Eight sources of wonder

2026-05-08 22:23

Moral beauty. We can feel awe when we observe other people engage in acts of courage or kindness. Moral beauty also describes the experience of seeing someone overcome obstacles, or watching people with rare talents.
Collective effervescence. This occurs when a gathering of people is attending to the same thing, moving together, and converging on similar emotional experience. Think attending a concert, dancing in a crowd, or attending or playing in a basketball game.
Nature. When we are outside, we can find awe in the sights, sounds, and smells of nature.
Music. Both making music and listening to music attune us to what is happening outside of ourselves and connect us with others and a broader expanse of time and place.
Visual design. This includes visual art, movies, geometric patterns, even the elegance and complexity of machines.
Spirituality and religion. As personally defined by each of us, this might include connection with the Divine, or experiences that transcend our self or understanding.
Life and death. We can experience awe when we witness or are connected to birth and death.
Epiphany. This includes the experience of uniting facts, beliefs, values, intuitions, and images into a new system of understanding.

A beautiful summary of the sources of awe that really resonates with me. More: