Sati meditated for many years in order to attract the attention of Her Lord and Mahaguru, Shiva Shankar. But in fact, there is no preparation needed; you are fine exactly as you are, a beautiful diamond in need a bit of polish, or an awesome statue waiting under the rough rock to be exposed.

For oneself though, you may need a bit of work before the Guru ever shows up within your sphere. A burning desire to know God is a good start. A similar burning desire to know truth, see through the veil of belief and social construct and manifest Self to its natural potential is also generally prerequisite.

Knock and the door opens. Sometimes you just gotta knock hard and long. Prayer, meditation, investigation, exploration – all of these send out signals to the listening universe – someone is seeking Me. Universe tends to answer.

A lot of people go on guru-quests, touch down at an ashram and adopt the proprietor as their own. In such a case, the work you did to bring you to that point was all it took. Now it’s simply a matter of following the rules of that ashram which can be anything from wearing a particular color, to following a particular curriculum to making mandatory donations. These are the popular commercial ashrams. Sri Ravi Shankar, Osho, Sadguru – these guys run, or ran, commercial establishments hosting large group satsang and a direct guru-chella relationship may or may not ever happen at all.

Personally, I recommend the path less traveled, staying away from the big ashrams – the tourist attractions. Take yourself on pilgrimage, in India, China, Japan, the Middle East, even Europe or Africa. If a guide across the ocean of life is what you seek, one should appear. If magic is what you seek, a magician should surely appear. If you are possessed of such passion that you are willing to give your own life, your time, your sweat and tears, I promise, what you are looking for will show itself on your path.

There’s a lot more to this, but briefly, that is what you need to prepare for the Guru.