It was a pleasant wednesday morning and it felt good to start my day on a fresh note with no hangover from the previous day. I am now getting used to my 12 p.m shift and to be honest enjoying it. The reason is I needn't be in a hurry every morning, I could do my morning chores @ a relaxed pace and also catch up on a good night's sleep.

We Indians are a superstitious lot and staunch believers in Sun signs and astrology. Most weddings in India are arranged on the basis of matching of horoscopes. So it came as a surprise to me when I read today's "Times of India" edition which states that zodiac signs in no way affect our future love lives /the reason we are married or stay unmarried . The results were based on a study conducted in Britain. Using the 2001 census, they looked @ 20 million husbands and wives across England and Wales to see if certain star signs were attracted to others (Source: Times of India, March 28, 2007).

Striking was the fact that not even one couple exhibited the special compatibility of the zodiac signs like Virgo's fancing Capricorns or for Libras to like Leos.

For example: In astrology, the union between Pisces and Scorpio is considered as a perfect combination. However to put across their point the researchers gave the example of actors Bruce Willis ( a Piscean) and Demi Moore (a Scorpio) who were married for 11 years and whose marriage broke down due to bickerings and marital discord.

Another example was that of actress Elizabeth Taylor (Piscean) and Richard Burton(Scorpio) who were first married in 1964 but were divorced ten years later, driven apart by drinking and feuding. Later they started dating again and remarried in 1975. This time the rowing started as soon as they got married and it ultimately ended in a divorce for the second time.

The survey results are credible as they spanned a broad spectrum of the population. It does hold many lessons for us that blind belief in the roles that stars play in our destiny is just that..a myth.