Devotee: Swāmījī? Is it possible for us to worship Kṛṣṇa purely in this lifetime?
Prabhupāda: Why not? Do you think we are simply wasting our time with this process? Why lifetime? Within a second you can do. It is spiritual process. It is not material process, that you require so much time. No. It requires simply the spiritual technique, to know how you can develop Kṛṣṇa attachment. As soon as you are cent per cent attached with Kṛṣṇa, your business is finished. Ārādhito yadi haris tapasā tataḥ kim (Nārada-pañcarātra 1.2.6). The whole formula is that you have to develop your attachment for Kṛṣṇa.
So if you have developed such attachment for Kṛṣṇa, then your business is finished. No more. That's all right. And nārādhito yadi haris tapasā tataḥ kim. And if you cannot develop fully Kṛṣṇa consciousness, then all your labor is waste of time. There is no need of advertising yourself that "I am religious, I am philosopher, I am yogī." All is nonsense if at the end there is no Kṛṣṇa consciousness. So if Kṛṣṇa consciousness is there, so all these things end. And if there is no Kṛṣṇa consciousness, these are all useless labor.
ārādhito yadi haris tapasā tataḥ kim
nārādhito yadi haris tapasā tataḥ kim
(Nārada Pañcarātra 1.2.6)
The whole business is how to develop attachment for Kṛṣṇa. If you have developed that attachment within a second, oh, then the business is finished within a second. And if you cannot develop that attachment for years, then it is very difficult. The only test is how you have developed your attachment for Kṛṣṇa. If you are serious about it, it can be done within a second.
If you are not serious about it, it cannot be done in many lives. So that depends on your serious nature. Kṛṣṇa is not a material thing that it requires some particular time or... No. The only thing is mayy āsakta-manāḥ (BG 7.1). You have to develop your full attachment for Kṛṣṇa. That you can test, whether you have full attachment for Kṛṣṇa. Then it is..., the business is finished.
Devotee (2): How does Kṛṣṇa consciousness differ from samādhi? Or is it...
Prabhupāda: It is samādhi itself. Samādhi means to be absorbed in some particular type of thought. That is called samādhi. So if you are fully Kṛṣṇa conscious, that is samādhi. Twenty-four hours samādhi. Not that a periodical samādhi. The ordinary yogīs, they... Of course, samādhi is not, I mean to say, ordinary term.
Suppose if he can remain in samādhi, say, for a little period, say, one hour, two hours, but Kṛṣṇa conscious person is in samādhi twenty-four hours, cent per cent, because he is always thinking of Kṛṣṇa. That is being explained. Mayy āsakta-manāḥ pārtha yogaṁ yuñjan mad-āśrayaḥ (BG 7.1). If one performs yoga, taking shelter of Kṛṣṇa, and always thinks of Kṛṣṇa, then he is in samādhi.
Devotee (3): How do you know when..., how do you know when he's attained to Kṛṣṇa consciousness?
Prabhupāda: When he develops attachment for Kṛṣṇa. Nobody can certify him. He will certify himself. If you have got attachment for any other thing, then you are not in samādhi. If you have only attachment for Kṛṣṇa, then you are in samādhi. You don't require certificate from others. You know yourself. Just like while eating you can understand whether you are satisfied or not.
While eating, if you are hungry man, if you are eating, you'll know, "Oh, I have eaten something. I am feeling now strength." You don't require to inquire from your friend, "Oh, am I feeling strength?" "Oh," he'll say, "what nonsense. You know yourself." Similarly, if you have... You can test yourself whether you have got full attachment for Kṛṣṇa. If not, you are not in samādhi. The test is in your hand.
And that is being explained. Mayy āsakta-manāḥ (BG 7.1): in full attachment for Kṛṣṇa. And you can understand what is the meaning of attachment. You have got attachment for sex. You have got attachment for so many things. So similarly, if you have developed attachment only for Kṛṣṇa and you have no more any other attachment, then you are in samādhi. It is not artificial; it is practical.
(Srila Prabhupada Lecture, San Francisco, March 17, 1968)
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