Acharya Prashant addresses a question regarding the role of values and social conditioning in upbringing. He explains that common values, such as non-violence or truth-telling, are often taught superficially without understanding the source of action. He argues that truth cannot be hurt; only that which is weak and fragile is vulnerable to hurt. Therefore, avoiding hurt at all costs can sometimes prevent necessary healing or the realization of truth. He uses the analogy of a surgeon or a saint like Kabir Saheb, whose words might offend or 'hurt' a worldly mind to facilitate deeper realization. He emphasizes that the intention and the center from which an action arises are more important than the action itself. He further clarifies that teaching secondary values like politeness or cleanliness is meaningless in the absence of the primary value, which is self-knowledge and realization. He points out that 'speaking the truth' is not the same as 'valuing the truth.' While speaking the truth can be a mechanical act, valuing the truth means acting from a state of being established in the truth. He warns that children are born with biological values and that society often adds a layer of social conditioning on top of this, further corrupting the individual. He concludes that only someone who values the Divine or the 'invaluable' above all else is truly qualified to teach values, and that the true function of a teacher is to remove the clutter of conditioning rather than adding to it.
