The terrifying, overwhelming aspect of encountering the divine or sacred that inspires fear and awe. The part of religious experience that makes one tremble before ultimate mystery.
From Latin 'tremendus' meaning 'to be trembled at,' popularized by Rudolf Otto as one aspect of the numinous experience. Originally described the fearsome power of divine beings that could inspire both terror and reverence.
The tremendum taps into our deepest evolutionary programming - the recognition that we're in the presence of something vastly more powerful than ourselves. It's why people literally tremble during profound spiritual experiences; the body's ancient fear responses are triggered by encounters with the infinite.
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