Chapter-18, Verse 12

Ashtavakra Gita Verse 18.12:

क्व धर्मः क्व च वा कामः क्व चार्थः क्व विवेकता । इदं कृतमिदं नेति द्वन्द्वैर्मुक्तस्य योगिनः ॥ १२ ॥

Where is duty, where is desire, where is wealth, where is discrimination? This is done, this is not done, such are the thoughts of the Yogi who is free from duality. 

The meaning of this verse is that the yogi who has realized the non-dual nature of Reality has transcended the conventional categories of human life, such as duty (dharma), desire (kama), wealth (artha) and discrimination (vivekata). These are all based on the false notion of duality, that there is a difference between the Self and the other, the subject and the object, the doer and the done. The Yogi who is free from duality sees everything as one, as the Pure Consciousness that is the essence of all Beings and phenomena. Therefore, he has no attachment or aversion to anything, no sense of obligation or expectation, no desire or fear, no judgment or evaluation. He is content and peaceful in his own Nature, which is blissful and infinite.

The verse implies that the yogi has attained the state of liberation (moksha) in this very life (jivanmukti), which is the goal of the Advaita Vedanta school of Hindu philosophy. He has realized the identity of his individual Self (atman) with the Supreme Self (Brahman), which is the source and substratum of all existence. He has also overcome the ignorance (avidya) that causes the illusion (maya) of multiplicity and diversity in the world. He has seen through the veil of names and forms (nama-rupa) that conceals the true nature of reality, which is non-dual, absolute and eternal.

The verse also suggests that the Yogi has gone beyond the need for any scriptural authority or ethical code to guide his actions. He is not bound by any rules or regulations, nor does he follow any rituals or practices. He is not influenced by any external factors or conditions, nor does he depend on any means or ends. He is self-sufficient and spontaneous, acting in harmony with the natural order of things. He is not attached to the results of his actions, nor does he claim any ownership or agency over them. He is free from the pairs of opposites (dvandva) that create conflict and suffering in the mind, such as pleasure and pain, good and evil, right and wrong, etc. He is the witness (sakshi) of all phenomena, but not affected by them.

Similar verses from Vedic texts,  for context, are:

- Brihadaranyaka Upanishad 4.4.22:

 

यत्र नान्यत्पश्यति नान्यच्छृणोति नान्यद्विजानाति स भूमा । अथ यत्रान्यत्पश्यति नान्यच्छृणोति नान्यद्विजानाति तदल्पम् ॥

Where one sees nothing else, hears nothing else, knows nothing else, that is the Infinite. But where one sees something else, hears something else, knows something else, that is the finite.

- Bhagavad Gita 5.18: 

विद्याविनयसम्पन्ने ब्राह्मणे गवि हस्तिनि । शुनि चैव श्वपाके च पण्डिताः समदर्शिनः ॥

The wise see the same in a learned and humble brahmin, in a cow, in an elephant, in a dog and in a dog-eater.

- Yogavashishta 6.2.1: 

नास्ति भेदो न चाभेदो नास्ति चान्यत्कदाचन । एकमेवाद्वितीयं ब्रह्म सर्वं खलु इदं विभु ॥

There is no difference, nor non-difference, nor anything else at any time. There is only One, without a second, Brahman, which is all this, the omnipresent.

These verses express the same idea of non-duality (advaita) as the Ashtavakra Gita verse, but in different ways. The Brihadaranyaka Upanishad verse contrasts the infinite (bhuma) with the finite (alpam), and implies that the infinite is the state of non-duality, where there is no other (anya) than the Self. The Bhagavad Gita verse illustrates the vision of equality (sama-darshana) of the wise (pandita), who see the same Self (atman) in all beings, regardless of their external differences. The Yogavashishta verse denies the existence of any distinction (bheda) or identity (abheda) or anything else (anyat) in reality, and affirms that there is only One brahman, which is all-pervading (vibhu) and all this (sarvam idam). All these verses point to the same truth of non-duality, which is the essence of the Ashtavakra Gita verse.