The word “awe” resonates and vibrates with the mystery of touching the transcendent. Awe has the power to penetrate any moment or situation.
Kelter asks:
“What is the end of awe, its unifying purpose?……….The epiphany of awe is that its experience connects our individual selves with the vast forces of life…..”
It enables us to ponder and wonder at the big questions of our existence: “ What is life? Why am I alive? Why do we all die? What is the purpose of it all?”
Through their research, collecting stories of awe from around the world, he along with his longtime collaborator, Professor Yang Bai, developed a taxonomy of the eight wonders of life that most commonly led people to experience awe:
- Moral beauty
- Collective effervescence
- Nature
- Music
- Visual design
- Spiritual and religious
- Life and death
- Epiphanies
Beyond scientific exploration and discussion of awe, this book provides real-world examples of awe that illuminate and inspire. We are reminded, as Kelter states above, that awe helps us to find meaning and understanding as we navigate this world.
“The world is full of magic things, patiently waiting for our senses to grow sharper.”
― W.B. Yeats
“Never lose a holy curiosity. Stop every day to understand and appreciate a little of the mystery that surrounds you and your life will be filled with awe and discovery to the very end.”
— Albert Einstein
