Acharya Prashant explains that cleverness and manipulation are superficial traits that prevent an individual from experiencing love and truth. Cleverness is defined as the mind's attempt to change external circumstances to avoid internal self-correction. This manipulation serves to keep the ego's personal narrative intact, even if it requires distorting facts or creating baseless stories. A clever person may display extraordinary skill and mastery in their actions, but these efforts are ultimately tragic because they are intended to defend a fragile and indefensible inner core. Success on the outside often masks a deep failure on the inside, much like a person who successfully builds a magnificent crutch only to further establish their own lameness. He further distinguishes between cleverness and sharpness of mind. While cleverness involves missing the real point and succeeding at irrelevant targets—such as treating a patient's car instead of the patient—sharpness is characterized by devotion, attention, and remaining with the facts. To be sharp is to follow the truth and not be distracted by superficial gains. Acharya Prashant emphasizes that observation is not merely watching but is a form of surrender and service to the truth. Cleverness is ultimately a way of tricking oneself and hiding one's own diseases or deficiencies from the world to avoid the discomfort of healing.