The One-Pointed Mind

The cornerstone of learning is attention; without one-pointedness the ability to learn is hindered, as is the ability to prove what is known. The environment is paramount in promoting meditative awareness, or not. We often seek respite from the wandering, rampant mind through music, entertainment, technology, or other distractions. Are there more effective practices that promote mental stillness for teachers and students? By understanding the psychological and neurological connections between sustained attention and emotional well-being, and the power we have over their development, we as educators promote not only our student’s discovery of true success, but our own as well. The history of meditative research is ancient and comprehensive, and neuroscience is proving profound relationships between the areas of the brain responsible for one-pointed attention and those of empathy, critical thinking/higher-order reasoning, resilience, planning, time-management, examining consequences, and emotion modulation, all that we wish for our students and ourselves. Neuroscience and psychology are gaining deeper insights into the relationships between “presence” and happiness/contentment. What is more, we can examine the power of perception upon our reality and its crucial role in brain activity and learning. The cultivation of one-pointed attention is the key, and certain activities either promote or inhibit the ability to maintain prolonged attention on a task to develop a healthy emotional quotient. Science proves the connection.