The other day I was meditating (insofar as I can actually do it), aiming to observe the flow of experience, one thing flowing into another, with equanimity, concentration and clarity, as Shinzen Young defines one way to meditate. As usually happens for me, I had slipped part way into the hypnagogic state, less aware of external stimuli and my body, visual imagery more intense.
I saw a person I immediately took to be a Buddhist Master, sitting quietly. An Indian gentleman walked up to him and politely inquired, “How are you, sir?”
The Master immediately replied, “I am not,” and I came back to ordinary consciousness.
It certainly fits with the general Buddhist emphasis that we do not have a fixed, permanent identity. So was if profound? Silly? Humorous? Or nothing in particular?