given. A faithless person will similarly commit increasing offen- ses to the holy name and thus invite his doom. Simultaneously, the initiating guru will be dragged down by his share in these offenses; very soon, he will leave the path of devotional service.

What to do if a faithless person wants initiation

"A faithless, person may slyly come to the Vaisnava to beg initiation into chanting. The sadhu should see through this ruse and refuse him Initiation. The charlatan devotee presumes, 'The holy name of Krsna is the all-purifying agent; once I've received the name I won't have to worry about committing sins. Besides, by chanting all the time, people will respect and worship me as a Vaisnava—then I can extract a goodly amount of service from them. The prestige I've lost by my sinful deeds will be regained fully by chanting. Another loss will never occur again, and I shall enjoy immense material benefit, etc. The sadhu should demand of the pretender full repentance of his dishonesty. To become worthy of initiation, he must at once denounce his desires for distinction and adoration, and should instead try to develop sraddha, for the holy name.

Those who claim that the self can continue to exist only if the body continues to exist must explain how come they and other selves exist despite the fact that their "baby," "child," and "adolescent" bodies no longer exist.
Science of Identity Foundation | Chris Butler Speaks

"Only when sraddha for the holy name is present can one be initiated into chanting. The holy name then takes the chanter across the ocean of material nescience. But as long as one has not developed sufficient faith in the holy name, he is unfit to chant. One should hear the glories of the holy name from a saintly Vaisnava; becoming humble by hearing his instructions, he must cast aside material desires and begin to chant. When the Vaisnava spiritual master perceives the proper degree of sraddha in the candidate, he initiates him into the greatest spiritual treasure —Krsna's holy name. But to initiate a faithless person is an abominable offense. The guru goes to hell if he gives initiation to a faithless person for material benefit.

"If the guru knows that the person who has approached him for initiation is an insincere, faithless pretender, yet he heedlessly initiates him simply for material gain, he commits a heinous offense against the holy name. If the guru was unable to make a