Bhakti Sandarbha 304-308 : Dasyam and Sakhyam
The last two of the nine limbs of bhakti. Anuccheda 304 Dāsyam अथ दास्यम्। तच्च श्रीविष्णोर्दासंमन्यत्वम्। Now we will discuss dāsyam , or servitorship. This limb of devotion entails considering oneself a servant of Bhagavān Viṣṇu, as described below: जन्मान्तरसहस्रेषु यस्य स्यान्मतिरीदृशी। दासोऽहं वासुदेवस्य सर्वान् लोकान् समुद्धरेत्॥ इत्युक्तलक्षणम्। If after thousands of births a person develops the attitude of being a servant of Bhagavān Kṛṣṇa, he can deliver the entire world. अस्तु तावत् तद्भजनप्रयासः, केवलतादृशत्वाभिमानेनापि सिद्धिर्भवतीत्यभिप्रेत्यैवोत्तरत्र निर्देशश्च तस्य, यथोक्तं "जन्मान्तर" इत्येतत्पद्यस्यैवान्ते "किं पुनस्तद्गतप्राणाः पुरुषाः संयतेन्द्रियाः" इति। By this attitude alone one attains perfection, what to speak of the actual effort to serve Bhagavān. This point is brought out in this statement immediately following the above verse: "So what to speak of those whose very life is Bhagavān and whose senses have b...