Lesson 5
IN THIS LESSON
“The space between the breath is like a doorway… As your attention begins to press into and lock in the space between the breaths, you’ll find that the quality of enlightenment, the inherent indwelling Bodhicitta, the enlightened nature of your own Mind gains force, becomes prominent; that this Bodhicitta pervades and changes the mind to its Enlightened form.”
— Mark Griffin
This practice leads you into one of the most subtle and profound experiences in meditation: the still point between inhalation and exhalation. In that quiet, suspended moment, the thinking mind has not yet reasserted itself, and something luminous begins to emerge.
Mark calls this space a doorway—a threshold into the awakened nature of Mind itself. By gently relaxing your awareness into this space, you begin to sense the presence of Bodhicitta, the innate quality of enlightened compassion and clarity that dwells within every being.
This meditation does not require strain, only subtlety, patience, and the ability to deeply relax. As your attention grows steadier, the stillness reveals itself—not as emptiness, but as radiant, intelligent awareness. In this quiet center, transformation begins. The mind, touched by Bodhicitta, remembers what it truly is.
The Space Between the Breaths Meditation
🧘♂️ Module 5: The Space Between the Breaths Meditation
✨ Teaching Summary
In this meditative teaching, Mark Griffin invites practitioners into the subtle and sacred space between the in-breath and out-breath. Known in yogic and tantric traditions as the “juction” or “sandhya,” this twilight-like space is not merely a pause but the opening of a doorway to awakened awareness.
The meditation begins with the bellows breath (a breath initiated and controlled by the solar plexus), guiding practitioners to enter this liminal space where the mind becomes still and the subtle vibration of the So-Ham mantra arises.
“So” represents the vibration of creation — the manifest universe.
“Ham” is the vibration of the infinite — the ocean of pure consciousness.
These vibrations flow through the central nerve, and the space between them becomes the locus of meditation. Mark speaks of this space as the Sikhasah, a secret, luminous point in the innermost consciousness where duality collapses into unity. It is here that Bodhicitta — the seed of enlightenment — is revealed and amplified.
The space between breaths becomes more than technique. It is a vehicle of realization, a training ground for stabilizing attention, and ultimately, a portal for stepping “between the worlds” into one’s awakened form.
🌀 Questions for Contemplation & Journaling
Contemplation is the means by which we can “feel” our way into the deep, existential questions of life. In this way it is a mode of “thinking” that differs from discursive fact gathering —the step-by-step means by which we assemble and organize information. While this form of knowledge gathering can be crucial to our mastery of a subject, contemplation activates the intuitive faculties of mind that lead towards insight, understanding, wisdom, and realization. Begin to observe how this ability to feel deeply into a subject differs from the more rudimentary stages of learning. Let Mark’s words move you into a space where the mind has room to integrate your own fields of deeper knowing. Towards that end each module will offer an opportunity for focused contemplation. We recommend journaling as a means to engage with these questions and to activate one’s own intuitive faculties.
Use these as daily or weekly points for deep reflection. Let them unfold within your awareness intuitively.
What is the “space between the breaths” for you — experientially, not conceptually? Can you describe it without using the mind?
(Hint: Let this question guide you into feeling the gap itself.)When Mark describes the vibrations of “So” and “Ham” as the representation of creation and consciousness, what does that duality mean to you? Where do you see it in your life?
Can you train your attention to rest not on the breath itself, but on the stillness between breaths — even while walking, working, or moving through the world? What changes when you do?
Mark says that Bodhicitta — the enlightened nature of the human form — arises as attention moves into this spacious gap between the breaths. What does this tell you about your own enlightened nature and its relationship to the awakening of awareness?