Purim is a Jewish feast, held on the 14th and 15th days of the Jewish month of Adar (in the spring). This year, the year 5757 according to the Jewish calendar, Purim is celebrated today. Purim commemorates the deliverance of the Persian Jews from destruction in the reign of the Persian king Ahasuerus, or Xerxes I, in the Sixth Century B.C., as recorded in the Book of Esther. It is celebrated by feasting and merriment, almsgiving, sending food to neighbors and friends, and chanting the text of Esther. It is perhaps the most joyous day of the Jewish year, with masquerades, plays, and drinking of wine even in the synagogue. The rabbis laid down a rule that one had to stop drinking when he could no longer distinguish between "Cursed by Aman!" and "Blessed be Mordecai!" Biblical scholars now tell us that the Book of Esther is not a piece of history, but, rather, a story designed to justify a particular piece of merry making, which probably had its roots in a culture (or several cultures) that were not Jewish. It's a stretch, then, to consider this a religious feast at all.

MODEL: Go ahead, celebrate with your Jewish friends. Have a ball. Eat. Drink already. Enjoy. It will be a good chaser, after yesterday's bit of Puritanism.

Scientist at heart. If you were born on March 23rd, you are curious about everything, especially life, death and human behavior. You are constantly probing and testing, even if you aren't a scientist by profession. Ruled by the number 5 and the planet Mercury, you are drawn to excitement and are capable of creating it, too.

Difficult to fool. Any concept or idea must be tested thoroughly before you accept it. And you won't offer your own opinion until you have the facts behind you. But once you believe in something, you tend to cling to these convictions, even if evidence suggests you should abandon them.

Odyssey of oddities. You are a very open-minded socially and make friends with people of varied interests and occupations. In fact, you have a taste for all things strange and even those a bit risky. This may be a manifestation of your curiosity or your own unusual nature, often kept hidden in everyday life. You have a special interest in children, even if you have none, since they never cease to surprise you .

A Little Advice: Don't treat people like lab rats, especially friends and family. Enjoy relationships for what they are and don't always analyze. Listen to others and give a little of yourself back.

Also Born On This Day: Akira Kurosawa (Japanese director) Dane Rudhyar (astrologer, philosopher) Pierre Simon Laplace (French scientist) Werner von Braun (German-US rocket scientist) Hermann Staudinger (Nobel Prize-winning chemist) Roger Bannister (first to run a 4-minute mile) Joan Crawford (actress) William Smith (father of British geology) Erich Fromm (psychoanalyst, writer) Juan Gris (cubist painter) Chaka Kahn (singer, songwriter)