Awe

I have experienced awe, even though I am an atheist. Two guaranteed exercises can inspire awe for me. I'll pass them on.

The first exercise is perfect for Spring. I find a place where there is no visible or loudly audible evidence of human invention. This can be a beach, a forest or a large meadow. Any time of day or night will do. Part of the awe of this exercise comes from the difficulty involved in finding a non-human place on this densely populated planet. Once there, I sit and breathe deeply as I do in meditation. I listen and observe. It usually takes minutes for the crust of human civilization to fall away. The awe comes slowly as I feel my animal self emerge and harmonize with the life around me. Insects, small mammals, birds, reptiles. This is the awe of discovering my true being on the planet as a large mammal in a larger natural environment. My awe supports my humbling respect for the natural beauty and intricacy of this planet.

The second exercise can be done in my own apartment. I sit in a chair and breathe deeply, meditatively. As my body relaxes, I begin reflecting on my chair. I consider all its parts. I think of the hands or machines required to craft and assemble it. I think of the journey it traveled before getting to my apartment. I then look around me. From one object to the next I repeat this reflection. All the pieces of crafted wood, all the bolts and screws, all the molded plastic. How was it made? Where did it all come from? How many people participated in making each thing? What technologies had to be developed over how many centuries to craft each thing?  What was the journey which it traveled to the store where I found it?  This exercise brings me the awe at what it take to provide the comfort and practical functioning of my daily life. My awe supports my mindfulness of human society and its capabilities.

This sensibilities have supported my interest in science and education over the years. The awe I experience at the Universe as it simply is has inspired and humbled. I am this Universe's creation, along with all other living beings and non-living matter, as we humans can perceive it. Isn't that enough? Isn't that humility and respect for my place in the Universe enough to inspire me to be respectful and responsible every day? I think it is.