The devoted follower, however, is a 'prenatal' form of the ideal. True devotion to the Buddha eventually means devotion solely to the Buddha's dharma. When one devotes oneself to the dharma, it becomes possible to detach oneself from all other things. Even the dharma, itself, loses its necessity and becomes merely a tool. When the bodhisattva was king of the monkeys and he allowed them to trample him in their search for safety, he was displaying an extreme detachment from his own physical needs and feelings.
Total devotion is total detachment.
In his life as Ksantivadin, the bodhisattva's detachment again becomes physical. But to see the king fallen from the path of virtue caused him anguish. By his perfect detachment, the bodhisattva taught the value of devotion to the proper way and the discipline necessary for monks. Primarily through generosity, the jatakas teach that the Buddha's path is the only path. Perception of it is the difference between laymen and monks.