can be cultivated through the repetition of the corresponding mantra. Chanting mantras is a fundamental practice mainly in the Vajrayana. In the Mahayana, practitioners chant dharani, which are generally longer than mantras, and in the Shravakayana, practitioners mainly chant Pali suttas.

Mantra meditation dates at least as far back as the Vedic tradition that preceded the Buddha. Mantras were used as incantations to invoke and relate to the gods. Buddhist and other East Asian traditions have identified several mantras or sounds, which, if used in a certain way, can support contact with aspects of our mind that are not usually accessible in our ordinary life and experience.

GATE GATE PARAGATE PARASAMGATE BODHI SVAHA is the Prajnaparamita or “perfection of wisdom” mantra found mainly in the Heart Sutra. It means “Gone, gone, gone beyond, gone utterly beyond, Enlightenment!” Sometimes, it is translated as “Gone, gone, gone all the way over, everyone gone to the other shore. Enlightenment!” It is very popular in the Mahayana and Vajrayana traditions. Chanting this mantra is said to help us see the true nature of reality. There are many different tunes to which it can be chanted.

Scientists have found that chanting activates the parasympathetic nervous system, which controls the body’s rest and digestion response. This activation can lead to a decrease in heart rate, blood pressure, and stress hormone levels. Where there is a vibration, there is a sound, sometimes imperceptible to the human ear.

Chanting mantras can calm the mind and act as a focal point for meditation.

Reflect on the feelings that arise while chanting or listening to sutras or mantra.

• What do you notice in your body or mind when you repeat a mantra?
• How might chanting a mantra help protect your mind from mistaken views?

Identify the function of mantra practice within Buddhist meditation traditions. Analyze how the prajnaparamita mantra connects to the Heart Sutra’s teachings on emptiness, and demonstrate competency by accurately reciting the mantra and explaining its meaning.