There is a lot of pomp and circumstance that surround the bride and groom starting from the day you get engaged to the day you walk down the aisle. But think about it, even though the wedding is happening and everyone is getting together to celebrate two special people joining their lives, it is really so much more than just that a one day celebration.
The moment your boyfriend gets down on one knee and promises you his life with a ring he chose for you is probably one of the most happy and surprising moments that you will have in your life. The ring symbolizes more than just what it looks like and how much he spent.
1) A circle is forever a promise.
A ring is shaped like a circle; it does not have a beginning, and even more important, it does not have an ending. When a couple wears somewhat similar or even matching rings, they further bond each other in this life together. Whatever your wedding rings look like, they are uniquely you and symbolize your personal and lasting bond with your husband. It truly is a special piece of jewelry that is completely worth the wait for!
2) A ring is the international symbol of simply being a spouse.
It is the quickest and easiest way to find out if someone is a) engaged, or b) married. No where else on a person will the answer be more clear than on the third finger on your left hand. Back in the olden days, the wedding ring was a symbol of submission and possession — revealing that a woman was the ‘property of a certain man. And it was placed on the left hand because the left side was thought to be weaker than the right, another form of submission and possession.
Of course, this logic does not hold up. For a more romantic meaning behind the history of wedding rings, your fiance gives you an engagement ring as a sign of his devotion and love. He is willing to pledge to you, on his knees, to tell the world that he is yours, not that he possesses you. Really this ideal is the exact opposite of the pagan tradition.
3) The ring finger contains significance.
Another romantic notion behind the meaning of the wedding ring is that ring finger is the only finger on the hand that contains a vein that runs directly to the heart. With the heart being the center and beginning of all love and life, this makes a pretty picture and perfect sense.
An ancient Chinese finger trick explains why wedding rings are on your third finger. If you place your middle finger knuckles together and then place the rest of your fingers tip to tip, you cannot move your ring finger at all. This is to symbolize how bound you are to one another. The Chinese believe that each of your fingers symbolize something: thumbs are for parents, index fingers for siblings, middle finger for yourself, ring finger for your life partner, and pinky for your children. If you really think about it, you can live without your parents (they have their own lives), your siblings will grow up to have their own life partners and children of their own, you can never abandon yourself, and your children will have their lives to live. But you cannot separate yourself from your life partner. He is meant to be by your side through thick and thin, the good and the bad, in sickness and in health, and so on and so on. You are meant to be with each other and should never be separated.
4) There were no rings in the Bible.
When reading about the Holy Family in the New Testament and even the founding fathers in the Old Testament like Abraham and Isaac, there is never a mention of the man giving his wife-to-be a ring. The giving of a ring did not become a tradition until much later. Men wearing their own wedding bands was not a practiced tradition until about World War II when men would wear them to remember their wives back at home. History records items given to the woman to tie them to their man, but nothing as meaningful and beautiful as wedding rings can be dictated.
A piece of jewelry, or something along those lines, is meant to express devotion and love to the other person. An engagement ring symbolizes that a couple is ready to make that step. It is a piece of jewelry that is meant to honor, flatter, humble, and overjoy the couple for the rest of their lives together. Every time they look it, it will be reminder of the day he gave it to you and of all the days you can look forward to together.
To call someone a wife or a husband requires certain milestones. That very first step is the giving of a ring and the declaration of a desire to spend the rest of his years with you and make a family with you. That promise, that ring, is one of trust, commitment, love, and more. It is the most important thing that you will have at your wedding, next to your husband of course! During your vows, you will profess out loud that with these rings, you do properly wed him and he you. It is a solemn vow that is full of sentiment, tradition, and love. A ring is a remembrance of the one you love and the promises you have made to one another. Love, commitment, and devotion, it all starts with a wedding ring.
