The sevens types of marriage in Hinduism.

[phijag at zelacom.com]

paishaaca-bridegroom seduces female when she is unconscious or nearly so;
raaakshasa - female captured by force; gaandharva - "love"-marriage; aasura
- husband must pay for bride and she freely agrees; praajaapatya - arranged
marriage;  aarsha - husband freely gives gifts for the wife; daiva - bride
given to a priest; braahma - bride given away complete with gifts. 
One resource is Raj Bali Pandey's Hindu Samskaras (Motilal Banarsidass)

John
>
>I recall once having read about seven different types of matrimony in
>Hinduism, each distinguished from the other by the manner in which the
>girl was given to, or taken by, the husband. I would like to know in which
>text(s) these marriages are explained in detail and also the names of the
>marriages.
>
>Off the top of my head (and therefore probably not exact) I remember one
>type being where the girl was allowed to choose her own husband, another
>where the girl was abducted by the husband, yet another when the devas
>gave her to her husband.
>
>Thanks in advance.
>
>Regards,
>Anshuman Pandey
>
>---
>Anshuman Pandey | apandey at u.washington.edu | University of Washington
>
>  "Life is an impossible scheme, and love an imperceptible dream. 
>   Face the facts, that's what it's always been. Relax. What you 
>   see is what you've seen, What you get is a new philosophy."
>
>
>