Namaste Nesh. As I view it, there is a post-expansion structure of existence, where the interrelations of the ongoing occurrence of expansion are mapped out. That is the view where mantra bodies are fixed, like stars in the firmament, the body of the thing itself. Then there is the use of a mantra in a puja or purascharana or so on. It is possible to eventually create such a resonance with a mantra that one essentially dissolves into the mantra and then joins the mantra body in the structural sense. However when a puja is done or when a mantra is invoked for a purpose, that is very different, it doesn’t take its own pure form. What results is like a chemistry event, where the mantra mixes with the environment and conditions it was invoked in. If you chant a Pratyangira mantra perhaps it will have an effect on your neighbor, but for someone else perhaps on their coworker. But why would the same mantra have two different effects? The mantra isn’t coming into resonance in its pure self-form, but mixed with the circumstance it is invoked, like the result of cooking a dish isn’t the same as isolating a pure ingredient. Salt may be salt but it is a very different thing to discuss salt, to study salt, to use salt to flavor a stew, to salt meat, or to transform oneself into a pillar of salt. In this way this first question from Prince I see as constituting a question of ontology, deities as descriptive of structure. The second question has to do with technology, the invocation of deities within a process: and where that first case is more universal and fixed, the second case is very specific to the who and what and why and when, and doesn’t generalize the same way. That is how it shows itself to me.

Dear Agni, why as per the Parashuram Kalpa Sutra a devotee of RajShyamla is not supposed to utter the word "Kaali"?. Here is the verse: एतन्मनुजापी न कदम्बं छिन्द्यात्, गिरा कालीति न वदेत्. Also, can the 98-letter Rajshyamala mantra be chanted without initiation? Thank you!

Namaste Nesh. Kāmakalākālī embodies the oneness of sṛṣṭi and saṁhāra, the manifestation of the world from the will of consciousness and its withdrawal into consciousness. Each one implicitly contains the other: death in lust, passion in destruction. This is taught in the first kārikā of the Spandaśāstra: "We laud that Śaṅkara by whose mere opening and shutting of the eye-lids there is the appearance and dissolution of the world and who is the source of the glorious powers of the collective whole of the śaktis." In every instant, the world appears and disappears. Every cognition is the cosmic cycle of sṛṣṭi, sthiti and saṁhāra. It is implied in this verse that the two inhere within each other. The manifestation of the world is, in a sense, the withdrawal of pure subjectivity, and the manifestation of pure subjectivity is the withdrawal of the world. Of course, both of these are the activity of the one Self, but this is its play. The same is taught in (I believe) a more profound manner in the Chummāsaṅketaprakāśa: "She who emits everything instantly merely by withdrawing everything into Herself is said to be the Supreme Licking One who constantly exists everywhere." The statement that the Goddess emits everything by withdrawing everything seems strange on the surface, but it is very profound. There is nothing other than the Goddess. If something exists, it is because it is of the nature of Her Light. Her activity is the awareness consciousness has of itself, which is its defining characteristic. Her contemplation which brings about all things is ultimately Her self-contemplation, even if the object of such contemplation seems to be a distinct object (this is the meaning of the name, the Licking One, "licking" being a metaphor for consciousness subsuming all things within itself). In other words, She brings about all things precisely because all things are subsumed within Her being. Nothing is external to Her. So in a way, the line between destruction and passionate creation is blurred. She is the passionate vimarśa which in the very act of manifesting the garden of existence with all its diverse flowers is also the great cremation ground where all things come to an end. Śitikaṇṭha says: "The expansion of the universe is merely the fruit of resting in one's own essential nature." Contemplate this teaching deeply, let it purify your intellect and un-make your thoughts. It is no coincidence that the lineages of teachers and the scriptures are said to come from the same place as the universe itself: the Yoni. For those who do not know it, their existence severed from this, the Void of their true nature, it is recurrent death. For those who are true yogis, Skyfarers in the Void of their pure consciousness nature, it is eternal life.

Dear Agni, thank you for sharing such a clear explanation of ma pratyangira and her nature. Please can you tell us more about Kamakala Kali in the same way? Is she safer to worship without the risks you mentioned being applicable for Mahapratyangira devi?

Namaste Agni. Is Arul Shakti one and the same as Grace Shakti?

Namaste Dylan. Your scholarship and insights really are stunning. It is such a privilege to see your words. Would it be possible to expound more upon Kamakala Kali for us?

Namaste Omid. It would be really thrilling to understand this matter more deeply. May I pester you to share more about this exquisite subject with us?

Now I will explain a little better how Maha Pratyangira works from the perspective of Karma and why this Goddess is so feared. Suppose you do something very, very bad to a devotee of Maha Pratyangira; this Goddess can prevent your bad Karma from going to your Sanchita deposit and being experienced in future lives; she will force you to suffer the consequences in this life; then, she can take the bad Karma that you have produced and compress it in an extreme way to be executed in the Prarabdha deposits of your body in a short space of time capable of even killing you. You could survive if there were not such a great compression of bad Karma in time, but Maha Pratyangira is "Pracaṇḍā-kṣipra-prasādini" (the quickest to execute any action) and Mahākrūra (the most merciless in dealing with the execution of Karma). Therefore, do not harm these devotees because this is a very serious matter and there is no way to defend yourself if you are guilty. I have reflected in the past on how fair the way Maha Pratyangira acts really is. If you take into account the whole context of human existence, the way she acts towards humans is not fair because every person has an ocean of bad karma stored in their heart (but not executed in this life); if a small portion of this bad karma of each person were executed in this life as Prarabdha, no human being would be alive at this moment. It is really just a negligible amount of bad karma that is taken from our great storehouse. It is said that her action cannot be stopped or undone; this is because she transforms everything into obligatory Prarabdha Karma. Suppose you do something very bad to one of her devotees; what would happen if Maha Pratyangira compressed this bad karma to the point that you were forced to pay off the entire amount in a few seconds instead of stretching it over a few days with less force? You would certainly die. In the end, I came to the conclusion that if she really understood how humans feel, she would act differently. Today, she is just a ruthless enforcer of the law, but one day she will understand better. I simply cannot see a scenario that justifies human beings working with her. I have worked with her in the past, but I am starting to get to the point where I am excessively terrorizing someone simply for treating me badly. People are not well every day, that is normal. She exaggerates a lot in "compressing" the bad karma that she executes. I did not like it and stopped allying myself with her, even though I am close to her. I looked for another path in the past. But I know that she acts with good intentions, but she is just unable to feel like a human. If you have been close to her astrologically since birth you will understand how I felt.

O Mother Pratyangira! I get spiritually ecstatic just by hearing her name. I am not sure that she helped me much when I invoked her, but for me she is simply a source of bliss. Nevertheless - she created a strong protection (which was very necessary for me). Due to incompatibility at the level of tattvas, she most likely kept her distance from me for my own good. But in the end - the meeting took place, I had to answer a number of strict questions from her side, but fortunately the exam was passed and everything ended well. I would very much like to now find such a connection with Guhyakali until the highest realization associated with this Devi is achieved.

Agni ji, let me ask you a question to clarify the nyasas for Guhyakali practice. The mantra worshipped by Bharata begins with Hrim. The other (worshipped by Rama Chandra) begins with Om. As far as I understand, the vinyoga, dhyana etc. are the same for both these mantras. Am I correct in understanding that all the nyasas are the same for the mantra starting with Om and the mantra starting with Hrim? However, for the mantra worshipped by Bharata - do I need to replace (in the nyasa) the syllables Om with Hrim?