# Fortune

Now begins the work composed by Haribhadra

THE ESSENCE OF TAJIKA

Having bowed to the pair of lotus feet of Lord Rama, then to the Goddess of Speech Saraswati, to Ganesha, to the group of planets beginning with the Sun, to Shiva, and to the son of Yashoda Krishna, I shall speak the Essence of Tajika Tajikasara: A treatise on annual horoscopy. It is concise, easy to understand, beautiful, and provides clear knowledge; it was composed after examining various Tajika Tajika: A system of Sanskrit astrology influenced by Persian and Arabic traditions texts to bring joy to the astrologers. || 1 ||

Salutations to the holy Ganesha. Having prostrated to the planets—the Sun, Moon, Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, and Saturn—who are worthy of worship; and having placed in my heart my Guru, who is like the Sun in awakening the golden lotus of understanding within the mind; || 1 || and having placed in my heart the Goddess Sharada Saraswati, who is as bright as the autumnal moon and is the sole lamp for the destruction of the darkness of ignorance, I now explain the easy meanings of the systems within the Essence of Tajika. || 2 || Having first composed a commentary on the Great Garland of Festivals Brihat-Parvamala: Likely a previous work by the author regarding the calendar, I am now prepared to create these verses for the instruction of my students. || 3 ||

In this world, "the wise, when embarking upon a desired task, first perform a salutation to their chosen deity." Thus, to follow the tradition of the wise, and because of the saying: "Many obstacles arise in the path of the auspicious, even for the great; but for those engaged in the inauspicious, the obstacles disappear," the author of this book, at the commencement of this science, performs a Benediction Mangalacarana: An auspicious opening prayer to ensure the successful completion of a task by bowing to his chosen deity and states the subject matter.

Regarding the phrase "Of Sri Rama": The connection is that I, an Astrologer Ganaka: A calculator or astronomer-astrologer named Haribhadra, shall speak the Essence of Tajika. The name for books concerning the results of the solar return year is Tajika.