“Apa Pant told me this story. One day our master Jamyang Khyentse was watching a "Lama Dance" in front of the Palace Temple in Gangtok, the capital of Sikkim, and he was chuckling at the antics of the atsara, the clown who provides light relief between dances. Apa Pant kept pestering him, asking him again and again how to meditate, so this time when my master replied, it was in such a way as to let him know that he was telling him once and for all:
"Look, it's like this: When the past thought has ceased, and the future thought has not yet risen, isn't there a gap?"
"Yes," said Apa Pant.
"Well, prolong it: That is meditation."
Dedicated to the Suffering of Sentient beings in the Typhoon Morakot
May they attain the bliss of joy in the Western Paradise
May all obstructions and obscuration be swiftly removed
Namo Amitabha
Nice :)
I might add a quote by Tenzin Wangyal (1997, 29):
The gap between two thoughts is essence. But if in that gap
there is a lack of presence, it becomes ignorance and we experience only a lack
of awareness, almost an unconsciousness. If there is presence in the gap, then
we experience the dharmakaya [the ultimate].
I love this story of Apa Pant! Please also have a look at the Remembering the Masters blog for more information about him and Jamyang Khyentse.