Up: [[Happiness]] Related: [[Knowledge Emotions]] Created: 2024-02-10 Updated: 2026-01-19 Awe is wonder and fascination about a profound experience. Because it’s a profound experience that is not normal, we accommodate to it by changing our beliefs about ourself, other people, or the world. It is most often experienced when we are alone and are either in nature or deeply engaged with art or music. People who experience awe more often than others tend to be extraverted and open to new experiences, so they naturally have more occasions to be in the presence of awe-inspiring events. If specifically looking for music that will inspire awe, play it loud and choose something that has lots of shifts, such as from few to many instruments, quiet to loud, and both low and high frequencies. Awe inspires wonder and wonder makes us want to learn more. That’s why there are organizations like AstroArt at [Harvard University](https://astroart.cfa.harvard.edu/data.html) When we see photos of supernovas and nebulas, we just naturally want to learn more about them. That's what makes awe one of the [[Knowledge Emotions]]. > [!Orbit] Nick Cave in *Faith, Hope and Carnage* says… > I think in a way my work has become an explicit rejection of cynicism and negativity. I simply have no time for it. I mean that quite literally, and from a personal perspective. No time for censure or relentless condemnation. No time for the whole cycle of perpetual blame. Others can do that sort of thing. I haven’t the stomach for it, or the time. Life is too damn short, in my opinion, not to be awed. (p. 199)