AVG 10.7

Chapter 10 (A sense of repose through the renunciation of craving) Verse 7
अलमर्थेन कामेन सुकृतेनापि कर्मणा ।
एभ्यः संसारकान्तारे न विश्रान्तमभून्मनः ॥ १०-७॥

PURPORT:
Enough with abundance and desire; enough
indulging even in devout and pious deeds! By these,
the mind does not come to find repose nor peace
here in the forlorn wilderness of the changing world.

TRANSLITERATION:
अलम् अर्थेन कामेन सुकृतेन अपि कर्मणा ।
alam arthena kāmena sukṛtena api karmaṇā ।
एभ्यः संसारकान्तारे न विश्रान्तम् अभूत् मनः ॥ १०-७॥
ebhyaḥ saṃsārakāntāre na viśrāntam abhūt manaḥ ॥ 10-7॥

MEANING:
alam (अलम्) = no desire for (as in a sense of sufficiency with what one has)/enough
arthena (अर्थेन) = with abundance and prosperity
kāmena (कामेन) = with desire
sukṛtena (सुकृतेन) = with devout and piousness
api (अपि) = even
karmaṇā (कर्मणा) = with deeds and actions ।
ebhyaḥ (एभ्यः) = from these/of these
saṃsārakāntāre (संसारकान्तारे) = in the forlorn wilderness of the changing world (compound of saṃsāra (संसार) meaning 'world' and kāntāre (कान्तारे) meaning 'forests whose paths may be difficult and forlorn')
na (न) = not
viśrāntam (विश्रान्तम्) = tranquility/repose/peaceful stillness
abhūt (अभूत्) = has become
manaḥ (मनः) = mind ॥ 10-7॥

COMMENT:
This verse is an exhortation to the seeker to look into the core of their being which at first reading might be opaque in its implied meaning. Ashtavakra mentions that one can strive to disabuse oneself of the notion that the performing of meritorious deeds naturally paves the way for a guilt-free enjoyment of the results that accrue in terms of pleasures and wealth (an idea that was alluded to in the first verse of this chapter and subtly being reminded here again).
On a deeper reading, one begins to understand that we are always free, one does not need to hoard objects that appeal to the senses in order to achieve this sense of freedom. The sense of equanimity and bliss is right here and stilling the mind of its inherent fluctuations is an approach to realizing this sense of freedom.
The notion some harbor that freedom or liberation lies within the amassing of riches or attaining the extremes of sensory pleasure or even in the doing of 'good' deeds with expectation of reciprocation are ideas, concepts and thoughts that we have co-opted from a combination of factors that included parents, organized religion, culture, education, etcetera. In a subversive sense, even the concept of liberation and its foil - bondage - themselves are dualistic notions that we harbor within our minds (similarly co-opted). Given that we sentient beings were never bound when we were born nor bound in any manner when we pass on, and given the understanding that our bodies are performing what they are designed and evolved to perform (i.e. homeostasis to sustain life and gene transmission through reproduction to continue life) and given that our minds have that inherent stillness once one gleans the space occupied between two thought fluctuations, one starts to realize that no one 'achieves' liberation because there really is no bondage to be liberated from - in the strict sense of the word - these are concepts. Ultimately, bondage and liberation are mental abstractions resulting from our being steeped within cultural conditioning and the attendant duality (from conditioning) that allows for the ego and the self-model to continue to propagate.
Extending this line of thought as it pertains to duality, the superimposition of one's devotion onto an object of one's adoration itself creates a duality between the devotee and the object of adoration. One notices this kind of a superimposition when the object of adoration and reverence (say a god-like figure named and thusly conceptualized by us) is made correspondent and equated with mentally fabricated constructs (examples include self, soul, atman, brahman and other like entities named and conceptualized by us). In and of itself, this form of superimposition is a useful path for a seeker to commence the journey towards awareness. Such superimposition of mental constructs to an object of adoration might be useful insofar as it relates to the focusing of ones thoughts and actions, but, understand that in undertaking this approach to stilling of thoughts, duality always comes along for the ride. The purported objectivity that we seek and think we obtain in terms of these concepts and superpositions is ultimately just inter-subjective agreement - a commonly agreed upon idea of legitimacy that may not be objective nor true.