Youth is naturally inclined to be sociable. If it is not so it means something is wrong, for it is most desirable for a youth to make friends and to show reciprocity in friendship, in love, or in courtship, and to show courtesy, kindness, and goodwill. Joining youth associations, looking after one's friends and relatives, giving them welcome and warmth, is something that is expected of the youth. There is, however, always a danger for the youth who is sociable and mixes freely in all circles whether desirable or undesirable. Youth is to some extent a time of blindness, when the passions and emotions are in full play. It is just as easy for a youth to take a wrong direction, as it is for him to take a right direction; and a growing youth, full of enthusiasm, overcome with emotion, and eager to experience anything new and interesting, may take any road in life opened to him by his friends. Therefore it is the duty of the guardians to keep him away from all undesirable influences, without giving the slightest idea that they control him and his affairs or deprive him of his freedom.

The higher the ideal of the youth, the greater is the future for him. A youth who is led to work for friends of his age, for his associations, for his community, for the nation, is indeed on the right road.

The youth who avoids the friendship of his own sex, or the one who is not attracted by the opposite sex, is abnormal, and either of these cases should be taken as a disorder and should be treated in its early stages. If it is allowed to go on it results in great disappointment. The youth who is disinclined to associate with his own sex is as a rule a timid nature and weak in will-power. It is sometimes caused by feebleness of body and sometimes by having been brought up with extra love, care, and tenderness at the hands of women alone. Therefore the life of a boy should begin with having boys as companions. In this way he receives from others the nature which is necessary for him.

It is one thing to be born male; it is another thing to develop a male personality. It is not sufficient to be born male; a male personality must be developed. It can be developed in youth, but if this time is missed, then it is almost too late, although no doubt a youth of such an abnormal nature can still be placed in surroundings from which in time he may receive the impressions he needs to complete his male personality.

A youth who responds to joy and to sorrow and to those near and dear to him, who echoes every impulse, who is interested in everything desirable and who is alive to all pleasure and joy, is a normal youth. If he is guided rightly he will make his life worth living.

The same tendencies may be observed in girls. A girl who is not brought up with other girls develops a character which is not feminine. The consequences are she is repulsive to her own sex and unattractive to the opposite sex. When in youth a girl begins to show male traits in her personality, she should by every means be placed in female surroundings, which in time may so impress her spirit that her personality partakes of the qualities that are necessary to complete her female personality.

There are also youths who are strongly drawn to their own sex and away from the opposite sex. Amongst them some are physically and some mentally abnormal; but there are some in whom the desire for the opposite sex is still asleep, and it needs awakening; very often in cases of the latter kind difficulties arise. People blame them for something which is not their fault; for people not knowing the truth expect them to be as responsive to the opposite sex as everybody else. And when they do not find them as they expect them to be people become impatient with them. Many courtships and marriages are destroyed by this lack of understanding. If one only knew the art of doing it one would wait and help gently and patiently, as if for the ripening of green fruit.

A youth with good manners and education yet without endurance, cannot make great progress in life, for he tends only to associate with those who come up to his standard; he will ignore or avoid those who fail beneath it; and as his sense of discernment becomes keener he will become more and more intolerant.

The downfall of modern civilization is caused by the lack of sincere sociability. There is a diplomatic form of politeness which is only politeness in form, without sincerity; but true politeness belongs to the one who is sympathetic. Sincerity is the principal thing in life.

Youth is the age which is most attracted to superficiality; that is the reason why many youths adopt an artificial manner of thought, speech, and action, which is very undesirable and does not benefit their life.

It is important to inculcate sincerity in the character of the youth. To give a youth a love of sincerity is extremely useful, for the power of sincerity can work miracles. Also pride, a natural spirit which grows in a youth, must be molded into an ideal. The same pride which makes man stiff, stern, and inconsiderate, if developed into what is called self-respect, will be the true sign of honor in life; for pride when guided into the right channel gives rise to consideration. Such a person becomes careful not to think, say, or do what falls beneath his standard of virtue. Pride rightly directed molds the character, and it is the perfected character which culminates in an ideal.

The development of the spiritual side of the youth comes before anything else in life. Often spirituality is confused with religion; in reality, however, this word has quite a different meaning. Religion for many is that which they know to be their people's belief; spirituality is the revealing of the divine light which is hidden in every soul. It has no concern with any particular religion. Whatever religion a person belongs to is no good to him if he has no spirituality. But if a man is spiritual, then whatever be his faith he will profit by it. Therefore, before thinking what religion the youth should belong to, one should train him in a spiritual ideal.

A youth of today, trained in the spirit of commercialism and with material motives put before him, can never grow up to become a really happy person who can impart his happiness to his fellow-men. The greatest drawback of modern times is the bringing up of a youth in an absolutely material atmosphere, so that he has nothing to look forward to beyond matter and material conditions, which are as poor as matter itself. No child comes on earth without a spiritual ideal, but it is the surroundings in which it lives, its guardians, its associates, that make the child materialistic. It cannot develop by itself when all the surroundings are different. In this way the spiritual ideal which the child brings on earth is strangled by material guardians and associates.

The world of today would have been much better than it is if there had been a spiritual ideal placed before it as well as a material ideal, which seems to be the only goal of the modern world. If one can learn from experience, the recent catastrophes have not been a small example of what the development of materialism can bring about. If the world goes on in the same manner, what will be the result? There is no hope for the betterment of humanity until the spiritual ideal has been brought forward and made the central theme of education both at home and in the schools. This only can be the solution of the difficult problem of world reform that faces humanity.

How to begin the training of youth in spiritual ideals is not an easy problem to solve; for there are several dangers which have to be considered before beginning such a training with a youth. It is not necessary that the youth should be made a religious fanatic or religiously proud; he must not be made to think that his spiritual direction makes him superior to others. Goodness always gives a certain vanity, and an undeveloped spirituality brings a still greater vanity. If by spirituality a youth is made bigoted in his own faith, looking at the followers of every other faith with contempt, or with a sort of indifference, it cannot be right. How many religious souls there still are in this world who think their scripture is the only scripture, their Church the only religion, and everyone else infidels! Such a faith can never produce spirituality in a soul.

Spirituality comes from the softening of the heart, which becomes frozen by the coldness of the surrounding life. The influence of worldly life upon the mind generally has a freezing effect; for selfishness coming from all sides naturally makes a man cool and selfish. Therefore it is the constant softening of the heart of the youth that is necessary. There are two ways of softening the heart; one is by helping the youth to open himself to the beauty which is shining in all its various forms. The other is to give him a tendency to righteousness, which is the very essence of the soul. These things cannot be taught, but they can be awakened in the heart of the youth if the parents or the guardians only know how. The child must not be forced by principles, but love of virtue should be created in his heart, for in the inner nature of every soul there is love of virtue. Spirituality in the real sense of the word is the discovering of the spirit, which is attained by rising above self or by diving into self.

The greatest fault of the day is the absence of stillness. Stillness is nowadays often taken as leisureliness or as slowness. Modern man lacks concentration and carries with him an atmosphere of restlessness; with all his knowledge and progress he feels uncomfortable himself, and unintentionally brings discomfort to others. Stillness is therefore the most important lesson that can be taught to the youth of today.

Spirituality is like the water hidden in the depth of the earth: hidden in the heart of man, this water which is spirituality must be, so to speak, dug out. This digging is done when one takes pains in awakening one's sympathy towards others, in harmonizing with others and in understanding others.

The outer knowledge of human life and nature is called philosophy, but the inner knowledge of these is called psychology. This knowledge can be studied; yet the real spirit of this knowledge is manifested in the awakening of the soul. The youth must be given higher thoughts in order that he may think about a higher ideal, uphold a higher conception of life, gain a higher aspiration, and carry through life a higher attitude, a higher point of view.

It is in the ennobling of the soul that spirituality lies, not in a mere show of spirituality; and nobleness of the soul is realized in the feeling of selflessness. Whatever be a man's rank or position, if he shows selflessness in life he is truly noble. The spiritual nobility is the real aristocracy, for it expresses itself in democracy. In a really spiritual person aristocracy and democracy are one, for these ideals, which both have their spiritual beauty, are summed up in the one spirit of nobleness. A youth must be taught that it is not becoming angelic which shows spirituality; it is becoming human which is the true sign of the spiritual man.