biggest change is the growth in the number of ways that people express their marital status. In many cases, people choose to wear their wedding ring on a chain around neck and this has developed the same social significance as wearing it in the traditional manner.

Alternatively, people who don't agree with declaring such a spiritual thing as their marriage to the world through a material item such as a ring have found different ways to symbolize their love.

Wedding rings have been worn in many cultures. While the traditions may be slightly different, the sentiment and meaning to love, tresure and honor one another forever, remains much the same.

Other traditions, developed more recently, have been influenced by the jewelry trade. These ideas include:

• Promise Ring: This is given when the initial relationship become deeper.
• Engagement Ring: This is given as a commitment to marriage, and in some customs is part of a series of gifts that ends with the wedding ring.
• Wedding Ring: This is the ring that symbolizes marriage and on which all the other rings are based.
• Eternity Ring: This is usually given shortly after marriage, often on the birth of a first child, and is a symbol of ongoing commitment.
• Trilogy Ring: This is a ring that normally contains three round diamonds to represent the past, present and future of their relationship.

ENGRAVING:

In some cultures, the name of your intended spouse and the planned date of the wedding are engraved inside both wedding rings. This makes the rings, and all that they represent, more personal and turns them into a piece of family history.

These customs and traditions show that wedding rings can symbolize many things to many people, but ultimately all that matters is what they mean to you and your partner. So decide what your wedding ring means to you and enjoy your wedding.

QUICK TIPS:

• During the summer months, skin often swells up, and people may have trouble with the fit of the rings, you may apply a small amount of lotion.
• To get the right fit, always try your wedding rings on when your hands are cold.