Krishna is present in the present

The Bhagavad-gita (12.8) states that those whose mind and intelligence are absorbed in Krishna live in Krishna already. The emphasis is that Krishna is not someone they will attain in the future—they are already with Krishna.  

On one level, we all understand that Krishna is not far away from us; he is with us, within us, as the Supersoul. It is because the spiritual faculties of our soul have been deadened by prolonged disease that we can’t even feel the presence of the One who is the Supreme Presence.  

When we sit down to meditate, we are trying to devote that time both exclusively and intensively to sense that divine presence of Krishna. The more we speak and hear Krishna’s holy names, trying to attune our consciousness to his presence, the more we awaken our soul from its spiritual slumber.  

However, when we start meditating, we are still in a spiritually inert state. Therefore, it’s easy to forget that Krishna is present right now with us; instead, we tend to treat him as someone we may encounter in the future — in a future that often feels far from us, sometimes forebodingly far from us. The more we think of Krishna as someone we might encounter in the future, the more apathetic or unenthusiastic we may become in our efforts to connect with him during our meditation.  

Thankfully, Gita wisdom through verses such as this (12.8) reminds us that if we just attune our consciousness, we can perceive that he is here with us. Based on such verses, if we can accept as an axiomatic truth that he is present right now, even though we don’t feel his presence, then that acceptance becomes our pathway for accelerated perception of transcendence. We learn to see meditation as an opportunity to realize the presence of the One who is always present. And as we strive to dive into meditation, with the intelligence that values the Lord as the supreme valuable, and with the mind that desires the Lord as the supreme desirable, then our soul awakens, even if for a few precious moments.  

During those moments, it is as if we briefly wake from a dream — and we realize that where we are is very different from where we normally think we are. We are not in a world of matter that is bereft of spirit and bankrupt of the Divine. We are in a world that is enveloped, energized, and enriched by that Divine Presence.  

Krishna is present in the present, not a present to be attained in the future — this tremendous, mysterious, joyous realization is the rich fruit of meditation, a fruit that beckons us through every moment that we try to invest in meditating on Krishna.  

Summary: 

• Because our spiritual faculties are deadened by prolonged disease, we cannot sense Krishna’s presence now, and thus we treat Him as if He is someone to be encountered in the future. 
• Nonetheless, Krishna is present in the present as an invisible reality that envelops, energizes, and enriches the visible reality, and also exists within it. 
• The more we long to be in the Divine presence, accepting axiomatically that the Divine is present in the present, the more meditation will become a potent opportunity for us to be ushered into that mysterious, tremendous, joyous Divine presence.

Think it over:

• What’s wrong with the idea that God is someone we will encounter in the future? 
• Have you ever experienced a divine presence during your meditation or at any other time? 
• How can we feel Krishna’s presence in the present?

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12.8 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.