From this we can see that even though there may be some who only practice on the surface and appear to do so for personal gain or fame, in the end even that is making a significant cause for their future enlightenment. Sometimes we may question why we have to be around someone who is like that. It is especially challenging when we have to work alongside someone who is that way day after day. It can be very discouraging and even frustrating.

We should, however, keep in mind that we have a deep bond or relationship with all the people and circumstances that arise in our lives. It is our challenge to see each of those as opportunities to change things within our own lives. Perhaps we need to learn to be less critical or judgmental. Perhaps we need to learn to look deeper in the lives of others around us so that we can see their Buddha potential even if at the moment they are not manifesting it. And after all, it is only our personal opinion that the other person is not performing up to our standard.