Wedding Ring Meaning and Symbolism of Wedding Rings

Since ancient times, wearing a ring has been a symbol for marriages. The wife usually wore the rings, and they were given as token of possession. The practice of primitive man involved capturing a woman and encircling her wrists and ankles with chains to prevent her from escaping and another practice was to circle her body with a rope, which would both keep from evil spirits and bind her to him.

A ring is a circle and a circle has very strong magical powers. The circle is endless and timeless. It suggests a repetitive unbroken wholeness in time and space. In addition, with such strong magical properties, a ring around the heart would surely protect a person from evil spirits. It was believed that the hole in the center represented a door leading to what lies ahead. To some people, it even suggests reincarnation. Circles are also important symbols in many religions.

Symbols of wedding ring also exist throughout our culture. Even the materials, which are used for making the wedding ring, appear to be symbols of love and devotion. Majority of couples choose diamonds on their wedding rings because diamond is literally indestructible and such epitomizes someone's love. Rubies are another choice because they represent love, keenness and grandeur.

Even in seventeenth-century BC Egypt, wedding ring had supernatural meanings. The ancient Egyptians linked its never-ending band with eternal love. The symbolism of their custom of placing a piece of ring-money on the bride's finger to indicate that she was endowed with her husband's wealth is retained in the modern marriage service.

They placed the ring on the third finger of the left hand. They believed that the third finger had a vein running directly to the heart, and as the left hand are a bit closer to the heart that the right, they decided to put marriage rings on the third finger of the left hand.

The armies of Alexander the Great, after conquering Egypt, continued to adopt the notion of this ''vein of love'' and eventually, passed this tradition on the Romans. The Romans took on far greater importance on the finger rings and they used them as seals and symbols of ownership and wealth.

The early Christian Church initially rejected wedding rings considering them as relics of a Pagan time, but gradually adopted the practice of marital commitment.

Our ancestors gave much attention to wedding ring fit, which had to be perfect. They believed that the exactness of the fit on the finger for which the ring had been produced represented the nicety and perfect harmony with which a married couple should fit one another in temper, taste and mental capacity.

Today, the magical or religious connotations of the wedding ring have little or no relevance. The important factors for choosing wedding ring are its appearance, attractiveness, and material, and it is worn because the person wants to publicly announce that they have found an intimate friend who they plan to share the rest of their lives with.