May 12th, 2020
“Awe is the best drug in the world.” - Jason Silva
Have you ever had a moment where you were speechless and struck by wonder and intrigue? Maybe this feeling occurred after witnessing something spectacular or after you did something that was a rare and outstanding feat. Or, perhaps you had this experience after hearing an idea or a solution to a problem that you had not previously considered. This feeling of shock, appreciation, and intrigue is that of awe.
You may have heard some people say that to understand what awe is, you have to experience it. Others will claim that when you are in awe, you will know it. People make these claims because the state of awe is somewhat abstract and can be hard to define exactly what it is. There are two forms that the word awe can be used; awe can be used as a noun or as a verb.
Clearly, there are some common threads among these popular various definitions of the construct, awe. The feelings of awe are usually associated with a certain type of feeling (that is usually strong, first definition says “overwhelming”.) This feeling is most typically a feeling of respect or reverence.
The definitions of awe as stated above are multi-faceted. To better understand these definitions, we can begin by understanding fear.
Another aspect of awe, at least in the first and third definition provided, is from the source of where the awe was inspired from…
To further understand the state of awe, it may be beneficial to provide some synonyms of the term.
When trying to grasp the concept and meaning of awe, it can be helpful to compare it to other familiar words, like some of the following…
Altogether, it can be gathered that being in a state of awe can be a powerful feeling. Words like admiration, wonderstruck, awestruck, and astonished are all terms that are packed with feeling and emotion. These synonyms give us a good look into what experiencing an awe-inspiring moment may be like. When might you feel in awe? That is where we turn to next.
When Might I be in Awe?
There are numerous experiences in our life in which we may be moved to be in a state of awe. While there are a vast number of experiences in which individuals may experience awe, and there are too many to list, a brief list of some more commonly experienced situations in which one may feel awe are listed below:
By now, you may be thinking, “Wow, being in awe sounds great! I want to be in awe! How do I do it?” Here are several suggestions for living an awe-inspiring life:
Being in a state of awe can be a powerful feeling that many people enjoy experiencing. Having this experience of awe can give us appreciation for our lives and our experiences on this planet. By being open to new experiences and approaching them with an open mind, we have an improved likelihood of experiencing moments of awe in our future.
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