In Awe with life
It’s now July, the month when I traditionally reflect on my life so far and contemplate my future endeavors. Why? Because it’s my birth month. Typically, I ponder over the career and personal goals I’ve set and assess their progress. However, this year, I’ve decided to approach it from a slightly different angle, thanks to a couple of incidents that unfolded in the past month.
Incident One: A friend recently asked me, “What are your greatest life experiences thus far?” I responded by saying that I find greatness in every day, celebrating and savoring both the small and big things life brings my way.
When my friend probed further, I shared that I have numerous life experiences, with even more waiting on my bucket list. However, if I were to list the top three, they would be as follows:
- The day I gave birth.
- The day my mother passed away.
- The day I won the UN award and proudly represented my nation on the stage.
Birth, death, and a profound sense of national pride or elevated self-worth seem to encompass those deep emotional and inspirational moments in life that I will cherish throughout my lifetime. These moments are truly awe-inspiring, causing me to relish and remember them dearly. They have made me realize my significance as a human being, momentarily placing me in a position of insignificance compared to the greater role I must undertake.
I have had several such “awe experiences ” in my life. Am sure, most of us have.
Incident Two: It was June 17th when I had the privilege of witnessing an awe-inspiring Graduation ceremony at Stanford University. The stadium was brimming with 30,000 people, creating an electric atmosphere that left me in complete awe.
It was truly overwhelming to see numerous joyous faces gathered in one place. Each face reflected tears of happiness and triumph, while family members beamed with pride and a sense of profound fulfillment.
During a talk at the Baccalaureate ceremony, held on the previous day, the keynote speaker, Rabbi Angela Buchdahl told the audience, “The greatest source of awe is in you” and to cultivate amazement and appreciate everyday things in life.
That talk led me to read more about this developing field of psychology and how human beings can cultivate this feeling to become happier and wholesome beings.
Prof. Datcher Keltner at UC Berkeley published a seminal study titled “The Science of Awe” in 2018. Awe is an emotional experience felt when individuals encounter powerful experiences, such as works of art, giving birth, or nature. The feeling of awe evokes a sense of wonder and can transform the way we see the world. The experience of awe can make us feel diminished and insignificant. He outlines the “eight wonders of life” that are most likely to induce awe: moral beauty (e.g., courage in battle), collective effervescence (e.g., participating in a political rally), nature, music, visual art, spirituality, mortality, and epiphanies.
And people who feel these regularly can live a wonderful life. When we feel wonder at something truly incredible, we perceive ourselves as smaller and less significant than the rest of the world. Consequently, generating awe can trigger a great mental shift, making it a potentially essential tool to improve our health and well-being.
Cultivate the “Awe” factor in your life, daily. By seeking out and appreciating moments of awe, even in the seemingly mundane aspects of life, you can elevate your perspective and find greater fulfillment. When you embrace the wonders around you, everything else will naturally appear smaller in comparison.
As I embark on this July, I have set a personal goal to nurture this sense of awe, even in the ordinary. In doing so, I hope to celebrate this life—an extraordinary gift bestowed upon us by nature itself.
Cheers to the Awesome You and the awesomeness all around!
Universal Love and Abundance,
(Dr. CeeVee is the pen name of Dr. Chandra Vadhana R, Founder of Prayaana Labs and Managing Editor, SheSight Magazine)
