KABUL, Afghanistan — When Shafiqullah walked into his wedding celebration, he was surprised to find 600 extra people in the room, none of whom he recognized.

Still, he knew his obligations.

“If I didn’t serve them, it would have caused me dishonor and taken away all happiness from my wedding day,” explained Shafiqullah, a genial 31-year-old car salesman.

So he told the caterers at the Kabul wedding hall he had rented to double the food order, bringing the cost of his wedding to nearly $30,000 — a small fortune in this impoverished country.

It is a familiar tale in Afghanistan, where weddings are vital demonstrations of two tightly held values: commitment to hospitality and devotion to family and community.