The shaykh, or spiritual guide, plays an indispensable role in leading the aspiring Sufi to union with Allah. While the objective of the Sufi path is expressly mystical, the process is also therapeutic: The shaykh is himself an integrated person characterized by inner equilibrium, thoroughgoing non-attachment, and radical acceptance of prevailing conditions. In leading the disciple toward personal integration and mystic union, the shaykh uses whatever circumstances arise in the normal course of the disciple's life, even employing the disciple's so-called undesirable emotions. The disciple is expected to obey every directive of the shaykh and to emulate the qualities that he sees in him. In a word; the shaykh serves as a catalyst, enabling the disciple to discover and develop the wholeness and harmony that are inherent in his own nature.