In Namdev literature, devotion as the path to liberation is considered superior to alternative paths. Novetzke states that the envisioned devotion is not one way from the devotee to Vishnu, but it is bidirectional, such that Krishna (Vishnu) is Namdev's slave, and Namdev is Vishnu's slave. To Namdev, mechanical rituals are futile, pilgrimage to holy places is pointless, deep meditation and loving mutual devotion is what matters. Namdev and other sant poets of India were influenced by the monist view of the ultimate being (Brahman), which was expressed, in vernacular language, as the loving devotion not of a specific deity but to this ultimate, according to McGregor. Namdev's songs suggested the divine is within oneself, its non-duality, its presence and oneness in everyone and everything.