Breakdown of Pase lo que pase, superamos la barrera.
que
that / than
superar
to overcome
lo
the ... thing (neuter article)
pasar
to happen
la barrera
the barrier (obstacle, barricade)
Questions & Answers about Pase lo que pase, superamos la barrera.
Why is the verb pasar repeated and in the subjunctive (pase)?
This is a reduplicative subjunctive clause. The formula [Subjunctive verb] + lo que + [Same subjunctive verb] is how Spanish expresses "no matter what [verb]s". Since the exact events that might happen are unknown, hypothetical, or outside your control, both instances of pasar must be in the present subjunctive (pase).
Could I use other verbs in this exact same " lo que " format?
Why is superamos in the present indicative, rather than the future tense (superaremos)?
You definitely could use the future tense here (superaremos). However, using the present indicative (superamos) for a future or ongoing action makes the outcome sound much more certain and resolute. It emphasizes that overcoming the barrier is an absolute fact, not just a future possibility.
Since superamos is exactly the same in both the present and the past tense for "nosotros", could this sentence mean "Whatever happened, we overcame the barrier"?
Not with this exact phrasing. While superamos can indeed be preterite (past), the phrase pase lo que pase firmly sets the context in the present or future. If you wanted to talk about a past obstacle ("Whatever happened"), you would need to shift the first half into the imperfect subjunctive: Pasara lo que pasara, superamos la barrera.
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