Gate Gate Paragate Parasamgate Bodhi Svaha
Tonight I am listening to Ramdas' expose on Bhagwad Gita on Audible, and he mentioned this Tibetan mantra that occurs at the end of the Heart Sutra. "Gone, Gone, Gone Beyond, Gone Beyond even the concept of Beyond." It reminded me of Neti Neti and all the N's in Guru Arjan Dev's Gun Naad Dhun Anand Bed.
Each word in gate gate para gate para sam gate bodhi swaha has it's own significance. The breakdown of each word is as followed:
- Gate means gone.
- Paragate signifies gone to the further shore and is a stock Sanskrit expression used by Buddhists and Jains to refer to arahants. (The word para signifies the bank of a river opposite to the one on which one is presently standing.
- Parasamgate signifies completely gone to the further shore. (The syllable sam means: altogether, thoroughly, or completely.)
- The syllable bodhi is a feminine noun that signifies awakening, knowledge and enlightenment.
- The syllable swaha is an indeclinable part from Vedic Sanskrit. It is said to be the name of the wife of Agni, the god of fire. This syllable is used at the end of a chanting that accompanies a burnt offering made at a Vedic sacrifice (rather as “amen” is used at the end of a prayer in Christian liturgy). This syllable cannot really be translated, since it is a performative word.
The Heart Sutra is often cited as the best-known Buddhist scripture and included in the Prajnaparamita (“Perfection of Wisdom”) section of the Mahayana Buddhist canon. It is also known as the Heart Calming Mantra. I found the following recent English translation of the heart sutra by Thich Nhat Hanh:
New Heart Sutra translation by Thich Nhat Hanh
Avalokiteshvara
while practicing deeply with
the Insight that Brings Us to the Other Shore,
suddenly discovered that
all of the five Skandhas are equally empty,
and with this realisation
he overcame all Ill-being.
“Listen Sariputra,
this Body itself is Emptiness
and Emptiness itself is this Body.
This Body is not other than Emptiness
and Emptiness is not other than this Body.
The same is true of Feelings,
Perceptions, Mental Formations,
and Consciousness.
“Listen Sariputra,
all phenomena bear the mark of Emptiness;
their true nature is the nature of
no Birth no Death,
no Being no Non-being,
no Defilement no Purity,
no Increasing no Decreasing.
“That is why in Emptiness,
Body, Feelings, Perceptions,
Mental Formations and Consciousness
are not separate self entities.
The Eighteen Realms of Phenomena
which are the six Sense Organs,
the six Sense Objects,
and the six Consciousnesses
are also not separate self entities.
The Twelve Links of Interdependent Arising
and their Extinction
are also not separate self entities.
Ill-being, the Causes of Ill-being,
the End of Ill-being, the Path,
insight and attainment,
are also not separate self entities.
Whoever can see this
no longer needs anything to attain.
Bodhisattvas who practice
the Insight that Brings Us to the Other Shore
see no more obstacles in their mind,
and because there
are no more obstacles in their mind,
they can overcome all fear,
destroy all wrong perceptions
and realize Perfect Nirvana.
“All Buddhas in the past, present and future
by practicing
the Insight that Brings Us to the Other Shore
are all capable of attaining
Authentic and Perfect Enlightenment.
“Therefore Sariputra,
it should be known that
the Insight that Brings Us to the Other Shore
is a Great Mantra,
the most illuminating mantra,
the highest mantra,
a mantra beyond compare,
the True Wisdom that has the power
to put an end to all kinds of suffering.
Therefore let us proclaim
a mantra to praise
the Insight that Brings Us to the Other Shore.
Gate, Gate, Paragate, Parasamgate, Bodhi Svaha!
Gate, Gate, Paragate, Parasamgate, Bodhi Svaha!
Gate, Gate, Paragate, Parasamgate, Bodhi Svaha!"
Singing oneness!
