The Lost Art of Wonder: Awe & Astonishment as a Way of Life

TUESDAY, 5:30-7pm (Mountain), 4:30-6pm (Pacific), 4 Weeks In an age of endless distraction and algorithmic convenience, we have lost touch with one of humanity's most essential capacities: wonder. This course explores wonder not as passive reaction but as active practice—something that can be recovered and cultivated. Drawing from philosophy, mystical traditions (Christian, Buddhist, Sufi), and wonder-struck scientists like Einstein, Sagan, and Feynman, we examine wonder's history, psychology, and spiritual significance. We read poets who made astonishment their vocation: Rumi's verses, Rilke's meditations on transformation, Mary Oliver's sacramental attention to nature. Mystical literature from Thomas Merton to the Tao Te Ching guides our exploration of the ineffable. Through discussion, reflective exercises, and encounters with art, poetry, and the natural world, participants develop tools for re-enchanting their lives. For anyone who suspects the world is more mysterious than modern life allows us to feel. ISM PROFESSIONAL & STUDENT MEMBERS GET $40 OFF REGISTRATION COST Email info@ismythology.com for your discount code REVIEWS FROM PAST COURSES TAUGHT BY DR. BATT “This course has been amazing! . . . I would definitely like to do your other classes!" -Sophie WORKBOOK Students will receive a full workbook to guide their journey in this class that includes: - Prompts for each session (before/after reading reflections) - "Wonder practices" to try between sessions - A "wonder log" for recording moments of astonishment in daily life SUGGESTED READING LIST* *This list will be expanded during the course with shorter pieces. "The Star Thrower" by Loren Eiseley "On Bliss" by Joseph Campbell "The Earth Has a Soul" by C. G. Jung "A Thousand Mornings: Poems" by Mary Oliver "The Other Shore" by Thich Nhat Hanh "The Sense of Wonder" by Rachel Carson "Awe" by Dacher Keltner "The Essential Rumi," translated by Coleman Barks "New Seeds of Contemplation" by Thomas Merton