There are 7 stages in the journey towards the Ultimate. On every stage the practitioner undergoes different conditions and enlightenment happens.
The first stage for a practitioner is the craving or goal towards reaching the Ultimate. This craving makes him go around in search of a preceptor through whom he can reach the ultimate. If the search is sincere, then one day he will meet his guru.
When the craving gave him the result of reaching a guru, he finds a solace in his mind and starts observing his guru as to whether he is in a position to help him to reach his goal. He starts observing with due respect to his guru at the same time highly disciplined under the control of his teacher following his method. Sincerity must be there in the practitioner so that he may start experiencing the journey.
After experiencing something during the practice, his guru reveals him whether he can continue his practice under him or not. Probably he can start testing his teacher with due reverence and respect. In case the practitioner finds dissatisfaction in the guru and gets doubts on the capability of his guru, he can quit himself and try to find out an alternate teacher.
Since the aspirant is continuously craving to find an alternative in case he was not satisfied, he will find another guru by himself with the help of the Almighty. He can straight away test this guru on his condition and knowledge of the practice that he is practicing and if he finds satisfaction on his search he can continue his learning and practice under this new guru. This process continues until he gets a proper guru through whom he can reach the ultimate. But craving must continue whether he gets proper guru or not.
Once he is settled under a guru of his own choice and satisfaction he can vigorously practice the method taught by his beloved guru in search of the truth. This vigorous practice will take him further in the journey and he starts experiencing many things and enlightenment happens to him depending upon the purity that he has gained through his practice and discipline of life. This enlightenment only can lead him further so that he can also become like his guru.
Once the practitioner becomes guru or preceptor and starts teaching others on his method of enlightenment, he also continues his journey towards ultimate, knowing many new wisdom and knowledge. There wisdom naturally descends upon him depending upon his maintenance of purity and practicing positive qualities. A feeling of teacher ship or Mastership should not be in him at any time, else he stops acquiring further purity in his journey and also loses the capacity to teach others.
This is the end step of his practice where he gets detached from all the earthly attachments and connects himself with the qualities of the ultimate. The quality of Ultimate is ‘nothing’. This quality starts descending in this personality gradually to remove him from the connection of the worldly attachments and ego. This practitioner has to continue his practice without doing any practice but keeping his mind always in blankness and maintain his purity of thoughts, action etc all the time. All the positive qualities should be available in him so that when he transmits his power of wisdom and purity to his followers, they should attain the maximum benefits at the earliest. His level of thinking must be par excellence at every time; then only his followers can gain every time under his teacher ship. His journey towards the Ultimate ends automatically when the energy in him wants to get released towards the ultimate and his availability in this Universe depends upon the necessity of the time.