Gate gate pāragate pārasaṃgate bodhi svāhā
This mantra concludes the Heart Sutra, one of Buddhism's most important texts on the perfection of wisdom (prajnaparamita). It is often translated as: "Gone, gone, gone beyond, gone altogether beyond, O what an awakening!"
Each "gate" represents progressively deeper realization. The first two suggest movement beyond conventional understanding. "Paragate" (gone beyond) indicates transcending even spiritual attainment. "Parasamgate" (gone altogether beyond) points to complete liberation from all conceptual frameworks.
The mantra encapsulates the Heart Sutra's teaching on emptiness—that all phenomena lack inherent existence. This isn't nihilism but recognition of interdependence and fluidity. Clinging to any fixed view, even about emptiness itself, must be transcended.
"Bodhi svaha" concludes with an affirmation of awakening and an expression of dedication. The entire mantra serves as both summary of the path and catalyst for realization, using sound and rhythm to evoke what concepts cannot capture.
Reciting this mantra, practitioners invoke the wisdom that sees through all illusions, including the illusion of a separate self who is reciting.
Source
Heart Sutra - Mahayana Buddhism