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Heart Sutra, Prajna Paramita

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Version 3 – The Great Prajna Paramita Heart Sutra, translated by Tony Nguyễn Wiederhold

Note: Prajna Paramita is the practice (paramita) of prajna, staying in contact with those things that arise before (pra-) concept (jnanam), in other words, what you are actually sensing and feeling and how those relate to your concepts and views. This version builds on Version 2. All changes are in the first sentence. I added “who hears the cries of the world”, the more typical moniker for Avalokitesvara in East Asia, to emphasize this practice of non-ignorance, of turning towards suffering. The words “skandha” and “empty” are unfamiliar to most people who don’t closely study Buddhist teachings, so I’ve replaced skandhas with the definition “aspects of sentient beings”. I changed “are equally empty” to “arise from many conditions”, which is an aspect of emptiness that is repeated later in the sutra. This is an attempt to avoid the impressions left by the conventional usage of “empty” in contemporary English, including the negative connotation and sense of nonexistence of the object that is empty. At the time the Heart Sutra was written down, people who understood emptiness, Tài Xū (太虚), in a Taoist context might have had a positive connotation from the concept of the Grand Void being limitless potentiality, the source of everything.

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The Bodhisattva of Ease and Refuge, who hears the cries of the world, when practicing deeply prajna paramita, realizes that all five aspects of sentient beings arise from many conditions and immediately moves beyond all forms of grief and cruelty.

Shariputra, form is not different from emptiness. Emptiness is not different from form.
That which is form is emptiness. That which is emptiness, form.
The same is true of feeling, perception, impression, and discrimination.

Shariputra, all phenomena are marked with emptiness.
They do not appear out of nothing or disappear into nothingness, are not tainted or pure, and do not increase or decrease. Therefore, in emptiness, no form, no feeling, perception, impression, or discrimination.

No eyes, no ears, no nose, no tongue, no body, no mind.
No color, no sound, no smell, no taste, no touch, no object of mind.
No realm of eyes and so forth until no realm of mind discrimination.
No ignorance and also no extinction of it and so forth until no old age and death and also no extinction of them.

No Suffering, no Origination, no Stopping, no Path.
No knowledge, and also no attainment with nothing to attain.

The Bodhisattva practices prajna paramita and the heart has no hindrance.
Without any hindrance, no fears exist.
Far apart from every distorted view, one dwells in Nirvana.

In all times, all Buddhas depend on prajna paramita and attain that which is unsurpassable: Collective Enlightenment.

Therefore, know that prajna paramita is the great transcendent mantra,
is the great, bright mantra,
is the utmost mantra,
is the supreme mantra that is able to relieve all suffering and is true, not false.

So proclaim the prajna paramita mantra. Proclaim the mantra that says:

Gate gate paragate parasamgate. Bodhi. Svaha!
Gate gate paragate parasamgate. Bodhi. Svaha!
Gate gate paragate parasamgate. Bodhi. Svaha!

(Gone, gone, really gone, altogether gone. Enlightenment. Aha!)

Version 2 – The Great Prajna Paramita Heart Sutra, translated by Tony Nguyễn Wiederhold

Note: this version builds on Version 1 and incorporates elements from my translation of Tâm Kinh Bát Nhã, Việt Văn from Tam Bảo Meditation Center in Baton Rouge, LA.

***

The Bodhisattva of Ease and Refuge, when practicing deeply prajna paramita, realizes that all five skandhas are equally empty and immediately moves beyond all forms of grief and cruelty.

Shariputra, form is not different from emptiness. Emptiness is not different from form.
That which is form is emptiness. That which is emptiness, form.
The same is true of feeling, perception, impression, and discrimination.

Shariputra, all phenomena are marked with emptiness.
They do not appear out of nothing or disappear into nothingness, are not tainted or pure, and do not increase or decrease. Therefore, in emptiness, no form, no feeling, perception, impression, or discrimination.

No eyes, no ears, no nose, no tongue, no body, no mind.
No color, no sound, no smell, no taste, no touch, no object of mind.
No realm of eyes and so forth until no realm of mind discrimination.
No ignorance and also no extinction of it and so forth until no old age and death and also no extinction of them.

No Suffering, no Origination, no Stopping, no Path.
No knowledge, and also no attainment with nothing to attain.

The Bodhisattva practices prajna paramita and the heart has no hindrance.
Without any hindrance, no fears exist.
Far apart from every distorted view, one dwells in Nirvana.

In all times, all Buddhas depend on prajna paramita and attain that which is unsurpassable: Collective Enlightenment.

Therefore, know that prajna paramita is the great transcendent mantra,
is the great, bright mantra,
is the utmost mantra,
is the supreme mantra that is able to relieve all suffering and is true, not false.

So proclaim the prajna paramita mantra. Proclaim the mantra that says:

Gate gate paragate parasamgate. Bodhi. Svaha!
Gate gate paragate parasamgate. Bodhi. Svaha!
Gate gate paragate parasamgate. Bodhi. Svaha!

(Gone, gone, really gone, altogether gone. Enlightenment. Aha!)

Version 1 – The Great Prajna Paramita Heart Sutra

Note: I’ve replaced some of the words found in other English versions of this sutra with words that seem more accurate to me based on 1) what I have found through zazen practice (you can read my brief reflections on both prajna and pranja paramita here) and 2) sanskrit definitions and etymology for the five skandhas and also words often left untranslated in English versions. The English version from which I’ve started is that of the Kwan Um School of Zen, which was translated from Korean. The Korean version probably came from a Chinese version at some point. I started from this version because it’s the first version I studied carefully, the version I encountered at the Indianapolis Zen Center in 2018 that coincided with the incorporation of regular community meditation practice into my life.

***

Avalokiteshvara Bodhisattva, when practicing deeply prajna paramita, perceives that all five skandhas are empty and is saved from all suffering and distress.

Shariputra, form does not differ from emptiness. Emptiness does not differ from form.
That which is form is emptiness. That which is emptiness, form.
The same is true of feeling, perception, impression, and discrimination.

Shariputra, all phenomena are marked with emptiness.
They do not appear out of nothing or disappear into nothingness, are not tainted or pure, and do not increase or decrease. Therefore, in emptiness, no form, no feeling, perception, impression, or discrimination.

No eyes, no ears, no nose, no tongue, no body, no mind.
No color, no sound, no smell, no taste, no touch, no object of mind.
No realm of eyes and so forth until no realm of mind discrimination.
No ignorance and also no extinction of it and so forth until no old age and death and also no extinction of them.

No suffering, no origination, no stopping, no path.
No knowledge, and also no attainment with nothing to attain.

The Bodhisattva depends on prajna paramita and the mind is no hindrance.
Without any hindrance, no fears exist.
Far apart from every distorted view, one dwells in Nirvana.

In all times, all Buddhas depend on prajna paramita and attain that which is unsurpassable: Collective Enlightenment.

Therefore, know that prajna paramita is the great transcendent mantra,
is the great, bright mantra,
is the utmost mantra,
is the supreme mantra that is able to relieve all suffering and is true, not false.

So proclaim the prajna paramita mantra. Proclaim the mantra that says:

Gate gate paragate parasamgate. Bodhi. Svaha!
Gate gate paragate parasamgate. Bodhi. Svaha!
Gate gate paragate parasamgate. Bodhi. Svaha!

(Gone, gone, really gone, altogether gone. Enlightenment. Aha!)

A Simple Mindfulness Meditation

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Breathing in, this is breathing in.
Letting go, this is breathing out.

Breathing in, these are sensations in my body.
Letting go, these are sensations in my body.

Breathing in, this is how I feel.
Letting go, this is how I feel.

Breathing in, these are the stories I hold.
Letting go, these are the stories I hold.

Breathing in, this is breathing in.
Letting go, this is breathing out.

You can use these mantras to look deeply into anything you are experiencing by noticing the sensations, feelings, and stories that are woven into it. I’ve found that the words of the mantras fall away when I practice with them. What remains is what those words represent. When practicing, if you feel yourself grasping at the words, see what effects you notice when you allow that grasping to soften.

You’re doing great!

More about breathing:

You might notice that breathing in involves a little bit of exertion. Breathe in right now and notice the sensations just below your ribcage. Keep breathing in until the very top of your breath, then let go and let the breath return to the air. You can even hold at the top for a couple of heartbeats. Notice that breathing out is just letting go. I usually always breath in through my nose while sitting, but breath out through either my nose or mouth.

When you breath in, you’re squeezing a muscle called the diaphragm. It’s a sheet that separates your chest from your abdomen. When you squeeze it, it expands your lungs. The pressure in the lungs lowers and the air from the outside fills them to equalize the pressure. When you let go of that contraction, the lungs rebound and breath returns to the air. You might notice from time to time that you are squeezing muscles without realizing it. When you notice that, see what happens when you allow them to soften. You can even let that tension leave your body on your exhales.