1. Chanting to cure diseases

    One bearded sadhu said that he had been holding meetings throughout Bombay and teaching people to cure their diseases by chanting God’s names. Thousands of people were attending, and many were getting cured. He suggested that there could be some cooperation between himself and Prabhupada — that together they could hold massive meetings for chanting Hare Krishna, whereby many more people would benefit. “I am gathering people together, and you are gathering people,” he said. “I am getting people to chant God’s name, and you are getting people to chant. We should cooperate.” “No,” Prabhupada replied. “This is against our principles. The name of God is God Himself, and we are God’s servants. We do not use the holy name of God for our sense gratification or material purposes. We chant the holy name without any personal ambition, simply to glorify and serve the holy name. So, we cannot participate in any such program.”

    From Giriraj Swami’s book, I’ll Build You a Temple