Acharya Prashant explains a verse from the Avadhuta Gita which states, "Hope is the ultimate sorrow, and hopelessness is the ultimate happiness." He addresses a questioner who finds this contradictory, as they have experienced happiness from fulfilled hopes and sorrow from unfulfilled ones. Acharya Prashant points out that the questioner's own experience validates the verse. The fact that their spiritual journey began as an escape from sorrow indicates that, on the whole, hope has brought them more sorrow than happiness. He clarifies that while the fulfillment of hope brings a small unit of happiness, it is accompanied by a much larger measure of sorrow. This sorrow includes the fear that the hope may not be fulfilled, the fear of losing what has been gained, and the constant arising of new hopes. Therefore, in totality, hope is the ultimate sorrow. Acharya Prashant further elaborates on the concept of "hopelessness" (nairāśya). He explains that it is not a negative feeling or the thought that one's desires will not be fulfilled. Instead, it is freedom from hope itself, a state of desirelessness (niṣkāmatā). Hopelessness is the wisdom to see the futility of the entire game of desire. It is understanding that desires are just old, natural tendencies and internal chemical processes, a mere drama that one should stop giving importance to. This is the true meaning of hopelessness. He contrasts two ways of living: one driven by personal desire (kāmanā), which is the path of hope and sorrow, and the other guided by righteousness (dharma). The wise person does not act based on "what I want" but on "what ought to be done." This shift comes from honestly observing one's own life and actions. When one realizes their inability to escape the trap of desire through their own efforts, the path of Dharma reveals itself. This is the happiness born from hopelessness, which is essentially freedom from the cycle of hope and sorrow.
