Ashtavakra Gita 18.36 -

Normally any act, secular or religious, follows desire. Desire arises from ignorance and delusion. Objects the world presents, small or big, alone attract the mind. But they are fleeting. Ask, can perishable objects give lasting contentment? Even our own body is perishable. When perishable body gains perishable objects, perishability will only get multiplied. Alas, none reflects on this fact!

Moreover, can objects give joy? Objects touch only the senses on the body. Both objects and our senses are inert. They cannot cause any experiences. How can joyful experience arise from sensory interaction at all? Both body and objects are what we possess. You can only possess things different from you. Thus, you are different from your body and what you seek to possess.

Shed the ignorance about yourself. Find what the ‘I’ is. Different from matter and energy, it is the spiritual presence, the Self, blissful by nature, as evidenced by sleep. It is the Subject, witnessing all else. Try to know this fact before striving for anything at all.

Yes. The ‘I’, denoting the Self, is ever peaceful, joyous. For contentment, turn within and realize the ever-luminous Self. Stop seeking sensory thrills. This is the path of discrimination, knowledge. Moksha or liberation is an inner attainment, for which the object-based action is not the means. With desire, even if you practise spiritual restraints, it is of no avail. Knowledge alone has the power to delight, not deluded actions.