Based on my horoscope, Ishta Devata can be Bhairava, Kali or Durga, and I need a person who is really good in astrology and also has a spiritual practice to tell me for sure who it is.

Namaste, my experience after many trials is that the ishta devata dictated by the body, mind and energy (through the horoscope) is the best choice. Why it is the best was discussed plenty of times in this thread. Now, this is my understanding of what's been discussed: if for some reasons we don't like this ishta devata, then there are other deities which assoociated with the 7 karakas, of which we can choose. And among the deities, the one associated with the amatyakaraka should be chosen, and he/she will sit at the third-eye cakra to oversee all other cakras/karmas. And we should not worship no other deities.

Does anyone know who drew Sri Chakra on an Oregon dry lake bed in 1990?

Namaste Prince. The "poisonous rat" could also be understood to be a mongoose. According to the Mantravidyārahasya, it symbolizes the conquest of death. The vulture symbolizes the power of sight, which presumably means omniscience. The sacrificial ladle is interesting. According to the same text Siddhikarālī holds two ladles, one symbolizing satisfaction and the other symbolizing the performance of a fire sacrifice. The fire sacrifice is understood in an esoteric way as the dissolution of all things into pure consciousness, like a blazing fire which dissolves anything that is thrown into it within itself. The Vijñānabhairava Tantra explains: "When in the fire of the Supreme Reality in which even the highest void is dissolved, the five elements, the senses, the objects of the senses along with the mind are poured, with awareness as the ladle, then that is real homa." And in the Bhāvanopaniṣad: "Knowledge is the respectful reception; the object of knowledge is the oblation; and the subject who knows is the offerer of oblation." The ladle can also be understood to be the triad of energies: icchā, jñāna and kriyā, through which the nectar of immortality is poured into the fire of consciousness. And it is understood that this nectar is the cause of the highest satisfaction, that of repose in the Self. Concerning the corpse, there are a few parallels. In the Devīpañcaśataka, Kālī is visualized as holding the ear of a small child. Other forms of Kālī are visualized as having childrens' corpses as earrings. The significance of the child in this case is simplicity and dispassion. The Vivekacūḍāmaṇi says: "Just as a boy plays with toys heedless of hunger and other pains, so the wise man plays happily, unattached and selfless." The jeweled pot is a feature shared by Annapūrṇā. It signifies the world, the totality of all things from which the vivifying nectar of Self-realization is obtained. Recall what I said in my response to Nesh: "The expansion of the universe is merely the fruit of resting in one's own essential nature." The piece of meat, according to the Mantravidyārahasya, symbolizes the Goddess' virtuous or auspicious nature. The symbolism of meat is very profound, and it relates largely to Khecarīmudrā. The physical act of making the tongue go into the nasal cavity is simply a (mis)interpretation of it. The Ūrmikaulārṇava Tantra provides two explanations. The word for 'meat' in Sanskrit is ‘māṃsa’. 'Mā' is understood to mean ‘Māṇgālya’, auspiciousness. 'Sa' is taken to mean 'Sat', existence or truth. So, māṃsa is the auspicious reality of the Goddess and that which grants it. How? By "chewing on meat." In this context, "meat" means the tongue, which symbolizes the discursive mind which, like the tongue which articulates speech, formulates the stream of countless thoughts. To "chew" on this meat - the tongue of the mind - means to still it, to silence it. It is said in the Yogakhaṇḍa of the Manthānabhairava Tantra: "...one whose mind is free of thoughts is successful — this is the alchemical potion. Thought is only delusion and thought is in the mind. Once thought has been destroyed then there is success without any doubt."

Thank you all for the well-researched and well explained answers from last week, regarding the lotuses and their denizens of our Mother's yantra. For the fourth week of discussion, we are focusing on the interesting, and fantastic weapons held by Bharatopasita Maha Siddhikarali Devata. Learned Maha Siddhar Tivra wrote " In your right hands you hold a rosary of precious stones, a human skull, a shield, a noose, a lightning bolt, a staff with a skull on top, an explosive missile in the form of a flaming spear, a bow, a discus, a bell, a child's corpse, a philosopher's stone, a human skeleton, a mongoose, a serpent, a bamboo stick, a hammer, a fireplace, a double-headed musical drum, an iron plow, a sickle, an iron staff, a sword with a blade on each end, a barbed spear, an iron staff filled with nails, a jackal, and a boat. In your left hands you hold a rosary of bones, a sword, scissors, a threatening gesture, a goad, a royal scepter, a golden jar filled with precious stones, a trident, five deadly arrows of Lord Parāśiva called Pāśupatāstra that cause dryness, madness, fainting, destruction and death, a spear with a point at each end, the Kalpavṛkṣa coral tree, a dagger, a nail, a flower garland, a one-headed war drum, a vulture, a water pot, a piece of meat, a sacrificial ladle with two oval side excavations, a citrine stone, a needle, an axe, a pointed mace, a club, brass knuckles, a human corpse and a poisonous rat.” From my limited understanding, weapons such as the ‘philosopher’s stone’ may mean the wish fulfilling Cintamani stone, which is the construction material of Lalitambika’s Abode. What do the weapons such as the “poisonous rat”, “a vulture”, “sacrificial ladle (very specific)”, “a child’s corpse”, “a golden jar filled with precious stones”, “a piece of meat” signify ? While I may guess it shows that the plethora of items that the goddess holds may signify her grandeur, royalty and authority in all things from the most mundane to sacred and to the unthinkable. I would humbly request all to give your inputs regarding this. Thank you.

thank you dylan, for the beautiful explanation

my humble gratitude to you omid :)

Namaste Agni, can you please also tell me who my Ishta Devata is? My Atmakaraka is Surya and my Amatyakaraka is Shukra. It is very important to me. I can provide detailed birth information if needed. Thank you

Namaskaram Agniji, Does the deity change according to which sign our amatyakaraka is placed? For example, if mars is our amatyakaraka, will the preferred deity be Maa Pratyangira regardless of which House/Sign/Nakshatra Mars is sitting in? Also please share more about Maa Pratyangira, hearing about Her from you is like pure nectar. Thank you so much for sharing your wisdom with us.

When it comes to calculating karakas, I am having some issues. One is that sometimes Rahu gets listed as my atmakaraka, this is the case when 365 degrees are subtracted, as is the tradition in some schools with nodes. More confusingly, changing the chart system totally changes the karakas. I’ve noticed that, for people born in northern latitudes like Europe, northern US, Russia, Canada, whole sign and some of the other systems seems to do a better job of placing planets and houses per predictive capacity. But that’s tangential to my trouble. I used various Indian systems which do not use the 365 degrees subtraction with the nodes, or don’t include them at all for atmakaraka, and sometimes moon is atmakaraka, and mercury amatyakaraka, and in one system mars is atmakaraka, with mercury amatyakaraka, while in other systems mars is darakaraka for me. So I am very confused. I was told most recently by a Sufi fakir, that Rahu is indeed my atmakaraka, but we did not discuss amatyakaraka. I really want to properly figure out my body tattva. This is also very confusing as one tries different if the numerous systems, as the elemental concentrations will totally shift depending on which system is used. If I go only off of the mystics I’ve met in this life, two have said Rahu and one said Chandra for atmakaraka. Per experiences with sadhana, my body responds badly to vayu and well to prithvi . Firey element goddesses have mixed results, for body and mind, but are turbulent. Water I am not sure. Please pardon my rambling worries. Anyone’s guidance would be tremendously helpful and appreciated, as I have some major surgeries this spring and summer