There are four levels of Guru. The first is Guru, followed by Parama Guru, then Parātpara Guru, and finally Parameṣṭhi Guru, who is Lord Śiva himself, the ruler of the auspicious Northeast direction in the Kāla Chakra.
Parameṣṭhi Guru is always Śiva, Īśāna, or Īśvara, the Guru of all Gurus.
The Parātpara Guru of our tradition is Śrī Achyutananda Das.
Sanjay Rath belongs to a traditional family of astrologers from Bira Balabhadrapur Sasan village of Puri, Orissa, which trace their lineage back to Śrī Achyuta Das (Śrī Achyutananda). Sanjay studied under his uncle, late Paṇḍita Kasinath Rath. His grandfather, the late Paṇḍita Jagannāth Rath, was the Jyotiṣa Ratna of Orissa and authored many books on Jyotiṣa. He began his studies at a tender age and received the depth of Jyotiṣa only found among those who have been trained in the ancient traditional way of the Parampara. He later became a graduate of mechanical engineering and worked for some time with the Government of India. Leaving government service to devote himself completely to Jyotiṣa, he has the depth of the ancient knowledge with the ability to communicate it to the modern mind.
He uses Bṛhat Parāśara Horā Śāstra, Jaimini Upadeśa Sutras, Bṛhat Jātaka and Sārāvalī as the foundations of Jyotiṣa and teaches from various other Jyotiṣa scripture and sacred literature such as the Bhagavad Gita, Upaniṣad, Purāṇas, etc. Few are able to grasp Sanjay’s broad and deep approach, and only the advanced astrologer is truly able to appreciate it. His teachings show the underlying factors of why the principles of astrology work. His teaching and writings span across various schools of thought, although not creating his own brand of astrology, which is wholistic and gets to the heart of the ancient Jyotisha scriptures. He is a strict follower of the teachings of the ancient seers and is also keen for research and further development of the subject.
He gives his students the clarity of vision of the eye of the Vedas and his works are filling the void of advanced teachings and raising the standards in the astrological world. To promote the teachings of his Paramparā, he has formed the Śrī Jagannāth Center where his advanced students are helping to spread Jyotiṣa in a way that keeps its spiritual roots. Students learn not only about Jyotiṣa, but also Mantra Śāstra, Mudra, Prāṇayama, meditation, and the Sanatana Dharma.
He is presently working on translating the ancient Jyotiṣa scriptures according to his deep understanding of their meaning that has been given to him through the grace of his Paramparā.
Visti Larsen was born in Kenya to a Danish father and a Kenyan mother. At the age of nine, he moved to Denmark. He began studying astrology at the age of seventeen, in 1998, starting with Western Tropical astrology, but by 2000, he had chosen Vedic astrology, known as Jyotish. In 2001, he joined the Sri Jagannath Center to study astrology in the tradition of Sri Achyuta Das. In August 2002, he began teaching astrology and received the Guru Mantra to advance in this field. His teachings are based on Vedic knowledge, where much emphasis is placed on remedial measures and understanding the universe from a spiritual perspective.
He resides in Frederiksberg, Denmark, with his wife Branka and sons Esias and Konstantin. Besides his professional involvement in astrology, he also teaches Jyotish within the Regional Academy of Mantra and Astrology (RAMA), offering courses on Jaimini Sutras and Parashara Jyotisha.