Horoscopes or "Horror"scopes?

Hailing from a pretty orthodox family, I have had the "privilege" of witnessing and hearing quite a few stories around horoscopes, auspicious and inauspicious times (and the like). Tradition demands that for a girl to be "sought after" by prospective grooms' families, she should have a compulsively impressive horoscope. That includes being born under a "good star" - though I am at my wit's end to understand what that star might have done to the world to have been proclaimed "good". An Indian girl's parents heave a huge sigh of relief when one of renowned astrologers (who would also be probably one of the richest astrologers) give her horoscope a "pass with first class/distinction" certificate. Otherwise their plight would be "Oh is your girl educated? Very good. Oh she cooks? Excellent. Oh she is interested in arts? Fantastic. Oh she looks good too? What else can one want? By the way, What is her star? Bad-star? Sorry, we are looking for a 'good' wife for our son. Bye bye". (All nonsense if you ask me !!!) The worst part is the same star is not as nightmarish to boys !!! In fact people claim openly "If its a boy, not a problem. But for a girl...a big NO". And we call ourselves civilized and educated.. Bah !!!

Not long ago, a certain set of circumstances demanded that I gain some knowledge about stars and constellations, planets and their satellites :P.(No, I am not referring to the study of space or astronomy) I learned that a girl born under Indian star "Moola" would KILL her father-in-law. Now this holds even when the father-in=law's horoscope says he would live so long that the whole world would start praying for his departure(:P). Actually, wouldn't that be a good way to get rid of your old, troublesome, orthodox husband without fearing the law? Get your son married to a girl with "Moola" Nakshatra :D

Indian astrologers are mind-blowing. Apparently with a cost of a few thousand rupees, one can get oneself "cleared" off the ill effects of one's birth star. Now that is sheer baloney ! What is further distressing is there are people ready to take loans and pay the "large-hearted" (and most probably, fat-bellied) gentlemen to PRAY to the stars and constellations on our behalf !!! And even then, these most spiritually endowed souls would warn us "However, we cannot give 100% assurance that these prayers would be answered but 80% of the time, they work." Ohh, how can you? It probably depends on what MOOD the star is when you pray, isn't it? (Sigh!)

Why do we all need proxies for prayers? Are we not all endowed with the same life force, the same capacity to think, act, pray? How can a star decide and DEEM a girl's future, her personality, and her self-respect ? Yet, generations after generations, in the so called "traditional" marriages, this is the story we so often hear, talk about ,and conveniently forget. As long as girls and their parents give in to the pressures of the society, as long as young GUYS blind their eyes to the horrors of horoscopes and deafen their ears to the sorrows caused by dowry/gold and dance to their parents' tunes - (however arrhythmic they are), looks like the "GRAND" saga of most of these traditional marriages which are so generous in providing ample tension, frustration and anxiety to last a lifetime, would continue...