How do I paste register contents literally without triggering mappings in insert mode?
<C-r><C-r>a
In insert mode, a pastes register a but processes the text as if typed, which can trigger abbreviations and mappings.
Tag: literal
How do you search for a literal string without regex interpretation?
/\Vexact.string
Prefix with \V for very nomagic mode where almost all characters are treated literally.