In Taoist thought, pu (朴)—the “uncarved block”—symbolizes low preconception and high receptivity: a mind not over-shaped by fixed categories, able to meet the world freshly (Ames & Hall, 2003). Modern mindfulness calls this stance beginner’s mind, which learning science links to reduced confirmation bias, broader exploration, and more flexible problem-solving (Kabat-Zinn, 2013; Nickerson, 1998). Contemporary evidence converges: cultivating an open, non-grasping mode of attention expands search in the problem space, counteracts cognitive fixation, and supports creativity and adaptive action (Colzato, Ozturk, & Hommel, 2012; Bilalić, McLeod, & Gobet, 2008; Kounios & Beeman, 2014).