Disclaimer: This translation does not guarantee complete accuracy, please confirm with the original page text.
**Friend's Perspective: Pure Devotion-Obedience**
(113) "Worship of the Jina is one's own worship."
"The saffron-colored one, the lion of his own path, behold him; become a devotee of the Lord, take care of your own strength." "Having seen the perfect one, filled with the essence of Samadhi,
The shining self-form of the timeless one is forgotten." - Shri Devchandraji
The Lord has manifested his pure self-form, and it remains as power for other beings. Therefore, the manifested, personal form of the Supreme Being is in the position of a model, an ideal. Just as a skilled sculptor creates his artwork based on a model, so too, a devotee skilled in the art of devotion keeps the Lord, the model, constantly before his eyes, striving to achieve the complete, perfect, and harmonious fulfillment of his own pure soul.
"Always keeping the Jinaraja as the model, the seeker feels;
Devchandra, Devchandra, experiencing his path, the pure soul's essence." - Shri Devchandraji
Devotees perform devotion to the Lord in many ways. Listening to the Lord, chanting his name, remembering him, serving his feet, offering worship, bowing down, serving him (as a servant), being a friend, and self-surrender - these are the nine types of devotion mentioned in other scriptures. In Jain scriptures, these are categorized into two main broad categories: material and emotional devotion.
Bowing down, prostrating, offering worship, praising his virtues, etc., are material devotion. The desire to become one with the Lord, selflessness in the service of others, the manifestation of the qualities of the soul, becoming like the Lord - these are emotional devotion. Material devotion arises from emotional devotion, therefore it is a necessary duty. Here, in the friend's perspective, material devotion is primarily emphasized.
"Material service, bowing down, prostrating, offering worship, and praising his virtues;
Emotional devotion is the desire to become one with him, selflessness in the service of others." - Shri Chandraprabha - Shri Devchandraji
The best way to worship the Lord is to obey his commands, that is the greatest worship. Obeying the Lord's commands is the best service.
* "The means of worship is always the practice of obedience. As per one's capacity, with discipline, it is fruitful." Non-violence, truthfulness, non-stealing, celibacy, non-attachment, knowledge, and faith - these are the eight virtues. - Shri Haribhadrasuti Ashtak