Shloka 39
Vānaprastha-vṛtti and the Transition toward the Fourth Āśrama (वानप्रस्थवृत्तिः चतुर्थाश्रमोपक्रमश्च)
अस्पृह: सर्वकामेभ्यो ब्रह्म॒चर्यदृढव्रत: । अहिंख: सर्वभूतानामीदृक् सांख्यो विमुच्यते
aspṛhaḥ sarvakāmebhyo brahmacaryadṛḍhavrataḥ | ahiṃsakaḥ sarvabhūtānām īdṛk sāṅkhyo vimucyate ||
Vyāsa said: One who is free from craving for all objects of desire, firmly established in the strict vow of brahmacarya, and non-violent toward all beings—such a Sāṅkhya practitioner (a knower grounded in discernment) is released from worldly bondage.
व्यास उवाच
Educational Q&A
Liberation is attained by a life of inner non-attachment (aspṛhā), firm disciplined restraint (especially brahmacarya as a steadfast vow), and universal non-violence (ahiṃsā) toward all beings; these ethical qualities are presented as defining marks of the true Sāṅkhya knower.
In the didactic setting of the Śānti Parva, Vyāsa is describing the characteristics of a liberated or liberation-bound sage. Rather than recounting an event, the passage functions as instruction: it lists the virtues by which a Sāṅkhya-oriented practitioner becomes free from saṃsāric bondage.