Kabir's spiritual path reached a turning point with Swami Ramananda, a revered Vaishnavite saint and a central figure in the Bhakti movement. According to tradition, Kabir received his initiation when Ramananda unintentionally stepped over him on the ghats before dawn, uttering the name of God: "Ram!" Though Kabir was born and raised in a Muslim family, he embraced Ramananda as his guru—an act that carried significant social implications. By accepting a Hindu Brahmin teacher, Kabir shattered the barriers separating caste and creed. Under Ramananda's influence, Kabir grasped the core of Nirguna Bhakti—devotion to the formless Divine. He deepened this understanding with Sufi ideas, blending two powerful spiritual streams into a unique philosophy. There are records that Kabir was mentored by "Nipatniranjan" a Sadhu who consoles Kabir and enlightens him to turn his mediation inwards and not outwards (a self–realization technique) who is despondent after seeing a mill grinding wheat into flour and likening it to his own life.