devarṣi-bhūtāpta-nṛṇāṁ pitṝṇāṁ
na kiṅkaro nāyam ṛṇī ca rājan |
sarvātmanā yaḥ śaraṇaṁ śaraṇyaṁ
gato mukundaṁ parihṛtya kartam ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 11.5.41)
“O King, one who has forsaken one’s duties and taken shelter completely in the ultimate shelterer, Mukunda, is neither a servant of, nor a debtor to, the devas, the ṛṣis, [other] living beings, relatives, humanity, or ancestors.”
śruti-smṛti-sadācāraḥ svasya ca priyam ātmanaḥ |
samyak saṅkalpajaḥ kāmo dharma-mūlam idaṁ smṛtam ||
(Yājñavalkya-smṛti: 1.7; cited in the Bhāvārtha-dīpikā, Krama-sandarbha-ṭīkā, and Sārārtha-darśinī-ṭīkā to Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 7.11.7 and Bhakti Sandarbha: 58)
“The Śruti, the Smṛti, proper conduct (sadācāra), the satisfaction of one’s own mind, and desire arising from proper resolve—these are known as the basis [i.e., the pramāṇa, the means of knowing] of dharma.”
