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SRI VIVEKACŪDAMAŅI
सर्व-वेदान्त-सिद्धान्त-गोचरं तमगोचरम् ।
गोविन्दं परमानन्दं सद्गुरुं प्रणतोऽस्म्यहम् ॥१॥ sarva-vedanta-siddhanta-gocaram tam agocarami govindam paramānandam sadguruń praṇato'smyaham il
I tender my obeisance to my sadguru, Govinda, the embodiment of supreme bliss, Who is beyond thought and speech and Who is the goal of all Vedāntic truths.
(It is to be noted here that śrī Bhagavatpāda combines in this śloka his obeisance both to his own immediate guru, Sri Govindabhagavatpāda and to the Supreme God śrī Govinda Himself. He identifies his guru with the Supreme God.)
जन्तूनां नरजन्म दुर्लभमतः पुंस्त्वं ततो विप्रता
तस्माद्वैदिक-धर्ममार्गपरता विद्वत्त्वमस्मात्परम् । आत्मानात्मविवेचनं स्वनुभवो ब्रह्मात्मना संस्थितिः
मुक्ति! शतकोटिजन्मसु कृतैः पुण्यविना लभ्यते ॥२॥ jantūnām narajanma durlabham atah pumstvam tato vipratā
tasmād vaidika-dharmamärgaparatā vidvattvam asmāt parami ātmānātmavivecanam svanubhavo brahmätmanā samsthitih muktirno satakotijanmasu krtaiḥ punyairvina
labhyate 11 To those who take birth, birth as a human being is difficult to get; more difficult than that is birth as a male; and more than that is birth as a Brāhmaṇa. Because it is so, steadfastness in pursuing the path of dharma prescribed in the Vedas (must be got by present effort). After that (after securing the requisite learning), discrimination between the self and the not-self (must be made) and also perfect experience. Liberation which is permanent being as Brahman cannot be obtained without meritorious deeds done in hundreds of crores of births.
