In this hologram, the sages are the blessing that can release you from bondage and free you from the grip of the dualistic mind.
Elevating the teacher and honoring the teacher is not about the teacher but about liberation and awakening. It is about the teaching that is expressed through the teacher and manifesting as the teacher.
The sage is the shining light and the path to freedom and takes you beyond the holographic field of mind. 
The teachings given by enlightened beings are the expression of their inner realization, which is why we should request the buddhas and masters not to pass away into nirvana, but to remain until samsara has been emptied.
Realized beings who have attained the bodhisattva levels are not subject to ordinary birth and death, and when their activity is complete, they dissolve their physical form altogether.
This is why we need to request them, as fervently as possible, to remain longer, in order to help all sentient beings, and to bring them to the level of buddhahood.
– Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche –