Concentration is a spiritual power. It’s also a neglected practice in our harried, fractured culture. Concentration is the fourth of five powers known as the panchabala in Buddhism. When we cultivate these five powers, we invite spiritual growth. We’ve discussed faith, effort, and mindfulness. Now comes concentration.

We can describe concentration simply as “one-pointed attention.” When we concentrate, we train our minds to focus on one thing, and one thing only. Usually, our minds are scattered. Every thought is like a ray of light, shining in its own direction. When we concentrate, we combine all those thoughts into one laser-like beam of intensity. The power concentrates.

Studies have shown that we tend to believe we are concentrating when we are actually distracted. A few years ago, researchers tracked a group of MIT students. The students claimed they could multitask with no problem. Unfortunately, the results showed the opposite. Our minds are not at their most powerful when our concentration is scattered. And our comprehension and recollection suffer.

But concentration as a spiritual power means not just turning off the music while we study, or closing tabs in our browser. When we fully concentrate, we experience what Buddhists call absorption. That is, the experience of being beyond distinction. No self, no non-self. No here and there. Just totality. We recognize that all is one.

Obviously, most of us don’t know how to enter into that level of deep awareness. Which is the point! Concentration as a spiritual power requires dedicated practice. We invite spiritual growth when we faithfully practice training our minds for absorption.

Homework for the week: Go outside, find a flower or a blade of grass or a tree limb. Focus all your attention on it for five minutes. Bonus? Practicing concentration naturally brings forth a sense of openness and gratitude.

This post is part of the Paramita Project, where I’m practicing one paramita each month. You can read all my posts on spiritual power here.