The Power of Awe

We’re wired for self-preservation—always scanning for threats, tracking our status, obsessing over what others think. That vigilance served our ancestors well, helping them stay alive in dangerous environments.

But in modern life, it often backfires. We over-personalize everything. We ruminate, compare, self-promote, doomscroll. Unchecked, our self-obsession makes us less empathetic, more anxious, and not exactly the best neighbors or team players. 

In a world that constantly reinforces the self as center, we lose sight of anything beyond our own experience.

But awe snaps us out of it. 

Consider This

According to the Greek historian Herodotus, a brutal six-year war between the Lydians and Medes came to an abrupt end when a total solar eclipse darkened the battlefield. Soldiers on both sides, stunned by the cosmic event, laid down their weapons and made peace. Whether literal or legend, the story captures a truth: awe can interrupt conflict and open the door to cooperation.

In the modern era, astronauts often speak of the Overview Effect—a profound shift in awareness when seeing Earth from space. Floating above it all, borders vanish. Grudges shrink. Many return transformed, driven by a renewed sense of stewardship for the planet. Edgar Mitchell described it as “an explosion of awareness.” Chris Hadfield called it “undeniably spiritual.”

Then there’s the Blue Marble—that iconic 1972 photo of Earth from Apollo 17. Just a tiny sphere of blue in a sea of black. That image helped launch the environmental movement, reminding us of our shared fragility and interconnected fate.

Awe, in these moments, did what logic and arguments couldn’t: it moved people to care.

Putting it into Play

Awe shifts us from self to system. From isolation to connection. But in the grind of everyday life, we rarely make space for it.

But it doesn’t take much to experience awe. Just go outside. Step into nature, go the park, walk in the woods or by the ocean. Look up. The stars are ancient. You’re part of that timeline. Let that sink in. Engage with art. Music, poetry, visual art—anything that evokes a sense of beauty, vastness, or mystery—opens up the awe channel. And be with people, in real life, and on purpose. Attend a concert. Join a ceremony. March for something. Collective experiences create a sense of belonging that transcends the self.

Awe recalibrates us. It pulls us out of the tight orbit of me and drops us into something vast, mysterious, and shared. In that sense, awe is a power. One that can change how we relate to ourselves, to each other, and to the planet.