Text 26
naitad vastutayā paśyed
dṛśyamānaṁ vinaśyati
asakta-citto viramed
ihāmutra-cikīrṣitāt
na — never; etat — this; vastutayā — as ultimate reality; paśyet — one should see; dṛśyamānam — being observed by direct experience; vinaśyati — is destroyed; asakta — without attachment; cittaḥ — whose consciousness; viramet — one should be detached; iha — in this world; amutra — and in one’s future life; cikīrṣitāt — from activities performed for material advancement.
One should never see as ultimate reality those material things which obviously will perish. With consciousness free from material attachment, one should retire from all activities meant for material progress in this life and the next.
One may doubt how a gentleman can retire from family life and live as a beggar, eating meager foodstuffs. The Lord here responds by stating that sumptuous or palatable foods — along with all other material objects, such as the body itself — should never be seen as ultimate reality, since they are obviously perishable items. One should retire from material programs destined to enhance the quality of one’s illusion both in this life and the next.