The Sotapanna phala MOMENT cannot be “experienced” in real-time. It comes and goes within a split second.
– What happens is that one slowly becomes aware of significant changes in one’s gati and general state of the mind over weeks and months.
In Buddha Dhamma, a kalyana mittā does not have to be a “friend” that one regularly associates with.
– In my case, for example, my kalyana mittā was Waharaka Thero. But I did not even get a chance to meet him. He passed away in 2017.
– He became my kalyana mittā soon after I found his discourses on the internet.
– A kalyana mittā is someone who can help you make progress on the Path. Of course, one can have many kalyana mittā. In general, bhikkhus and laypeople (with magga phala) can be kalyana mittā to anyone.