What does remembering God mean practically? – The Bhagavad-gita’s injunction to remember God constantly can seem impossible or even irrelevant. While this directive can be understood at various levels, let’s consider one universal understanding that can permeate our entire life. 

While God is depicted or revealed in different ways in various traditions, let’s first focus on the fundamental conception of God. The word God, which is closely connected with the word good, conveys the idea that there is underlying, unifying goodness to all of existence. God is explained in the Bhagavad-gita as the Being who makes all being possible; he exists in everything, as everything and beyond everything too. 

Without getting into philosophical technicalities or intricacies, God’s goodness thus equates with the tenet that existence is ultimately benevolent. This is a remembrance that can be immensely empowering when we tackle our life’s many challenges and witness the world’s many problems. It’s easy to give in to skepticism or cynicism, giving up on the world, on humanity in general, on the people around us, or on ourselves. However, existence is too complicated and multi-faceted to justify such a disbelief in goodness. Despite all the many things wrong in the world, we do periodically see good things and we see people doing good things and we sometimes find ourselves doing good things — things better than what our cynicism would allow for. 

Thus, to remember God means to remember that no matter how many things seem wrong, there is a core of goodness in the world, in nature, in people and most importantly in ourselves. This goodness can manifest through our efforts, thereby making our heart and our corner of the world better. 

Seen in this philosophical light, to always remember God means to always remember to seek goodness inside and outside. 

One-sentence summary:

To always remember God means to always remember that existence, externally and internally, is ultimately benevolent.