Red Tara is the female buddha of the padma family of enlightened speech and discriminating awareness  presided over by Amitabha. Her red colour signifies the union of discriminating awareness with compassion, her long-life vase dispenses the sweet nectar of immortality, and her lotus bow and arrow signify the accumulations of wisdom and merit. Radiant rainbow light and her seed syllable, TAM, emanate forth from her heart as her blessings go out to all beings in all realms.