Until pure compassion arises, there is no way to overcome limitations and sectarianism. However, there are many practitioners who reach a point after a while where they consider themselves like deities and treat others as opposing evil spirits, thereby strengthening their limitations and further accentuating attachment and hatred. Though they talk a lot about Mahamudra and Dzogchen, at the level of behavior, they are only becoming more expert and refined in acting according to the “eight worldly concerns”. This is a concrete sign that genuine compassion has not arisen and that, at the most fundamental level, the true and only root of compassion, the presence of awareness, has never arisen.

Namkhai Norbu Rinpoche

from the book The Mirror: Advice on the Presence of Awareness

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Further quotes from the book The Mirror:

• The root of samsara
• Becoming the slave of illusions and distractions
• Integrating awareness in all daily actions