Chapter-18, Verse 68

Ashtavakra Gita Verse 18.68

बहुनात्र किमुक्तेन ज्ञाततत्त्वो महाशयः ।

भोगमोक्षनिराकाङ्क्षी सदा सर्वत्र नीरसः ॥ ६८ ॥

In brief, the great-souled man who has come to know the Truth is without desire for either pleasure or Realization, and is always and everywhere free from attachment.

This verse summarizes the state of a Realized Sage who has attained the Highest Knowledge of the Self. He is not interested in any worldly enjoyments or spiritual rewards, as he knows that they are all impermanent and illusory. He is content with his own nature, which is pure, blissful, and eternal. He is not attached to anything or anyone, as he sees the same Self in all. He is always at peace, regardless of the situations and circumstances he encounters.

This verse reflects the essence of Advaita Vedanta, which is the non-dualistic philosophy that teaches the identity of the individual soul and the Supreme Brahman. According to this view, the Ultimate Reality is one, without a second, and everything else is a product of ignorance and illusion. The goal of human life is to Realize this Truth and become free from the cycle of birth and death.

There are many verses from other Vedic texts that convey a similar message as this verse.

- Bhagavad Gita 5.20:

न प्रहृष्येत्प्रियं प्राप्य नोद्विजेत्प्राप्य चाप्रियम् |

स्थिरबुद्धिरसम्मूढो ब्रह्मविद्ब्रह्मणि स्थित: || २० ||

Neither rejoicing in gain nor grieving in loss, the enlightened one, who is the same in all circumstances, is not bound by karma. Such a person knows the divine and is situated in the divine.

- Mundaka Upanishad 3.2.9:

यदा पश्यः पश्यते रुक्मवर्णं कर्तारमीशं पुरुषं ब्रह्मयोनिम् | तदा विद्वान्पुण्यपापे विधूय निरञ्जनः परमं साम्यमुपैति || ९ ||

When one sees the golden-colored Creator, the Lord, the Purusha, the source of Brahman, then the wise one, shaking off good and evil, becomes stainless, and attains Supreme Equality.

- Yoga Sutra 1.16:

तत्परं पुरुषख्यातेर्गुणवैतृष्ण्यम् |

That is Supreme detachment, when one has no desire for the qualities of Nature, due to the Realization of the Purusha.