Stories of spiritual and religious awe were a sixth wonder of life.

In the state of wonder that awe produces, our thought is more rigorous and energized.

Awe is about our relation to the vast mysteries of life.

Vastness can be challenging, unsettling, and destabilizing. In evoking awe, it reveals that our current knowledge is not up to the task of making sense of what we have encountered. And so, in awe, we go in search of new forms of understanding.

Because we can find awe anywhere. Because doing so doesn’t require money or the burning of fossil fuels—or even much time. Our research suggests that just a couple of minutes a day will do. Because we have a basic need for awe wired into our brains and bodies, finding awe is easy if we just take a moment and wonder. Because all of us, no matter

Human waves now ritualistically arise at football games, political rallies, concerts, and graduations. They tend to move clockwise and travel at a speed of twenty seats per second.

What is an experience of awe that you have had, when you encountered a vast mystery that transcends your understanding of the world?

Awe is the emotion we experience when we encounter vast mysteries that we don’t understand.

emotional core of religion.