Hand Fasting Ceremony

Perhaps you have wondered where the phrase,
“tying the knot,” comes from?

The expression refers to the traditional early Celtic marriage ritual of hand fasting, the ancient word for a wedding, that was traditionally recognized as a binding contract of marriage between a man and a woman. After the wedding vows and ring exchange, the couple’s hands were bound together with a cord that was tied in a “love knot,” signifying the joining of their lives in a sacred union.

Today, hand fasting is a symbolic ceremony to honour a couple’s desire for commitment to each other, and to acknowledge that their lives and their destinies are now bound together. During the hand fasting ceremony, the couple’s hands are tied together with one or several coloured cords or ribbons, symbolizing the desire of the couple to be united. Each of the cord colours has its own special symbolic meaning. The cords can either be several colours twisted into one cord and used for a single cord ceremony, or each colour can be draped individually up to six cords. The cord is often kept by the couple in a box or ornate bag as a reminder of their vows.

Here is a sample hand fasting ceremony:

Officiant: _______ and _______ have chosen to include the tradition of hand-fasting into their wedding ceremony today. Hand-fasting is a wedding ritual in which the couples' hands are tied together as a symbol of their lives being joined together.

_______ and _______, marriage forms eternal and sacred bonds. The promises made today bind your lives together. Do you still seek to enter this ceremony?

Response: We do.

Officiant: Please hold hands (left with left and right with right) and look into each other's eyes. _________ and ________ , will you honour and respect one another, and seek to never break that honour?

Response: We will.

Officiant wraps the cord once, loosely, over the couples' hands.
Officiant: Will you share each other's pain and seek to ease it?
Response: We will.

Officiant wraps cord again over the hands.
Officiant: Will you share the burdens of each, so that your spirits may grow in this union?
Response: We will.

Officiant wraps cord again over the hands.
Officiant: Will you share each other's laughter, and look for the brightness in life and the positive in each other?
Response: We will.

Officiant wraps cord again over the hands, then ties the ends into a knot.
Officiant: _________ and ________ as your hands are now bound together, so your lives are joined in a union of love and trust. The knots of this binding symbolize the commitments you have made. Like the stars, your love should be a constant source of light, and like the earth, a firm foundation from which to grow.
May this “love knot” remain forever tied, and may these hands be blessed. May they always be held by one another. May they have the strength to hold on tightly during the storms of life. May they remain tender and gentle as they nurture each other. May these hands build a relationship of love, caring, and devotion. May _________ and ________ see each other's hands as healer, protector, shelter and guide.

(Officiant carefully removes cord, keeping the knot intact.)