Awe is not unlike the Greek understanding of ecstasy, meaning “to stand to the side of reality,” or the flow states described by psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi. A person is “in flow” when their attention is so effortlessly consumed by an enjoyable challenge that “time disappears, you forget yourself, you feel part of something larger.” Csikszentmihalyi argued that putting more of everyday life in that “flow channel” is a key to well-being. The craft of time dilation and contraction is also a benefit of mindfulness.
