A Gandharva marriage (Sanskrit: गान्धर्व विवाह, pronounced gənd̪ʱərvə vɪvaːhə) (also known as love marriage) is one of the eight classical types of Hindu marriage. This ancient marriage tradition from the Indian subcontinent was based on consensual acceptance between two people, with no rituals, witnesses or family participation. The marriage of Dushyanta and Shakuntala was a historically celebrated example of this class of marriage. Etymology In Hinduism and Buddhism, Gandharvas are male nature spirits and the masculine counterparts of the Apsaras. They are passionate lovers of women and arouse erotic and romantic passion in women. History The Smritis of Hinduism recognize eight types of marriage, one of them being Gandharva marriage. The other seven are: Brahma, Daiva, Arya, Prajapatya, Asura, Raksasa and Paisacha. According to Apastamba Grhyasutra, an ancient Hindu literature, the woman chooses her own husband in Gandharva marriage. They meet each other of their own accord, consent to live together, and their relationship is consummated in copulation born of passion. This form of marriage did not require consent of parents or anyone else. According to Vedic texts, this is one of earliest and common forms of marriage in Rig Vedic times. In Rig vedic opinions and classical literature, the commonly described marriage type was Gandharva, where the woman and the man had met each other in their ordinary village life, or in various other places such as regional festivals and fairs, begun to enjoy each other's company, and decided to be together. This free choice and mutual attraction were generally approved by their kinsmen. A passage in the Atharvaveda suggests that parents usually let the daughter freely select her lover and directly encouraged her in being forward in affairs of the heart. The mother of the girl thought of the time when the daughter's developed youth (Pativedanam, post-puberty), that she would win a husband for herself, it was a smooth and happy sort of affair with nothing scandalous and unnatural about it. The translated version of the Atharvaveda (Strikaratâni, ii.36) passage is: May (Oh Agni!) a suitor after our own heart come to us; may he come to this maiden with fortune; May she be agreeable to suitors, charming at festivals, promptly obtain happiness through a husband. As this comfortable cave (Oh Indra!) furnishing a safe abode hath become pleasing to all life, thus may this woman be a favourite of fortune, well beloved, not at odds with her