A questioner expresses her feeling of alienation from society and her friends due to their conditioned mindset. She observes how people are pressured into marriage and having children, and how religious practices are followed without understanding, such as offering wine in a church while it's considered a sin in a mosque. She feels she has no friends because of this disconnect and asks what is happening to her. Acharya Prashant responds that what is happening to her is a very good thing. He states that he too does not have friends in the conventional sense and has never felt their absence. He explains that the need for friends is felt most when life is meaningless. When one has a burning purpose in life, one falls in love with that work itself. The time for drinking with friends on weekends is for those who have nothing better to do. He criticizes the conditioned belief that friends are one's true wealth, calling it a great folly. The real assets, he says, are truth, understanding, and the Guru, not friends. He elaborates that the common definition of a 'friend' is someone who will not challenge you to be better but will pull you down if you try to improve. The principle of friendship, he argues, is flawed. He questions the purpose of such friends. He points out that many people who come to his sessions have had to face opposition from their friends. He asserts that these so-called friends are not a support system for bad times; they *are* the bad times. People cling to them out of a need for security. He advises the questioner to either leave such groups or stay on her own terms, which means sharing what is true and meaningful. He concludes that by getting rid of a few bad friends, one opens the door to a much larger, better family (satsang), and that being alone is far better and more joyful than being in bad company.