This post is a happy one, an inspirational one, for it reminds us about how utterly, breathtakingly amazing is the world in which we all live. If we really look around us, if we genuinely concentrate on what we see, we can be ‘blown-away’ by the wonders and mysteries of life. It is, if we think about it, truly, astonishing.

The word ‘astonishment’ has its roots in the word ‘thunderstruck,’ originating from the Latin word tonare, to thunder. This word effectively captures the total state of shock and awe that astonishment describes.

“Life is the fire that burns and the sun that gives light. Life is the wind and the rain and the thunder in the sky. Life is matter and is earth, what is and what is not, and what beyond is in Eternity.”

Lucius Annaeus Seneca

The astonishing nature of life in all its diversity is there to inspire us, leaving us with so many unanswered questions. If we think about it, how many aspects of life baffle and astound us on a daily basis? 

“Mystery creates wonder and wonder is the basis of man’s desire to understand.”

Neil Armstrong

“Walk on a rainbow trail; walk on a trail of song, and all about you will be beauty. There is a way out of every dark mist, over a rainbow trail.”

Robert Motherwell

The amazing processes of nature in general, the phenomena of reproduction, growth and evolution, the miracle of diversity and the existence of so many different species that inhabit our universe, constantly astonish us.

We behold with reverence the wondrous connections between different life forms, the beauty, complexity and simplicity of the natural world. This is, indeed, finding our own ‘rainbow trail.’

• “Learning to be astonished…”

Annie Louisa Swynnerton. The Sense of Sight (1895) Wikimedia Commons.

“Astonishment is the proper response to reality.”

Terence McKenna

Looking over Niagara Falls –Thomas Moran. 1885. Wikioo

Leonardo. sgatto. The endless round. 2008. Flickr.

“The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and science.”

Albert Einstein

“One cannot help but be in awe when
one contemplates the mysteries of eternity,
of life, of the marvellous structure of reality.”

Albert Einstein

The reality of the world is, indeed, astonishing. Developing our sense of awe at the many incredible aspects of our world is crucial if we are to make new discoveries, to learn and to assimilate new knowledge.

“The way to do research is to attack the facts at the point of greatest astonishment.”

Celia Green

Edouard Manet Standing – Edgar Degas. 1868. Wikioo

“To stand still,
To remember what’s important,
To learn to be astonished”

Mary Oliver

“Learning to be astonished” is a meaningful phrase, one that captures the essence of my message in this post. It implies that we need to train ourselves, to practice and refine the unique and precious ‘skill’ of being astonished at the world. It is important to develop our sensitivities and awareness in such a way as to become acutely mindful of what is unfolding in our lives, in both our inner and outer worlds.

Otherwise, we may not notice, or be too busy to pay attention, we may be distracted, or be unappreciative of what is. We may look at things without really seeing them, without absorbing or taking into ourselves what we could perceive.

On the other hand, however, we could choose to decide to focus on our surroundings, on the now, and deeply connect with the countryside, the flowers, birdsong, blue skies, the universe. Then we will discover that, because of our changed inner attitude, what we are seeing will also be different. Developing such focus is connected to staying in the now, in the present.

What can we see, hear, taste smell, touch, in this very moment?

Pietro Paolini – Allegory of the Five Senses. c.1630. Wikimedia Commons

“Observe the wonders as they occur around you. Don’t claim them. Feel the artistry moving through and be silent……..”

Rumi

“When we change the way we look at things the things we look at will change”

Wayne W. Dyer

Looking and seeing can be quite different from each other. We can stare with blank eyes at a beautiful scene, our thoughts elsewhere, and we will not appreciate the wonders before us.

At times, internal turmoil and unresolved anxiety can blur our viewing lens. If we are too preoccupied with, or encumbered by, past or present concerns, we will not allow ourselves to ‘be’ in the world and will tend to drift through life without really being impacted by what is around us.

Our true vision will be defective; we will not concentrate, and all this will become an obstacle to our process of learning to be astonished. That is such a pity, for our curiosity about life, too, will be extinguished.

Without this ability to be astonished, without curiosity, we could not think, marvel, wonder, ponder or be stimulated to ask questions…

The Thinker. Auguste Rodin, 1904. Wikimedia Commons.

“Astonishment is the root of philosophy.”

Paul Tillich

• The past can sometimes astonish us…

Aharon April. Capricious of Memory. 2004. Wikimedia Commons.

“While experiencing happiness, we have difficulty in being conscious of it. Only when the happiness is past and we look back on it do we suddenly realise – sometimes with astonishment – how happy we had been.”

Nikos Kazantzakis

This quotation is close to Freud’s statement about looking back…

“One day, in retrospect, the years of struggle will strike you as the most beautiful.”

Freud

Freud is alluding to the fact that ‘struggle,’ and difficult, challenging times, have, when reflected upon years later, proved to be astonishingly productive, formative experiences that shaped our being.

With self-awareness and understanding, we can look back and recognise how the past has helped the present, how adversity can be growthful and, in that sense, ‘beautiful.’ Such realisations, such awareness, can give us a new perspective on ourselves and our history.

• Telling others…

Georg Schrimpf – On the Balcony. (1927)Wikimedia Commons 

“Pay attention. Be astonished. Tell about it.”

Mary Oliver

With these poetic words, Mary Oliver urges us towards being mindful and aware, to concentrate on, take notice of and observe the wondrous details of the astonishing world around us, and then to communicate what we see to others with whom we have connected.

Inspiring other people with our own insights is crucial, as we spread the word about life, sharing what we have learnt. In this way, those around us can also be imbued with the astonishment we have felt, having ‘paid attention’ to our world.

• The astonishment within us

Mauch. A Passionate Kiss

“This simple accident of falling in love is as beneficial as it is astonishing.”

Robert Louis Stevenson

We can be astonished at ourselves, at the miracles that we are, at our complexities, both physiologically and psychologically.

Making the most of our own wonderful potential, developing our skills and continuing to learn at every opportunity, enables us to really benefit from what we have been given.

Maybe there is less time than we think…. this is not to be pessimistic, but to urge us to seize every chance to live each day as if it were our last. This is about truly experiencing the wonders that life has to offer, whenever and wherever possible.

We have an innate ability to be creative, to innovate and discover, to imagine, to grow and to forge bonds with others. We are also able to love and to experience change and transformation through that love for another.

“Love is our human miracle.”

May Sarton

• Trying to explain astonishment away…😢

“Explanation separates us from astonishment, which is the only gateway to the incomprehensible.”

Eugene Ionesco

Sometimes, rationality and logical explanation can damage the sense of mystery in the world, reducing the inexplicable and incomprehensible to something coldly logical. This will, inevitably, close off precious routes to our experiences of mystery. It may be best to leave some mysteries unexplained.

Caspar David Friedrich – Wanderer above the Sea of Fog. c 1818. Wikimedia Commons.

“Truly, we live with mysteries too marvellous

to be understood…”

Mary Oliver

There are times when it is important not to impose narrow rationalisations onto some unsolved and seemingly irrational, astonishing events, concepts and experiences.

“The greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance; it is the illusion of knowledge.”

Stephen Hawking

The ‘illusion of knowledge’ will, inevitably, create a blockage, a barrier to new learning. It will destructively inhibit the finding of new knowledge.  There are times when we need to stay with our astonishment, and with our not-knowing, for these are the prelude to creativity and discovery. Rushing into a false certainty will undermine any healthy questioning and experimentation.

“I realize that if I were stable, prudent and static; I’d live in death. Therefore I accept confusion, uncertainty, fear and emotional ups and downs; because that’s the price I’m willing to pay for a fluid, perplexed and exciting life.”

 Carl Rogers

Being astonished and uncertain about ourselves and the world can be a healthy, learning experience, even though it may feel uncomfortable at times. If we can face our confusion, our lack of understanding and clarity, instead of rushing into a search for answers, if we can grapple with our perplexities, then, we may begin to understand, and to develop meaning from the mysteries we encounter.

Not only this, but if we can accept that the way through will, inevitably, be puzzling and unclear, then we will experience the rewards of a life that is potentially ‘fluid, perplexed and exciting.’

• Staying with our astonishment

Grand Canyon. USA (Pixabay.)

———

“Let me keep my distance, always, from those

who think they have the answers.

Let me keep company always with those who say

“Look!” and laugh in astonishment,

and bow their heads.”

Mary Oliver

Contemplating staying with our astonishment can be overwhelming, so wondrous is the world in which we live, so many are its marvels. Doing this is, however, a vital element in our learning process, for if we rush into a false certainty, into ready answers and verbose expositions, we will block off new possibilities and learning opportunities.

“They say that every snowflake is different. If that were true, how could the world go on? How could we ever get up off our knees? How could we ever recover from the wonder of it?”

Jeanette Winterson

‘How could we ever recover from the wonder of it?’ is, indeed, an important question; and yet, many people are so cut off from their feelings and sensitivities that they are not able to experience such wonders at all.

Perhaps they are depressed, in pain, sad, self-absorbed and not really living in the world, their curiosity blunted and inhibited. The fact is, every snowflake is different and we have to ‘deal’ with that, manage our awe, let our imagination run free, and not hide our wonderment and lack of comprehension behind bland explanation.

Einstein, rather modestly, recognised the supreme importance of curiosity in his life.

“I have no special talents. I am only passionately curious.” 

Einstein

Without curiosity we will most likely be dull and uniformed. If we do not continually question throughout our lives, we will lack energy and dynamism and be stuck in our old ways. We will, quite certainly, lack the ability to be astonished.

“He who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead; his eyes are closed.”

Albert Einstein

Einstein was able to, on his own admission, hold onto his childhood sense of wonder and astonishment at the world in which he lived.

I will end this post with some thoughts, quotations and images, around the true blessing of childhood astonishment.

Astonishment – William Henry Hunt. 1839. Wikioo

“Childhood is the world of miracle and wonder; as if creation rose, bathed in the light, out of the darkness, utterly new and fresh and astonishing. The end of childhood is when things cease to astonish us.”

Eugene Ionesco

Nothing is more heartwarming than to see a look of wonder on the face of a child! The zest for life, for discovery, the excitement and the energetic, astonished, open-mouthed, uninhibited exuberance of a happy and curious child are a joy to witness…can we carry any of this into our adult lives?

Alfred Eisenstaedt – Children at a Puppet Theatre, Paris [1963] Gandalf’s Gallery. Flickr.

“If a child is to keep alive his inborn sense of wonder, he needs the companionship of at least one adult who can share it, rediscovering with him the joy, excitement and mystery of the world we live in.”

Rachel Carson, The Sense of Wonder

© Linda Berman