Regular Reading of this Powerful Shatakam by Shankaracharya can give you Moksha

निर्वाण षट्कम् |

Verse 1: The Transcendence of Mind and Senses

मनोबुद्ध्यहङ्कार चित्तानि नाहं
न च श्रोत्रजिह्वे न च घ्राणनेत्रे ।
न च व्योम भूमिर्न तेजो न वायुः
चिदानन्दरूपः शिवोऽहम् शिवोऽहम् ॥१॥

Mano buddhir ahankāra cittāni nāhaṁ
Na cha śrotra jihve na cha ghrāṇa netre
Na cha vyoma bhūmir na tejo na vāyuḥ
Chidānanda rūpaḥ śivo’ham śivo’ham

Translation:
I am not the mind, intellect, ego, or memory. I am not the ears, tongue, nose, or eyes. I am not space, earth, fire, or air. I am pure consciousness-bliss, I am Shiva, I am Shiva.

Deep Dive:
With surgical precision, Shankara dismantles every false identification. The mind (manas) that thinks, the intellect (buddhi) that discriminates, the ego (ahankara) that claims ownership, the memory (chitta) that stores impressions—none of these are your true Self.

This echoes the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad’s teaching: “Neti, neti” (Not this, not this). The Upanishad declares: “That Self is not this, not this. It is imperceptible, for it is never perceived” (Brihadaranyaka 3.9.26).

Notice how Shankara doesn’t just negate the subtle inner instruments; he demolishes even the five elements (panchamahabhutas) that constitute the physical universe. You are not even the fundamental building blocks of creation!

The Mundaka Upanishad supports this: “That which cannot be seen or seized, which has no origin and no properties, no eyes and no ears, no hands and no feet—that the wise conceive as eternal, omnipresent, infinitesimal, the source of all” (Mundaka 1.1.6).

Then comes the thunderous affirmation: Chidānanda rūpaḥ—You are the form of consciousness-bliss itself. Not a being who possesses consciousness, but consciousness that IS. And the declaration Shivo’ham—”I am Shiva”—is not claiming to be the deity, but declaring one’s identity with the Absolute, the auspicious reality that underlies all existence.

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Verse 2: Beyond Vital Forces and Sheaths

न च प्राणसंज्ञो न वै पञ्चवायुः
न वा सप्तधातुर्न वा पञ्चकोशः ।
न वाक्पाणिपादौ न चोपस्थपायु
चिदानन्दरूपः शिवोऽहम् शिवोऽहम् ॥२॥

Na cha prāṇa saṁjño na vai pañcha vāyuḥ
Na vā sapta dhātur na vā pañcha kośaḥ
Na vāk pāṇi pādau na chopastha pāyu
Chidānanda rūpaḥ śivo’ham śivo’ham

Translation:
I am not the vital breath (prana), nor the five vital airs. I am not the seven dhatus (bodily constituents), nor the five sheaths. I am not the organs of speech, hands, feet, or the organs of excretion and procreation. I am pure consciousness-bliss, I am Shiva, I am Shiva.

Deep Dive:
Here Shankara goes deeper into the physiology of false identification. The prana (life force) and the five vital airs (prana, apana, samana, udana, vyana) that yogis manipulate—you are not these either.

The seven dhatus—the structural components of the body according to Ayurveda (rasa/plasma, rakta/blood, mamsa/muscle, meda/fat, asthi/bone, majja/marrow, shukra/reproductive tissue)—form our biological existence, but you transcend them all.

Most profoundly, Shankara negates the pancha koshas (five sheaths) described in the Taittiriya Upanishad:

1. Annamaya kosha (food sheath/physical body)
2. Pranamaya kosha (vital sheath)
3. Manomaya kosha (mental sheath)
4. Vijnanamaya kosha (intellectual sheath)
5. Anandamaya kosha (bliss sheath)

Even the bliss sheath, the subtlest covering, is not your true Self! The Taittiriya Upanishad teaches: “Different from and within this bliss sheath is the Self consisting of bliss” (Taittiriya 2.5).

The organs of action (karmendriyas)—speech, hands, feet, excretion, procreation—all belong to the realm of doing, the realm of prakrti (nature). You are the witness of all action, never the actor.

Bhagavad Gita confirms: “The embodied soul, by its nature, performs actions with the senses, but the wise person who knows the truth thinks, ‘I do nothing at all'” (Gita 5.8-9).

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Verse 3: Free from Attachments and Qualities

न मे द्वेषरागौ न मे लोभमोहौ
मदो नैव मे नैव मात्सर्यभावः ।
न धर्मो न चार्थो न कामो न मोक्षः
चिदानन्दरूपः शिवोऽहम् शिवोऽहम् ॥३॥

Na me dveṣa rāgau na me lobha mohau
Mado naiva me naiva mātsarya bhāvaḥ
Na dharmo na chārtho na kāmo na mokṣaḥ
Chidānanda rūpaḥ śivo’ham śivo’ham

Translation:
I have no hatred or attachment, no greed or delusion. I have no pride or envy. I am beyond dharma, artha, kama, and even moksha. I am pure consciousness-bliss, I am Shiva, I am Shiva.

Deep Dive:
This verse shatters psychological identifications. The six enemies of the mind (shadripus)—kama (lust), krodha (anger), lobha (greed), moha (delusion), mada (pride), matsarya (envy)—these emotional turbulences belong to the ego-mind complex, not to the Self.

The Bhagavad Gita describes the person established in Self-knowledge: “One who is satisfied in the Self alone by the Self, who is not agitated by pain and does not hanker after pleasure, who is free from attachment, fear and anger—such a person is called a sage of steady wisdom” (Gita 2.55-56).

But Shankara goes even further—he transcends the purusharthas, the four legitimate goals of human life:

• Dharma (righteousness)
• Artha (wealth)
• Kama (pleasure)
• Moksha (liberation)

Wait—even moksha? Yes! Because the Self is ever-free. Liberation implies bondage first existed, but from the absolute standpoint, you were never bound. This is the revolutionary insight of Advaita.

The Ashtavakra Gita declares: “You are not bound, nor are you a seeker of liberation. You are ever free. Be happy!” (Ashtavakra Gita 1.12).

This was Shankara’s genius at work during his debates. When scholars spoke of earning moksha through karma (action) or bhakti (devotion), young Shankara would smile and say: You cannot earn what you already are. The rope was never a snake; seeing this clearly is all that’s needed.

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Verse 4: Beyond Sin, Merit, and Experience

न पुण्यं न पापं न सौख्यं न दुःखं
न मन्त्रो न तीर्थं न वेदा न यज्ञाः ।
अहं भोजनं नैव भोज्यं न भोक्ता
चिदानन्दरूपः शिवोऽहम् शिवोऽहम् ॥४॥

Na puṇyaṁ na pāpaṁ na saukhyaṁ na duḥkhaṁ
Na mantro na tīrthaṁ na vedā na yajñāḥ
Ahaṁ bhojanaṁ naiva bhojyaṁ na bhoktā
Chidānanda rūpaḥ śivo’ham śivo’ham

Translation:
I have no merit or sin, no pleasure or pain. I need no mantras, no pilgrimages, no scriptures, no sacrifices. I am neither the food, nor the eater, nor the act of eating. I am pure consciousness-bliss, I am Shiva, I am Shiva.

Deep Dive:
This is where Shankara becomes radical, even iconoclastic. He negates the entire edifice of religious practice! No punya (merit) accumulated through good deeds, no papa (sin) from bad ones—because you are beyond the law of karma entirely.

The Isha Upanishad says: “He who sees all beings in the Self and the Self in all beings, hates none. For the enlightened one, all has become the Self. What delusion, what sorrow can there be for one who sees this oneness?” (Isha 6-7).

No need for mantras, pilgrimages (tirthas), Vedic scriptures, or elaborate fire sacrifices (yajnas)—shocking words in Brahminical India! Was Shankara rejecting these practices? Not entirely.

Here’s the nuance Shankara mastered: For the seeker still identified with body-mind, these practices are indispensable stepping stones. But for the realized Self, they serve no purpose—like a boat that’s no longer needed once you’ve crossed the river.

The Mundaka Upanishad distinguishes: “The rituals and ceremonies are the lower knowledge. But that by which the Imperishable is known is the higher knowledge” (Mundaka 1.1.4-5).

The triputi (triad) of eater-eating-eaten is dissolved. In deep sleep, where is the eater? Yet you exist. In samadhi, where is the experiencer? Yet pure awareness remains. You are that unchanging witness.

Shankara himself established elaborate temple rituals and worship practices in his mathas, understanding that for most seekers, devotional practice purifies the mind. But in this hymn, he reveals the ultimate truth: consciousness requires no accessories.

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Verse 5: Beyond Death and Distinctions

न मृत्युर्न शङ्का न मे जातिभेदः
पिता नैव मे नैव माता न जन्म ।
न बन्धुर्न मित्रं गुरुर्नैव शिष्यः
चिदानन्दरूपः शिवोऽहम् शिवोऽहम् ॥५॥

Na mṛtyur na śaṅkā na me jāti bhedaḥ
Pitā naiva me naiva mātā na janma
Na bandhur na mitraṁ gurur naiva śiṣyaḥ
Chidānanda rūpaḥ śivo’ham śivo’ham

Translation:
I have no death, no fear, no distinction of caste. I have no father, no mother, no birth. I have no relatives, no friends, no guru, no disciple. I am pure consciousness-bliss, I am Shiva, I am Shiva.

Deep Dive:
Here Shankara addresses our deepest existential fears. Death—the great terror that haunts humanity—doesn’t touch the Self. Why? Because you were never born!

The Bhagavad Gita’s opening philosophical discourse declares: “The Self is never born, nor does it die. Having come into being once, it will never cease to be. It is unborn, eternal, permanent, and primeval. It is not slain when the body is slain” (Gita 2.20).

Shankara’s own biography illustrates this dramatically. When his mother lay dying in Kaladi, Shankara—who had renounced family—returned to perform her last rites, breaking the taboo of a sannyasi handling cremation. He did so knowing the absolute truth: neither he nor she was ever truly born or dying. The roles of son and mother were temporary costumes worn by the one infinite consciousness.

No jati bheda (caste distinctions)—revolutionary in Shankara’s time and perhaps even more relevant today. The Self has no caste, creed, nationality, or gender. These are properties of the body-mind, not of consciousness itself.

The Chandogya Upanishad teaches through the story of Satyakama, who didn’t know his lineage: “Knowing this Self, one transcends all limitations” (Chandogya 4.4).

No father, mother, relatives, friends—even the sacred guru-disciple relationship is transcended. This might seem cold, but it’s the opposite. It’s recognizing that in the absolute reality, there is only one Self appearing as many. Love doesn’t disappear; it becomes universal, unconditional.

Shankara himself embodied this paradox. He was a sannyasi who renounced all relationships, yet established an order of monks with deep bonds. He declared the guru unnecessary in absolute terms, yet served his own guru Govinda Bhagavatpada with utmost devotion. How? Because he could operate on multiple levels of reality simultaneously—the vyavaharika (practical) and the paramarthika (absolute).

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Verse 6: The Pure, Eternal, Singular Self

अहं निर्विकल्पो निराकाररूपो
विभुत्वाच्च सर्वत्र सर्वेन्द्रियाणाम् ।
न चासङ्गतं नैव मुक्तिर्न मेयः
चिदानन्दरूपः शिवोऽहम् शिवोऽहम् ॥६॥

Ahaṁ nirvikalpo nirākāra rūpo
Vibhutvāchcha sarvatra sarvendriyāṇām
Na chāsaṅgataṁ naiva muktir na meyaḥ
Chidānanda rūpaḥ śivo’ham śivo’ham

Translation:
I am free from thoughts, formless by nature. I am all-pervading, beyond all senses. I am neither attachment nor liberation nor anything to be known. I am pure consciousness-bliss, I am Shiva, I am Shiva.

Deep Dive:
The final verse is pure non-dual declaration. Nirvikalpa—without mental modifications (vrittis). The Yoga Sutras define yoga as “chitta vritti nirodha” (cessation of mental modifications). In that cessation, what remains? Not nothing, but everything—pure consciousness.

Nirakara—formless. Every form we perceive is nama-rupa (name and form), projections upon the formless Brahman, like waves upon the ocean. The Mandukya Upanishad teaches that the Self is “invisible, incomprehensible, ungraspable, indefinable, unthinkable, indescribable” (Mandukya 7).

Vibhu—all-pervading, omnipresent. Not located in the heart or the head, though spiritual practices may focus there. Space itself is within you, for you are the infinite substratum of all existence.

The Isha Upanishad opens with: “All this—whatever exists in this changing universe—is pervaded by the Lord” (Isha 1).

Neither attached nor liberated—because attachment presumes separateness (I am here, the object is there), and liberation presumes prior bondage. In truth, as the Ashtavakra Gita says: “The wise person knows the Self in everything and everything in the Self. Free from good and evil, free from effort, such a person lives happily” (Ashtavakra 8.1).

Finally, na meyaḥ—not an object to be known. Every act of knowing requires a subject-object duality. But you are the eternal subject, the knower, never the known. As the Kena Upanishad paradoxically states: “It is not understood by those who understand It; It is understood by those who do not understand It” (Kena 2.3).