Acharya Prashant addresses the question of whether a boy and a girl can be just friends by first defining the essence of true friendship. He explains that a friend, in the truest sense, is someone you can relate to in a way that uplifts your life, mind, and thought process, providing clarity and insight. Being with a friend is meant to turn you into a better person. Applying this to the question, he asserts that it is entirely possible for a boy to be with a girl and find that her presence and company give sharpness to his consciousness and help him understand life better, and the same holds true for a girl in the company of a boy. He gives an example of a girl who is afraid, egoistic, or superstitious, who, through contact with a boy, can realize the "filth within" and emerge as a bold, inquisitive, and better individual. When the questioner brings up the matter of biological instincts, Acharya Prashant suggests that a true friend of the opposite gender is precisely the one who can point out these instincts as they arise. He illustrates that an intelligent girl can discern in real-time when a boy is merely staring instead of listening, or when his mind is driven by the "animal" within. This is a kind of feedback that a male friend might not provide, as the "animal" instinct often remains hidden in same-sex company. He posits that the best time to catch this inner "snake" or "rat" is when it emerges from its hole, and a friend of the opposite sex is uniquely positioned to help with this. Acharya Prashant extends the discussion beyond the initial question, quoting that "some part of your humanness remains unawakened until you befriend an animal." He parallels this by stating that if you cannot be friends with a person of the opposite sex, an important part of yourself will remain unnourished, unawakened, and undeveloped. He argues that individuals who only move in same-sex groups often remain "boorish," "uncultured," and "unsophisticated." Therefore, he concludes that men and women *must* be friends, not just that they *can* be, as this is the mark of a liberal, awakened, and spiritual society. He further explains that the more a person is kept away from the other gender, the more they become identified with their own gender, leading to increased body-identification, which he calls the root cause of all problems. This segregation breeds desperation and perversion. When you do not see the other gender, the mind imagines them in the worst possible ways, through lust and juvenile fantasies, which can lead to destructive outcomes. Conversely, knowing the other gender reduces this desperation because you see them as they are, not as objects of fantasy. In essence, for the wholeness of life and to avoid the pitfalls of a mind starved of genuine interaction, friendship between genders is not just possible but essential.