Devotees often talk about maintaining Krishna consciousness “till the moment of death.” But is pure, unbroken Krishna consciousness realistically achievable for ordinary practitioners?
What happens if one’s consciousness falters, especially at death? Is salvation / liberation / Krishna-prema still assured?
How do theistic philosophers reconcile human frailty, emotional turbulence, and the aspirational ideal of constant devotion?
Replies
Hare Krishna,
Hmm
That is why it is said in Bhagwat gita by Lord Sri Krishna
Bg. 2.40
स्वल्पमप्यस्य धर्मस्य त्रायते महतो भयात् ॥ ४० ॥
pratyavāyo na vidyate
sv-alpam apy asya dharmasya
trāyate mahato bhayāt
Now.. you question:-
Devotees often talk about maintaining Krishna consciousness “till the moment of death.” But is pure, unbroken Krishna consciousness realistically achievable for ordinary practitioners?
Lord will remind us but try to do what is in you hands right now.
If you are not able to remember at the time of Death.. Krishna will give us some hint to remember HIM thru someone .. He will do something. Trust in Krishna.
But with questions and doubt... is it feasible.. can we remember.. what if I cannot remember.. we are not great saints.. we might forget.. we are just oridinary practicioners.. if you keep thinking like this and waste your precious time.. you will not only lose this time... .surely you wont get any help that Ajamila got in the end also.
Hare Krishna
idk but i personally personally believe that something like that is possible only when you are old. because realistcially and practically speaking you actively CANNOT focus on krishna when you are in your 20s or 30s and have a family. a normal human can meditate and can follow the guidance he has given but there are a lot of problems and situations in life that makes it almost impossible to think about him 24/7
the only time a human can think about krishna is when he is old enough and has made either enough money or someone else is taking care of them. that is the realistic point of time when a person can actually think about krishna all the time.
if i am wrong then question me. i am new to this and i am practical in life and do not follow anything blindly. i like questioning every thoughts and actions amongst everyone... im still young and would love to know your opinion and perspective
oh dear..... my dear krishna ji, i think that it is a fundamental misunderstanding of krsna consciousness to think that age has anything to do with it...
you are saying that you are busy in modern life with family duties... that may be true from a mundane perspective of reality, but the truth is, we 'have no time' only when our mind is absorbed in the bodily concept of life, and we are not progressing in the path of krsna consciousness.
if you keep chanting, and praying for good sanga, then gradually by the complete yoga present mystically in the mahamantra, your senses, mind and intellect will begin to separate. Then you will become an observer of your mind. Then your memory will become stronger and you will be able to actually follow your plan.... as Srila Prabhupada once said, "A symptom of a self-realized man is he who can follow his own plan." So if you accept Srila Prabhupada as Acarya, and accept his instruction to gradually come to the stage of chanting for 2 hrs daily and studying HDG's books for 2 hours daily (that means developing steadiness in your sadhana or your regulated daily activities in krsna consciousness) then you will gradually be guided by Sri Paramatma how to achieve that. Don't force yourself... but as the quality (primarily attentiveness) of your japa increases (don't push to increase the number beyond what you can easily sustain in the beginning - don't try to keep up with the jones' or with other congregation or temple members, and don't be manipulated by peer pressure into chanting 16 rounds prematurely - follow Srila Prabhupada's instruction in the NOD and Nama Acarya Srila Haridas Thakur's instruciton - to start with a small no. which you can easily maintain without struggle - doing that and adding quality to it daily, will make self realization begin to happen within you. Then you will find the day will come when you can get more things done in one day than you normally did in 4 days... as long as you keep up the steadiness and purity of your chanting! It is a profound subject, and personally, i have developed an entire time management system around this just for the purpose of helping the ordinary conditioned soul to factually progress in sadhana bhakti (i.e. in Time Management) at home, without failing in any of his or her duties and responsibilities. Have full faithi in the teachings of Srila Prabhupada for beginners, especially those in the only book HDG ever wrote for beginners, namely the Nectar of Instruction. If you can, recite all those 11 slokas daily. At least do it for 3 weeks... Here is my experience - long after you memorize such important slokas, much later on, you will begin to get realizations and insights into them. All the details found in every line and word of that little booklet WILL help you to reach that min target given by Srila Prabhupada, which I call the 6+2+2 formula = six hrs sleep on an empty stomach (BG 6:17-19 purports refer); plus two hours quality japa (full secrets for how to achieve that are given in chapter 12 of the Harinama Cintamani - https://bit.ly/ch12hnc ; plus 2 hours deep systematic study of Srila Prabhupada's books. That means we surrender those ten hours of our life to krsna, and we still have 14 hours to sincerely serve maya, care for our body, home, job etc etc - and spiritualize all of that by unconsciously chanting the mahamantra with every breath, minimizing prajalpa as far as possible, while doing all those other illusiory, never ending duties.
Please note - death will come at any time.. not only to old people. Lack of surrender to Sri Guru is our only problem... when we don't surrender to Sri Guru and his divine order, then we definitely surrender to our Mind, and it will give us all the "reasons" [excuses] to view the world from Mind's perspective, and thus keep us as fooolish slaves of our Mind and Senses (go-dasas) so we never try to progress to becoming go-swamis...
All the best, ji. It is great that you question everything with a view to realizing why you shd follow any rule. That is covered in the nectar of instruction in one of the most profound parts of the book - the idea of niyama-agrahaha and niyama-āgrahaha - "simply following rules and regulations for the sake of following rules and regulations and nor for the sake of spiritual realization OR neglecting the rules and regulations and acting whimsically" - both of these will utterly destroy one's bhakti! Imagine that! The rules of Bhakti yoga when practiced with the wrong intention, can actually destroy bhakti! Sadly that happens often in temple congregations, becase devotees who live in temples (and have no realization, and consequently have too much time) wrongly pressure devotees who live at home to just increase the number of rounds they chant because of an agenda to force them into 'initiatification' or institutionally manipulated so-called 'diksha' because of their constant need for free labour and unending donations ("atyāhāra" it is called in the NOI)
I assure you that proportionate to your sincerity, Sri Paramatma within your heart (Who is your actual original Sri Guru) will definitely guide you so you progress at your own chosen speed, with realization. Keep on reading the NOI again and again, and don't immediately try and follow every rule you find there. Just keep it in mind, try to understand it and practise remembering it. Then when Sri Paramatma prompts you and arranges the right circumstances for you to implement the next baby step in your progressive sadhana, at that time, take that step forward and you will not easily slip back. Then realization will come! And that will encourage you to want to take the next step. That is why "patience" is one of the key 6 items that will enhance your bhakti, as per the NOI. It truly a mystical, powerful and complete book. Follow that - the quintessential guide from The Father of Bhakti Yoga Himself, Srila Rupa Goswami Prabhupada, and so perfectly rendered into English by Srila Prabhupada - original book here - prabhupadabooks.com/noi
Your idea that only old people with money can think about krsna is really out of the scope of bhakti yoga, prabhu. Study Srila Prabhupada's Introduction to B. Gita As It Is (www.asitis.com/introduction English www.bit.ly/asitishindi Hindi) a few times, and you will see HDG has quoted the example of our previous Acaryas - when a young boy is madly in love with a girl, he cannot but think about her 24/7 So that is the real answer to your question. The correct question is how can I fall in love with Krsna. The answers are many, but the one that comes to my heart now is, Start serving Him - He already loves you 100% and He is very humble and will at once reciprocate with you any service you do for His pleasure. Remember, in Bhakti Yoga, it is the things that you commit to do EVERY DAY with dedication (even if it takes just a few minutes or seconds), if you do it every day, it attracts Krsna's attention.
According to the Srimad Bhagavatam, the bare minimum standard for taking up Bhakti as a Yoga is as simple as this: If you decide that from now on, twice every day, without fail, you will invite the lotus feet of Sri Krishna (the particular deity whom you have a relationship with, so you can always easily remember Him if you want to), twice every day - then you have begun the practice of bhakti yoga - never give it up, and you will be amazed at the lightning speed at which you can make progress in givine you heart to Krsna. Once your heart is with Him in loving service, your mind will dutifully and naturally follow along....
Then one day you will be able to fight like arjuna did, and still remember krsna.. yes, even while fighting a battle against the greatest generals on earth!! See the word by word meaning carefully -
tasmāt sarveshu kāleshu
mām anusmara yuddhya ca ... www.asitis.com/8/7.html
Constant remembrance of Krsna won't come mechanically. But the question you shd ask now is, how can i fix my mind and intellect on Him while I work.
The answer is, just keep trying to say the mahamantra unconsciously as much as you can while you work and after some days, you will notice that with your buddhi you can observe your mind, and then you can use it to do more work, and it cooperates more smoothly - then you will factually begin to realize, 'I am not my mind' - then you will gradually develop your multitasking - the more you hold on to saying the mahamantra and relishing each and every syllable, and coordinating it with your every breath, the more you will factually experience self realization and god realization. It is a scientific process and Krsna will help you, as mentioned before, proportionate to your humility and your chosen degree and speed of surrender. Hare Krsna and all the best to you. May Srila Prabhupada and Sri Krishna be pleased with your spirit of inquiry and with any seva that you perform for Their divine pleasure. Haribol!
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always chant while working... the less we speak, the more we free ourselves from unnecessary entanglement with others in this ugly world!
PS
Here are the two options offered by the Lord in BG 8:5 and 8:6 After comparing those two, you will understand why 8:7 begins with the word "tasmāt" or 'therefore' - if you accept this simple point that I can and should at least try to remember God all the time even when or especially when doing my 'duty', then you have accepted the wisdom of the Gita and you are now at last, ready to die at any moment! Life is a success!!
www.asitis.com/8
For those who can't read the devanagari and hindi... here are those three beautiful slokas in English, translated by Our Great Hero, Srila Prabhupada!
www.asitis.com/8/5.html
www.asitis.com/8/6.html
From www.bit.ly/gitaenglish1972
www.asitis.com/8/7.html
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Hare Krsna! Gita Mata ki.... jaya!!!!
Simplified Gita Text in various formats and languages -
Courtesy of Gita Jayanti International - www.bit.ly/m/gji
Singalong Gita on YouTube - slowdown the playback speed to 0.75 or even 0.5 for small children, and singalong right away - anyone can do it now with these free resources! - bit.ly/SingGitaTwelve ; bit.ly/SingGita2 ; bit.ly/SingGita
Hare Krsna
i personally personally believe that something like that is possible only when you are old
Everyone is entitled to their belief.
the only time a human can think about krishna is when he is old enough and has made either enough money or someone else is taking care of them.
if i am wrong then question me.
No question. But based on lives of great devotees, the assertion made is wrong.
Dhruva Maharaj had no money, no mother, father taking care of him. He was not old.
He was close to 5 years, he was in forest, barely eating anything. He meditated on Sri Vishnu and pleased Sri Vishnu in about 6 months.
Similar is case with many devotees - Prahlad, Narada boy, Draupadi, Arjuna, Gajendra, Sita, Parikshit, Valmiki, Bali, Hanuman.
If somone wants to meditate upon Sri Krsna nothing in this entire material world that is outside of that person can stop them.
Hare Krsna
Hare Krishna,
Thank you for the examples. I genuinely appreciate them and I find them fascinating.
But I want to be honest about something.
Dhruva was 5 years old and went to the forest specifically to meditate. He had no other responsibilities. No family to feed. No rent to pay. No career to build. His entire context was designed for that singular focus.
Prahlad was born with extraordinary devotion from the womb itself the Bhagavatam describes this as a special grace.
Arjuna had Krishna physically sitting next to him as his charioteer.
These are genuinely inspiring examples. But are they realistic models for an ordinary 19 year old in Dehradun with a family situation, financial pressure, goals to build, and no such extraordinary circumstances?
I am not saying Krishna consciousness is impossible for young people. I am saying the examples you gave are exceptional by definition — that is why they are in scripture.
My actual question is more practical —
For an ordinary person without extraordinary grace or extraordinary circumstances — what does maintaining Krishna consciousness actually look like practically while also working, building a career, supporting a family and navigating real life challenges?
Because if the answer is only possible for exceptional souls in exceptional circumstances — then what guidance does that give ordinary people like me?
I am asking sincerely. Not to argue. Hare Krishna
Hare Krsna
But are they realistic models for an ordinary 19 year old in Dehradun with a family situation, financial pressure, goals to build, and no such extraordinary circumstances?
Sri Krsna doesn't expect everyone to perform austerities like Dhruva Maharaj from day 1.
But anyone can start by small steps. Anyone can aspire to reach perfection like Dhruva maharaj. Anyone can please Sri Krsna like Dhruva Maharaj.
Any human under any circumstances can begin Krsna consciousness. No circumstantial excuses are valid to NOT begin Krsna consciousness.
Sri Krsna in 12th Chapter of Bhagavad Gita gives different levels of practicing Krsna consciousness. There is no doubt which is highest. There is no doubt anyone can start small under any circumstances. Below are transalations. Purports by Srila Prabhupada provide many more insights and practical aspects.
TEXT 8: Just fix your mind upon Me, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and engage all your intelligence in Me. Thus you will live in Me always, without a doubt.
TEXT 9: My dear Arjuna, O winner of wealth, if you cannot fix your mind upon Me without deviation, then follow the regulative principles of bhakti-yoga. In this way develop a desire to attain Me.
TEXT 10: If you cannot practice the regulations of bhakti-yoga, then just try to work for Me, because by working for Me you will come to the perfect stage.
TEXT 11: If, however, you are unable to work in this consciousness of Me, then try to act giving up all results of your work and try to be self-situated.
TEXT 12: If you cannot take to this practice, then engage yourself in the cultivation of knowledge. Better than knowledge, however, is meditation, and better than meditation is renunciation of the fruits of action, for by such renunciation one can attain peace of mind.
what does maintaining Krishna consciousness actually look like practically while also working, building a career, supporting a family and navigating real life challenges?
Question of Maintaing Krsna consciousness comes, only after when one knows what is krishna consciousness and has attained Krsna consciousness.
Chanting of the Hare Krsna mahamantra is the best way to begin one's Krsna consciousness
Because if the answer is only possible for exceptional souls in exceptional circumstances — then what guidance does that give ordinary people like me?
Bhagavad Gita , Srimad Bhagavatam and Chaitanya Caritamrita are the guidance.
Krsna consciousness is practicable by any human on this planet.
Hare Krsna
Hare Krsna
But is pure, unbroken Krishna consciousness realistically achievable ?
YES
What happens if one’s consciousness falters, especially at death? Is salvation / liberation / Krishna-prema still assured?
yaṁ yaṁ vāpi smaran bhāvaṁ
tyajaty ante kalevaram
taṁ tam evaiti kaunteya
sadā tad-bhāva-bhāvitaḥ
Whatever state of being one remembers when he quits his body, O son of Kuntī, that state he will attain without fail. ( BG 8.6)
How do theistic philosophers reconcile human frailty, emotional turbulence, and the aspirational ideal of constant devotion?
Don't know how theistic philosophers do. But this is Krsna's assurance in Bhagavad Gita
sarva-dharmān parityajya
mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja
ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo
mokṣayiṣyāmi mā śucaḥ
Abandon all varieties of religion and just surrender unto Me. I shall deliver you from all sinful reactions. Do not fear. ( BG 18.66)
Hare Krsna