A worldly person has consciousness of only the gross world, and knows nothing about God-consciousness. Such a person does not have even a shadow of an idea of the reality of God. A majzoob is fully conscious of divinity, but unconscious of the world. A spiritually advanced person on one of the three planes of the subtle world knows of the powers of God, and one on the fourth plane ( kuber ) knows the full, infinite power of God. An advanced wali on the fifth plane of the mental world knows the infinite mind of God, while a pir (saint) on the sixth plane of the mental world sees the infinite existence of God. Only a Perfect Soul (Shivatma) on the seventh plane really knows God, because he is fully, infinitely conscious of actually being God himself.
Once God-realization is attained, it becomes and remains everlasting. God-consciousness is never affected by anything in the three spheres or by any circumstances. It is continually experienced as an "infinite self-contained phenomenon" within one's own infinity. However, in order for a person with God-consciousness to do Universal work in the world, normal consciousness is required. Such is the functioning state of the Perfect Masters and the Avatar.
To regain gross consciousness, seven stages have to be passed through as they descend through the seven planes. A description in detail of each stage is not possible. To regain normal human consciousness is to "come down" from the height of divinity — from Infinity itself.
Diving to the bottom of the ocean of divine life to obtain the "pearl" and to resurface to show the pearl to others comprises the lives of the Perfect Masters. But the Avatar does not have to dive to the depths of the ocean, because he eternally possesses the pearl of divine life. Yet to show it to the world, Merwan had to regain his worldly awareness to function as Avatar Meher Baba. Side by side with the divine consciousness of Unity, he had to have the consciousness of duality.