Auspicious numbers are no guide or guarantee to lasting love, as some couples have found out very quickly.

Several marriages have already floundered after tying the knot on Jan 4, believed to have been the most auspicious and romantic day in 10,000 years on which to tie the knot.

The date, if translated into Cantonese sounds similar to the phrase "lifelong love", saw long queues outside the civil affairs offices in many Chinese cities waiting to register marriages.

But at least three of the 7,299 couples in Shanghai who married that day had divorced by Jan 15, according to the local civil affairs department.

Other cities are also seeing young couples breaking up.

In Nanjing, Jiangsu province, about 5,700 couples married on Jan 4, equal to the monthly total. One quarrelsome couple returned to the registration center the next day seeking a divorce.

"They don't even know the reason for a divorce," said Huang, an official at the Qinhuai district's marriage registration center. "We had to persuade them not to divorce and help them smooth it out. Finally, we asked them to go back and think it over."

In Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, one couple are said to have changed their minds five days after getting married.

Xuhui district's marriage registration center in Shanghai faced similar unhappy returns.

"They are adamant, and rejected mediation," said a representative named Li from the center which also provides a free marriage counseling service.

"We will provide the service based on the couples' actual condition. If they appear quite emotional, it means there is still a chance they'll come round. For those who stay calm, no efforts seem to work."

Many Chinese people have a fascination with numbers, which play an important role in every aspect of life. For example, they believe the number 8, which sounds like the word "prosperity" in Mandarin, is particularly auspicious.

A similar rush to wed took place on Dec 12, 2012, the century's final repeating date. The pronunciation of this particular date in Chinese also resembles "will love".

According to Shanghai Civil Affairs Bureau, seven couples who married that day have since divorced.

"They rushed into marriage just because the date sounded good, without enough mutual understanding and serious consideration," said Chen Zhanbiao, head of the marriage registration department at the bureau.

Generally, divorce among young couples is on the rise as their relationship does not have a stable and strong foundation and they lack the responsibility needed for marriage, according to Zhang Qi, deputy director of the psychological counseling center at East China Normal University.

"Some young people get married due to pressure from their parents, while some still lack maturity," Zhang said.

"Young people who were born in the 1980s have now reached a marriageable age. Almost all of them are the single child in their family due to the country's family planning policy. Pampered by their parents from childhood, they become be more self-centered and less tolerant of others. These character weaknesses will have a negative effect on their marriage."

The number of divorces in China has been rising at a higher rate than marriages in recent years. The divorce rate has been estimated at 2.29 percent in 2012, with 3.09 million couples splitting up, according to a study by a center under the National Population and Family Planning Commission.

wanghongyi@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 01/22/2013 page4)