In response to a question about the utility of temples and pilgrimage sites like Kedarnath, Acharya Prashant reframes the inquiry. He suggests that instead of asking about the benefit of a temple, one should ask for whom the benefit is intended. The ego, by its nature, looks outward at the world and questions the utility of things, forgetting to examine itself and for whom the benefit is sought. The extent and direction of any benefit derived from a pilgrimage depend entirely on who you are and what you have become when you visit such a site. Acharya Prashant illustrates this point with examples. For the horsemen, pony operators, and eatery owners along the path to Kedarnath, the benefit is commercial. For a child, a small idol is merely a toy, and that is its benefit. Therefore, he argues, it is not appropriate to simply ask about the benefit of a pilgrimage. The more pertinent question is about one's own identity and personal definition of benefit. Pilgrimage sites were established by and for a different kind of person, whose understanding of benefit was to be free from conventional definitions of gain. He quotes Kabir Saheb, who said, "Maya (illusion) is a great deceiver, I know. For the devotees, she sits as an idol; in the pilgrimage, she becomes water." This implies that even in sacred places, one can be ensnared by illusion. The true pilgrimage, Acharya Prashant explains, is an internal event—the journey of the mind towards the Self (Atma). The Guru is the one who shows the way, the Tirthankara. When the mind embarks on this inner journey, the physical body also moves towards places that can connect it with the Truth. This constitutes the real pilgrimage. The external pilgrimage is a method to facilitate this inner journey. Its purpose is to point towards the internal event. The real pilgrimage is the mind's journey to the Self, and the external journey, with its struggles, symbolizes the inner struggle for liberation. The arduousness of the physical journey is meant to mirror the internal effort required for self-realization. The true pilgrimage is an internal transformation, and the external journey is but a reflection of that inner process.