The article examines interiority—the inner life of the mind—in relation to education and contemplation. It describes four dimensions of consciousness relevant to learning: presence, clarity, detachment, and resilience. These states are explored through direct experience and linked to contemporary research on the neuro-physiological correlates of contemplative practices. The authors present a neurophenomenological argument for the value of contemplation in education, drawing on evidence from both subjective experience and brain science.
Contemplative practices in higher education can reveal and enact intersubjectivity—the shared, relational dimension of experience—creating conditions for transformative learning that affects students' consciousness and their overall journey of transformation. A review of theoretical and research literature on postsecondary contemplative education, combined with qualitative data from graduate students in a contemplative inquiry program, provides evidence that these intersubjective, second-person approaches to learning have transformative potential.