Aspects of Transcendental Service 99
Such a person is to be understood as having already achieved sarsti
[having equal opulences with the supreme].”’ It is also confirmed in
the Bhagavad-gita that as soon as a person surrenders unto the lotus
feet of Krsna, Krsna takes charge of him and gives him a guarantee
of protection from all sinful reactions. He also instructs from within,
so that the devotee may very quickly make advancement towards
spiritual perfection.

This self-surrender is called atma-nivedana. According to different
authorities, “self” is differently defined. “Self”? is sometimes con-
sidered to refer to the spirit self, or soul, and “self” is sometimes
considered to refer to the mind or to the body. Full self-surrender,
therefore, means not only surrendering one’s self as spirit soul, but
also surrendering one’s mind and body to the service of the Lord.
Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur has sung a nice song in this connection.
While offering himself as a fully surrendered soul, he said, ““My mind,
my household affairs, my body, whatever is in my possession, my
dear Lord, I offer to You for Your service. Now You can do with
them as You like. You are the supreme possessor of everything, so if
You like You can kill me, or if You like You can give me protection.
All authority belongs to You. I have nothing to claim as my own.”

Sri Yamunacarya, in his prayers to the Lord, has expressed a simi-
lar idea in the following words: “My dear Lord, I may be living with-
in some body as a human being or as a demigod, but whatever mode
of life, I do not mind, because these bodies are simply by-products of
the three modes of material nature, and I, who am in possession of
these bodies, am surrendering myself unto You.”

In the Hari-bhakti-viveka, there is a statement regarding how one
can offer his body in self-surrender. There the devotee says, “My
dear Lord, as a sold-out animal has no need to think about his main-
tenance and sustenance, so, because I have given up my body and
soul unto You, I am no longer concerned with my maintenance and
sustenance.” In other words, one should not bother about his per-
sonal or family maintenance or sustenance. If one is actually surren-
dered in body and soul, he should always remember that his only
concern is to be engaged in the service of the Lord.

Srila Ripa Gosvami says that devotional service in friendship and
