0
How to feel awe every day | The Gray Area
May 4, 2026
Posted 7 hours ago by
Sean talks with psychologist Dacher Keltner about the science of awe and why it might be one of the most important emotions we have. They explore how awe quiets the ego, shifts our attention away from ourselves, and reconnects us to other people, nature, and larger patterns of meaning. Along the way, they discuss why music, moral courage, and even grief can trigger awe, how modern life may be starving us of it, and what it reveals about the limits of reason, the power of the body, and the deeper ways we make sense of being human.
Subscribe to our channel! http://goo.gl/0bsAjO Host: Sean Illing (@seanilling) Guest: Dacher Keltner 00:00 Intro 02:39 Awe vs fear 08:14 Awe and human achievement 12:23 How awe quiets the self 20:17 How awe reconnects us to the world 29:29 Awe and moral beauty 37:56 Awe in unexpected places We would love to hear from you. To tell us what you thought of this episode, email us at thegrayarea@vox.com or leave us a voicemail at 1-800-214-5749. Your comments and questions help us make a better show. And you can watch new episodes of The Gray Area on YouTube. New episodes drop every Monday and Friday. Listen to The Gray Area ad-free by becoming a Vox Member: vox.com/members. Vox.com is a news website that helps you cut through the noise and understand what's really driving the events in the headlines. Check out http://www.vox.com. Watch our full video catalog: http://goo.gl/IZONyE Follow Vox on Facebook: http://goo.gl/U2g06o Or Twitter: http://goo.gl/XFrZ5H
Vox
Coverage and analysis from United States of America. All insights are generated by our AI narrative analysis engine.