Man Marries Dog to Break 15-Year Curse

By Pamela Mortimer

P. Selvakumar, a native of southern India, took the unusual advice of an astrologer who recommended that the 33 year old marry a dog in order to break a curse that has lasted for more than a decade.

The "bride", a former stray named Selvi, appeared at the traditional Hindu ceremony wearing a flower garland. According to the Hundustan Times, Selvi had been chosen as the bride by Selvakumar’s family. The dog was bathed and clothed in an orange sari in preparation for the sacred ritual.

Selvakumar confided to the newspaper that he had been plagued by a series of misfortunes since he killed a pair of dogs fifteen years ago. When he was 18 years old, Selvakumar came upon two dogs that were mating, stoned them to death, and then hung them from a tree. Since then, Selvakumar has suffered from numerous medical issues. Those issues were severe enough to lead Selvakumar to believe he was cursed.

"After that my legs and hands got paralyzed and I lost hearing in one ear," he said.

According to Selvakumar, the karma associated with the dog slayings may have caused him to become deaf. He also suffered a stroke and could not move his left arm and his legs. Even now he walks with the help of a stick.

An astrologer told him that the only way he could cure the maladies was to marry a dog. So he did. The ceremony took place at a Ganesh temple in Manamadurai, a town located approximately 50 km from New Delhi. Selvakumar, a resident of the Sivaganga district of Tamil Nadu, tied a "mangal sutra" on ten year old Selvi who had arrived at the ceremony in a grand bridal procession.

Selvakumar also made a solemn vow to protect Selvi all through its life. "I will take care of it till its death," he said.

Someone should probably tell him that referring to his bride as "it" might land him in his own doghouse.

People who live in rural India are deeply superstitious and sometimes organize weddings to dogs and other animals, believing it can ward off certain curses. Selvakumar’s curse was allegedly the "curse of dogs".

Selavakumar admitted that the astrologer assured him that all his problems will be solved once he did the penance by marrying a bitch.

It has not been reported whether his situation has improved.