Enneagram Monthly No. 163 Oct 2009

enneagram monthly W

October 2009 Issue 163

Enneagram Interactions at Work

mance review, the time when the stakes are high and effective hich Enneagram styles get along best at work? Ginger Lapid-Bogda, Ph.D. interactions are so important. In all, there are 135 sets of sigHow well do the different Enneagram styles work together? What are the dynamics that prenificant work interactions possible (45 different interactions x 3). While this number of possible work interactions can dictably arise between individuals of two styles, and what can we do to improve these relationships? seem daunting, there is hope when following three basic principles: The answer is simple: No Enneagram style gets along best with any other style. Individuals of the same style sometimes Principle 1: Make yourself easy to work with for everyone by get along very well and sometimes not at all. Individuals of engaging in type-specific self-development activities each Enneagram style can work well with every other style, Know why others likely enjoy working with you and honand they can also have difficulties. However, our Enneagram or these qualities; recognize how everyone may encounter style and that of the other person are excellent predictors of difficulties when they work with you, and make a rigorous the dynamics of the relationship, both when it works well and commitment to your on-going growth and development. when it doesn’t. In addition, the Enneagram provides excelPrinciple 2: Work effectively with individuals of each style by lent guidelines for what we can do to improve our relationunderstanding their reactivity triggers and choosing behaviors ships with individuals of all nine styles. that do not trigger negative reactions. Because there are 9 different Enneagram styles, with forty-five Learn the trigger reactions for each style, then make a different sets of predictable interactions between them—each Enchoice to engage in behavior that does not ignite their Enneagram with every other style plus each style interacting with inneagram-based reactivity and, therefore, generate unnecesdividuals of the same style—there are 45 different sets of possible sary conflict. interactions between the styles. And at work, there are often three Principle 3: Understand the predictable work dynamics between the styles, and endifferent kinds of interactions to consider: general interactions between two individuals; gage in behaviors that enhance these relationships. …CONTINUED ON PAGE 19 the manager—employee relationship; and interactions during the all important perfor-

On the Nature of Enneagram Subtypes [Author’s note: I wrote the following article about four Susan years ago as an introduction to the enneagram subtypes. That’s why it’s pretty basic at the beginning. But I thought it would be a good article for introducing the enneagram to newcomers, as well as something that will provide food for thought for veteran enneagrammers.]

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eople new to the enneagram often wonder how there can be only nine core personality types when there are so many different kinds of people. The reason is that there are many ways we can use to further define the nine types in order to account for the great diversity of temperament. We can, for example, see which of the two points on either side (the wings) is most dominant. We can also look at the relationship of each enneagram point with each of its two connecting points. But I find that the most powerful way to account for diversity within each

In This Issue

untrue to type Michael Goldberg page 4

type is to look at how each type operates within three arenas in life, which we may call subtype arenas. What’s of particular interest is which of these arenas is most dominant—that is, which one most attracts our attention. When we know both our enneagram type and our dominant arena, we can determine our enneagram subtype. Because there are nine enneagram types and three subtype arenas, there’s a total of 27 possible subtypes. In this article, I explore the nature of the enneagram subtypes. Some of the ideas that I propose are controversial, because they’re based on propositions that diverge from the received wisdom of the field. But I hope to make a convincing case for the approach I’m taking, because I think it has certain advantages over the paradigm currently in use. Please note that, while my main focus in this article is on the subtypes, I also devote quite a bit of time to discussing both the enneagram types and energy centers. I tried an approach that was more lim- …CONTINUED ON PAGE 15

Rhodes

listening perspective Barbara Whiteside page 5

sacred ideas of type 9 Stephen Hatch page 7

boundary between 5 & 4 Kirby Olson page 12

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utumn in the San Francisco Bay area is the best season of all. That’s my subjective view, and feel free to disagree if you happen to be a cold-blooded (ectothermic) type who can stand saunas or likes baking in the sun. For me, achieving a minimum of thermal homeostasis in summer requires giving in to lazyness. At the same time, as a good Seven, I don’t know how to be lazy gracefully, and pay for it by suffering boredom. Oy vey! Life is so complex, and to the horror of the glutton in me, there are no free lunches — but mercifully the thought of chestnuts and a merry fire in the cold season make up for the summer hardships. I look forward to some happily homeothermic months. In this Issue: One way or another we seek comfort and happiness. It’s one of the trends hard-wired into our nature, a gift if it were, that insures that we strive for fulfillment. Mind you, that tendency does not come with guarantees of fulfillment, for that, we have to act skillfully and hope for the best. Ginger Lapid Bogda has studied “Enneagram Interactions at Work” for a long time and compiled many observations of how well different Enneagram styles work together. What are the dynamics that predictably arise between individuals of two styles, and what can we do to improve these relationships? Her conclusion was this: No Enneagram style gets along best with any other style. Individuals of the same style sometimes get along very well and sometimes not at all. Individuals of each Enneagram style can work well with every other style, and they can also have difficulties. However, our Enneagram style and that of the other person are excellent predictors of the dynamics of the relationship, both when it works well and when it doesn’t. In addition, the Enneagram provides excellent guidelines for what we

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From the Editor can do to improve our relationships with individuals of all nine styles. Ginger breaks this down by discussing typical interactions among the types and between people of the same type. She also talks about the nature of the relationships of colleagues, bosses and underlings. It may look daunting, but Ginger found several principles that bring it all together with great ease and clarity. A lot has been said “On the Nature of Subtypes” and you would think there is not much left to say. Well, not so fast... Susan Rhodes has been pondering on that subject and has a take that is significantly different in several areas from the “mainstream,” should such an animal even exist...In Part I of this two-part article, she delineates the current theory on the subtypes, focusing particularly on their association with only one of the three energy centers, the body center. She points out that unlike the other two energy centers (the head center and heart center), the body center has no higher counterpart. [This had bothered me too until Francis Lucille attributed the “sense of beauty” to the body center, for me that was the missing “higher counterpart”] Therefore, the energies connected with the three subtype arenas of selfpreservation, sexuality, and sociability are “doomed” to remain the product to non-spiritual, instinctuallybased motivations. Using our current model, we have no way to see the activities done in the subtype arenas as motivated by any sort of higher purpose or intent. She hopes to remedy the situation by providing an alternative model to be unveiled in Part II. “Untrue to Type: Dionysus and the Repair of Imagination” Is an interesting and insightful observation of how the enneagram community drifted so much into the camp of Apollonian scientism, and I apologize for using that word, it’s only scientism when science is pressed to deliver answers it was not designed to supply... Michael Goldberg notes correctly, in my view, that the Apollonian view alone leaves a whole side of “knowing” untapped. Any form of knowing if deprived of completeness (i.e. the opposing point of view) turns into a parochial caricature of knowing. In other words, if we get caught in the quest of self-improvement that aims to refine and shine up our fixation so that you don’t get caught with your number showing, we remain with the effort of “don’t thinking of the pink elephant.” To the contrary: the more productive work is done to undermine our fixation, to loosen its hold and to destroy its faith (a fixation being a true believer). Michael points out that the human condition is not entirely addressed by Apollonian crisp and detached reason but growth needs to be fertilized with the unpredictable and messy insights and passionate engagement à la Dionysus. A similar concept is also found in Vedic philosophy which speaks of seven realms above and seven below the earth/human plain. The higher realms are heavens where the virtuous get “time off for good

behavior” while the lower realms are for doing “hard time.” After enough karmas are cashed in or paid up, it’s back to Bhu-Loka the earth realm with it’s freedom of choice and the option to do good or bad and even achieve liberation. Barbara Whiteside wrote about how to see and hear your child in the last issue and “Listening from a Type Perspective” is a companion piece along the same line of thinking. Barbara points out how we must not only listen to but what it takes to actually hear, what the other is saying. To achieve that, we have to be aware how our filters are set up that screen and rearrange everything we hear through our own perspective. That’s common, it’s human nature after all and that’s what makes up our personality. But we need not remain blind to it. We may not be able to change our nature, and why should we? After all, we are who we are and it’s more likely that we can be an integrated version of ourselves than find integration trying to become something we are not. So, it makes sense to become more aware of who we are instead of being apologetic about it; part of that includes recognizeing our own bias when we listen to others. It’s a skill we better learn if we want to have a hope of “connecting” to people in a reciprocal and meaningful way. Stephen Hatch opens the portal to a broader vision with “Sacred Ideas of Type Nine, Sacred Backdrop, Sacred Self-forgetting, Sacred Bliss.” He takes samples from several disciplines and sages that describe essential qualities of the Nine in particularly poignant ways. As many people have noted, Nines hold a special place in the enneagram figure. They are at the top and thus best positioned to have a bird’s eye view of all the types beneath; masters at relating to all points of view they may fall prey to a passive/receptive/adaptive stance. At times this can require a little help to focus and direct energy in a specific direction instead of dissipating by flailing in a overwhelming array of options. Unlike Sevens who tackle arrays of options with vim and vigor, Nines are more likely to get lost in the flow of the same. “The Permeable Boundary Between 5 & 4” has been haunting Kirby Olson for some time. There must be something unsettling to stand straddling the gap at the bottom of the enneagram and stare down into a void. I’m scared of heights and can relate to that feeling. It’s instinctive, and shifting your weight from one foot to the other does not help in this case. It’s still an abyss beneath. Hmmm…it may be purely a coincidence, but nearly half the authors that have supplied the EM with the 1000+ articles published in the past 15 years have been either Fours with a 5 wing or Fives with a 4 wing. Interesting that these “bottom of the enneagram” types seem to be our most prolific writers. Kirby studied most all literature available on the enneagram. He finds that no sooner does one author offer a commentary that answers his questions about the nature of the types (and satisfies his wish to be certain of his own type) than another authors gums up the works by suggesting an opposing opinion, leaving him wondering once again, “Am I a particle or a wave?” •

october 2009

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contents

Volume 15, Number 9, Issue 163

Enneagram Interactions at Work . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ginger Lapid-Bogda 1 On the Nature of Enneagram Subtypes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Susan Rhodes 1

Enneagram Monthly 748 Wayside Rd. Portola Valley, CA 94028 Phone: 650-851-4806 Email: [email protected]

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Editor and Publisher Jack Labanauskas Staff Writer Susan Rhodes Assistant Editor Sue Ann McKean Consulting Editor Andrea Isaacs The Enneagram Monthly, Inc. was founded by Jack Labanauskas and Andrea Isaacs as a not-for-profit corporation. Its purpose is to gather and disseminate information in the field of the Enneagram, that is most commonly known as a personality typing system.

For subscription and advertising rates see back cover.

Untrue to Type: Dionysus and the Repair of Imagination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Michael Goldberg 4 Listening from a Type Perspective . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Barbara Whiteside 5 Sacred Ideas of Type Nine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Stephen Hatch 7 Sacred Backdrop, Sacred Self-forgetting, Sacred Bliss The Permeable Boundary between 4 & 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Kirby Olson 12 Teacher’s Listing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Subscription Forms and Ad Rates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Visit our web site! www.ennea.org with the updated Index by Author 1995—2007 and Index by Subject 1995—2007

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Untrue to Type: Dionysus and the Repair of Imagination

t’s easy to see why the enneagram community was seduced by the dazzling Olympian god Apollo. He’s good looking, sure, so tall and classically handsome (like a Greek god) with long, dark curly locks. More central, his personality and powers seem a perfect fit for the enneagram. Apollo is the god of the Sun, and his bright light brings the world into sharp relief. That makes for clear and unambiguous descriptions of type. Apollo is confident and certain, a linear and logical thinker. He is without guile, a straight arrow, earnest, without a whiff of cynicism. And, relevant to our purposes, he is a superb and orderly categorizer. Apollo loves science and the scientific method and has been its principal proponent in the history of western civilization. For him the nine types are well researched, well described, modern scientific types, as found in the DSM-IV-TR. And Apollo continues to inspire and guide the latest scientific enneagram research, using brain waves, polygraphs and MRIs, facial recognition technology and even handwriting analysis. Like Linnaeus, the Swedish botanist, an Apollonian, the enneagrammers developed an exquisite and meticulous taxonomy: subtypes, levels, wings triads, antipodes, countertypes and more. Apollo delights in enneagram tests which authori-

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Michael J. Goldberg tatively distinguish the types. And he cherishes those enneagram charts which sharply contrast the nine, with the precise words filled in the proper boxes. Recently my friend misplaced his keys; he wrote on his facebook wall “What kind of a self-pres One am I,[to lose my keys]?” I’m not much of a facebook poster but I responded with a small essay that began “What kind of a self-pres One? There are 9 sub-subtypes of Self-Pres One…” Apollo at play.

Apollo is the god of the Sun, and his bright light brings the world into sharp relief. But it is Dionysus who guides transforms and connects humans to the divine. Serious about self-improvement, Apollonians advocate the hard work and practices necessary to master the fixation and move up the developmental ladder, step-by-step, toward the higher aspects of type, while turning away from the murky lower aspects, the fixated habits, and the annoying quirks. And, in fact, progress –like personal growth—from hard work and a clear vision is the guiding principle for Apollonians. Inevitably, Apollo became the god of the enneagram. Far from Apollo’s light, his provocative, towheaded younger brother Dionysus is an unconstrained force of nature. Contrary to Apollo, Dionysus chooses insight over reason, and passionate engagement over scientific detachment. Dionysus guides transformation and metamorphosis, and, ultimately, initiation into the mysteries. He connects humans to their spark of the divine. (Dionysus was the only god born of a mortal woman, and he remains close and available to humans. Apollo is rather more aloof and dispassionate.) Where Apollo sets up clear distinctions and categories, Dionysus dissolves barriers and makes connections. For example, Dionysus can admit one enneagram type to experience the inner world of another (no small thing, but not scientific). Apollo generates crisp, authorative answers in bullet points and power points. Dionysus’ method is elsewise: to raise unsettling questions, or tell stories and midrashim, that have to be wrestled with, where the correct answers may not be so tidy; but he intensifies and expands experience, and opens one to unconventional sources of wisdom. The Enneagram Fixation The problem with a fixation is not that it is wrong, or unreasonable, or unproductive. (They frequently are none of these.) The problem is that it is a parochial and limited point of view. Each of the fixated are devotees of a single-values

set, certain of the truths of how the world works, which is the source of all the trouble that a fixation causes. Each type sees the world in their particular, singular way, and does not easily imagine or participate in alternatives. Each of the fixations is, at its core, most crucially, a failure of imagination. For example, the Eight is a failure of imagination about power; when fixated, Eight knows only how to ramp it up or, possibly, down. A fixated Eight has little time for subtlety or nuance, for imagining an indirect or circumscribed course, let alone considering the philosophical implications of his actions. The Seven, for her part, is a failure of imagination about imagination itself. Seven’s imagination is rigidly stuck on the upside, unable to seriously consider alternatives, as for example, the downside. The repair of failed imagination- the core problem of a fixation- is the principal work of Dionysus. Each fixation needs more images, more possibilities, the kind that come from life’s adventures, lived and told in stories and fables, and especially from intimate engagement with the other eight. Yet, as we focus on upgrading our own fixation, frustrated by its unforgiving lower aspects, yearning for the saintly higher aspects, ambitious for personal mastery, (prominently on offer in weekend enneagram seminars), the other frames of reference- the crucial other numbers which are the way out- fade into the distance, and become even more inoperative, inaccessible and unavailable. Evolving within the developmental silo of your own type does nothing for the essential problem of being stuck in a type, which remains, no matter how evolved you hope to become, a problem of limited perspective. We become then more stranded in our type, not less. Nothing is so fixating as an enneagram type trying to evolve. Dionysus teaches this dark secret: the real work of the enneagram is not self-improvement –to refine and shine up your fixation so that you don’t get caught with your number showing. Quite the opposite: the work is to undermine your fixation, to loosen its hold, to destroy its faith. (A fixation is a true believer.) My good friend Odysseus intensely engages each of the nine enneagram types on his journey, in order no less, taking them to himself as he goes. By the end, he is wise to them all. As a consequence, he earns the famous epithet, anthropos polytropos, “the man of many turns” (tropes, ways of being, mental models). No longer fixed on a single perspective, he moves easily between frames of reference. Odysseus has learned the Dionysian lessons: he is versatile, fluid and multifarious.1 __________

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Goldberg, Michael J. Travels with Odysseus: Uncommon Wisdom from Homer’s Odyssey, CI Press, 2006

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Listening from a Type Perspective “The first duty of love is to listen.” -- Paul Tillich

Barbara Whiteside

ntrapersonal listening is about listening to ourselves. When we learn to listen to ourselves from a non-judgmental, compassionate, empathic stance, we begin to see more clearly the habits of thinking and feeling that influence our behavior. As we listen carefully to our thoughts, feelings and our body sensations, we begin to see where our attention goes, and the passion and fixation from which our focus of attention stems. We become more and more aware of the pervasive influence of our passion and fixation, and how subtle that influence can be. I believe that the Inner Observer or Witness “resides” in this place inside us, where we can observe and listen to ourselves from a willing, spacious, open Presence. What about listening to others? Interpersonal listening involves an interaction between two or more people, and Type comes into play at both ends. Our Type influences both how we like to be listened to and how we listen to others. In this article, I would like to explore the possibility of Type as a predictor of “how we like to be listened to” and “how we listen.” Though the focus of this article and many of the examples are in the parent-child relationship, I believe that similar dynamics may occur with people of all ages because I am talking here more about Type similarities and differences, not about age, developmental, or gender influences (though those are important too). First, I would like to give you a sense of how I began to think about this many years ago. When I took Thomas Gordon’s Parent Effectiveness Training 1987, I thought I had struck gold. What a difference it made to actually give my full attention to my then 11 year old, the oldest of three, and “actively listen” to try to get a sense of what was going on for her, to mirror back her intense feelings and, in the process, show her that I truly “got it.” It seemed like our relationship changed overnight for the better. My middle daughter was so easily upset when she couldn’t “get it right,” and active listening worked well with her too, diffusing her frustration. But with my youngest, these otherwise effective listening techniques did not work as well. When I active listened, she would stop sharing—it was as though she became lost because I had taken her feeling away from her by saying it out loud. So I decided to experiment and see what would happen if I simply sat with her, didn’t make too much eye contact, and passively listened without verbally reflecting back. Thankfully, it worked…she kept talking and these moments seemed to end with us feeling closer and her seeming to feel more solid inside herself. I found I-statements useful too, because they gave me a way of saying what I needed or valued without judgments or evaluations of others. Sometimes, when I would say to my kids, “Hey girls, I feel really worried that I’m not going to be ready to teach my class tonight because the kitchen is so messy that I can’t get dinner started right away,” they actually

came in and cleaned up their mess. And I liked the idea that homework was “not my problem”—that is, that I could become their consultant and problemsolve with them their problem of homework, but that I didn’t need to own the problem. What a relief this “problem ownership” concept was for my children and me. In spite of the skills not working like “textbook,” I was sold and within a year I became a Parent Effectiveness Training instructor. That was 21 years ago.

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One of the biggest challenges I faced in my work was with what appeared to be Type-specific differences in how we like to be listened to and how we listen. One of the biggest challenges I faced in my work was with what appeared to be Type-specific differences in how we like to be listened to and how we listen. After certifying as an Enneagram Teacher in the Narrative Tradition nearly ten years ago, I began to help parents Type themselves. What I had been seeing clinically in my parenting workshops began to make sense to me—that is, the correlation between Type and listening style. Good, effective listening has essentially three components: encoding the feelings of the person who is being listened to and putting it together with the content, then feeding this impression back—that is, what is the person feeling and what is it about. Not all Types are inclined to want their feelings fed back to them, at least not initially or in the same way. Being in touch with one’s feelings is important, but so is being able to think clearly and take appropriate action. A Four may really need her feelings mirrored back while a Five may feel her privacy invaded and may respond better to her thoughts, rather than her feelings, being mirrored back initially. Sometimes a Seven will need to describe bodily sensations before getting a sense of what he might be feeling. A Nine might respond better to non-verbal passive listening—that is, listening without the “active, reflective, mirroring” feedback. It is important that we adapt our listening to the person we are listening to. Eights have reported “hating” to be actively listened to as they experience it as too passive, not constructive, condescending and patronizing. They seem to want a little more action in “active listening.” It helps if we know the Type of the person we are listening to, though paying close attention will also inform us about whether we are effectively listening. How does our Type play into our ability to listen well? Will particular Types be inclined to have predictable difficulties in listening and a tendency to use certain roadblocks? I think so. Here are my observations and thoughts, drawing from my experience in working with parents. Perhaps it doesn’t come as

a surprise that I have found these same tendencies when working with adults in my private practice. Type One parents, with their attention going to error to be corrected, often moralize, preach, or advise in their desire to get their child to do the “right thing”. Frequently they have a great deal of difficulty listening to a point of view that is, in their opinion, “wrong.” I know a One mother who couldn’t listen to her teenage daughter’s explanation of why getting B’s was acceptable to her. The teenager understood it would limit her college options, but she believed that there would be a college for her, she thought there was more to life than just getting good grades, and she liked having time to participate in drama and sports and to socialize. She didn’t agree with her mom that the most important aspect of her life was grades. Once the mom learned to listen from an unbiased stance, the daughter responded by talking more freely with her mom about many aspects of her life. The power struggle over grades diminished and daughter and mother felt closer. None of this could have happened if that mom hadn’t been willing to

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see how her belief in her “right” point of view was influencing and limiting her ability to truly listen to her daughter. Two parents, with their attention going to other’s needs and their pride in believing they know what’s best for others, frequently give advice to fix their child’s problem. They also sometimes report that they take over doing things for their children—that is, if the child was upset about getting a project done on time, mom or dad might take them off the hook and do it for them. These parents often get one of two responses from their kids (perhaps reflecting their Type)—the child welcomes the “help” and becomes overly dependent, or the child rebels, refusing to accept parental help, guidance, or anything reeking of the parent’s over-involvement. Threes, with an orientation toward action, can be impatient with the listening process, and in those cases they short-change the need to feedback feelings to their child, and rush to solve the problem. I know a Three dad (social subtype) who was disheartened when his son didn’t enjoy being engaged in life in the same way his father did. He was extremely frustrated that his son wasn’t more like him. He balked at the idea of listening to his son’s issues without doing anything because it felt futile. After much frustration, he decided to give listening a try. It was in the car on a long drive with his son that something began to shift, and he began to get past his own preference for action to take in what his son was telling him. By then, the dad also had a sense that his son might be a Five and he was working to accept this. It’s been slow going, but the dad is beginning to “hear” his son, perhaps for the first time.

Fours often report a bias toward feelings and they “push” their kids to express feelings, even when their child is not inclined in that way.

feelings, even when their child is not inclined in that way. Sometimes, they over use the phrase, “Yes, and how did that make you feel?” Also, Four parents can add feelings or exaggerate feelings because of their self-referencing back to their own sense of how they might feel, rather than having the reflective distance necessary to listen well to their children. Five parents, with their attention going to avoidance of intrusions, and possibly due to being a thinking type, can find it very difficult to feed back feelings that are expressed to them, or even to keep up the energy that is necessary to listen to an emotive child. They can feel overwhelmed. However, Fives often report feeling confident in their ability to help the child logically work through the issue. Sixes, with their attention going to worst-case scenario, can project onto their child or the situation and lose their objectivity, analyzing the situation and their child’s feeling from their biased perspective that can entirely miss the point.

Sevens, with their attention going to positive options, often “make light” or joke about the situation being shared. Unlike Sixes, Sevens, with their attention going to positive options, often “make light” or joke about the situation being shared. It is not unusual for them to report having difficulty in settling down to listen, feeling overwhelmed by their child’s “negative” feelings, and diverting into more upbeat and positive conversations or actions, and also missing the point. Eights, with their attention going to power, tend towards an authoritarian parenting style. They can be impatient with the whole listening process. They just want to tell their child what to do—and, as protectors, they often will want to take power into their own hands and bring justice to a situation in which they felt their child has been wronged.

Nine parents, with their attention going to external pulls, frequently express a sense of empathizing so much with their child’s feelings that they lose sense of their own needs, becoming permissive parents with their kids running the show. I remember a Nine mother sharing that she had been at the park with her three little boys. She gave them a five-minute warning that From Fixation to Freedom by Lissa Friedman Ph.D. they needed to leave soon as The DVD’s from the Autobiographical Interview workshop she was expectIndividual, 1 hr +, DVD’s of the 9 Ennea-types telling their life story. Representative ing the plumber journeying from being deeply in the trance of fixation, to loosening the pattern, at four o’clock to moments of being free of fixation, and what worked along the way. at home. The Choose specific Ennea-types at $25 each or acquire the whole set boys balked at of 9 for $175. (plus shipping costs—initiate Order via email) leaving the park e-mail: [email protected] www.enneagramofawakening.com and she got

Fours seem able to listen to the feelings their children express, but they can get stuck in their ability to help them move forward. Often they report a bias toward feelings and they “push” their kids to express

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so involved in negotiating with them to avoid any conflict, that she lost track of time. They arrived at home to a notice from the plumber reading “Sorry I missed you.” Needless to say, she was angry with her boys, but mostly at herself for not holding her ground.

Nine parents frequently express a sense of empathizing so much with their child’s feelings that they lose sense of their own needs, becoming permissive parents with their kids running the show. I think it is a mistake to think about this too narrowly. It is not just One’s that get preachy, or Twos that advise, or Eights that order, or Nines that reassure, or Sevens that divert, etc. Parents of all Types give advice to their children, usually with the parent’s type-bias embedded in the advice. The problem with advice as a roadblock to communication is that it has these risks: (1)  what works for one doesn’t necessarily work for another, therefore, our advice to our child might not work for him/ her; (2) we often give advice to what we think is the problem (the presenting problem), but by not listening, we often never hear the real issue; and (3) we don’t help our children become independent problem solvers, in touch with their own deepest values and needs, because we “own the problem” by giving advice. I think that, when we come from a fixated state, we inevitably fall into the trap of road blocking communication. Almost by definition, when we are fixated in out Type, we will have a difficult time listening well and our bias will come into play, and we can see it in the roadblocks. If good listening requires, as the humanistic psychologists suggest, the characteristics of acceptance, empathy, and genuineness, then we really need to be listening more from a dispassionate, neutral, non-judgmental stance, and less from our Type’s bias. Tom Gordon says it well in this quote: “To understand accurately how another person thinks or feels from his point of view, to put yourself momentarily into his shoes, to see the world as he is seeing it—you as a listener run the risk of having your own opinions and attitudes changed. In other words, people actually become changed by what they really understand. To be open to the experience of another invites the possibility of having to reinterpret your own experiences.” (Parent Effectiveness Training, p.70) In my prior article [last issue], I focused on “Seeing Our Children”. I believe that, initially, the Enneagram is about seeing others and ourselves clearly. When I think about why panels are such an effective way to teach the Enneagram, it comes to mind that the audience is asked to listen to the panelists from a non-judgmental, accepting, empathic place. It is this listening from our Essence, and being listened to, that we begin to heal, both others and ourselves. •

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Sacred Ideas of Type Nine:

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Sacred Backdrop, Sacred Self-Forgetting, Sacred Bliss

ines are generally the most grounding, peaceful and content of all the Enneagram types. They can merge with whatever is going on in their environment, ever remaining a happy, stabilizing presence. It makes sense, therefore, that in their core, Nines embody the aspect of the Divine that serves as a Sacred Backdrop to all of the occurrences of life. While the Eight expresses the expansive, omnipresent quality of the Ultimate Mystery, Nines manifest the same Reality viewed as a backdrop, a horizon against which—or a ground out of which—every thing and every event occurs. In a sense, their essence is the most fundamental of all of the aspects of the Divine for providing a place where things can manifest themselves. They are like the sky out of which the clouds of creatures appear, a hidden ground that is pregnant and thus full of potential. Nines may find sitting meditation practices a natural fit, especially those methods which involve identifying with the spaciousness that serves as the backdrop out of which all thoughts, perceptions and beings appear. Using a more active metaphor, we might also say that Nines embody the spiritual river or bay flowing underneath and supporting each creature and event, the ultimate Reality on which they all float like boats on water. While our ordinary consciousness treats life as though it were a busy harbor—where the boats are often packed so tightly together that the underlying water rarely appears, Nines identify with the underlying Reality without which no creature would find support. Through their peacefulness, Nines exemplify the divine medium in which all of these boats are able to interact in a unified, harmonious flow. For this reason, they may seem to engage in a constant stream of activity. However, unlike the Sacred Flow of the Seven, which usually becomes a foreground object of awareness, Nine flow always has a backdrop quality that enables other things and activities to be. In addition, Nine flow always arises out of a hidden, stable ground of being, a reality more fundamental to their essence that establishes all activity in peace. For Sevens, by contrast, Sacred Flow is the fundamental reality. A major quality of the Sacred Backdrop—in both its spacious and flowing forms—is blissfulness, or Sacred Bliss. In the Hindu tradition, this is called “ananda.” This bliss comes not so much from an ecstatic experience that “sticks out” from the rest of existence, but from the fundamental reality of just-being. It is an embodiment of the fact that everything—at its core—is fundamentally filled with contentment. Because healthy Nines are supremely in touch with this bliss, challenging situations can more often than not seem to them like “water off a duck’s back.” Perhaps more than any other type, Nines are able to embody a natural ability to let go, perceiving as they do that the spiritual ground out of which all things appear—including even challenging situations—is divinely peaceful.

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A third Sacred Idea of the Nine is Sacred SelfForgetting. Accordingly, in their humanity, Nines are especially skilled at losing themselves in union with Divine Reality, becoming a sort of “hollow bone” through which the Great Mystery can work. However, unlike ordinary Nines, transformed Nines consciously choose this self-forgetting. As the saying goes, you have to know you are somebody before you can be a nobody. In addition, a Nine’s self-forgetting also manifests divine Self-forgetting—or rather, a consciously chosen Self-emptying—which enables the Ultimate Reality to merge with all things as a means of empowering them to manifest their own true nature. In this capacity, Nine energy is like the phenomenon of alpenglow, which lights up the mountain peaks be-

fore sunrise in lavender and red while the sun remains below the horizon, humbly hidden from the need for recognition, at least from the perspective of an observer situated on the ground. When Nines lose touch with their essence, they form an ego that constricts in on itself and creates a substitute for the Sacred Backdrop. Instead of embodying the underlying ground of all things, they shrink into an individual self that fades into the background. When they look within, instead of seeing the pregnant fullness of the Sacred Backdrop or divine river, they see only emptiness. Afraid of this emptiness, they try to fill the seeming hole with a whole host of activities that are non-essential to their core essence. They putter around, moving from task

v

9 Ways to be Divine Exploring the Sacred Ideas of the Enneagram A Contemplative Weekend with

Stephen Hatch M.A.R. Professor of Religious Studies, Naropa University • Experience the core spiritual qualities of your type. • See with new eyes each type and have a sense of reverence for the spiritual qualities each offers to the world • Feel connected, grounded, expanded, and “at-home” with who you really are

Nov 13, 14 & 15, 2009 Annapolis, Maryland Join Stephen as he guides us with compassion and insight to see the divine quality in aspects of our personality.

Please go to www.EnneagramMaryland.org (Home of the FREE monthly like-type telephone calls) Click on Contemplative Weekend 7

to task, all the while avoiding their innermost ground which they invariably mistake for emptiness. In their relations with others, untransformed Nines feel ignored, and they in turn ignore themselves. To make up for this loss of self, they passively merge with the concerns of others. In addition, when Nines lose touch with their divine core, they downplay the supernaturally blissful nature of their essence. They may in fact think that a word like “bliss” is too extraordinary for their rather mundane view of themselves. However, because they are fundamentally content most of the time—a condition that is less common among the other Enneagram types—the rest of us experience them as anything but ordinary.

Nines manifest Reality viewed as a backdrop, a horizon against which—or a ground out of which—every thing and every event occurs. Readings on the Sacred Ideas of the Nine While Eight energy embodies the omnipresent and expansive nature of divine spaciousness, the Nine manifests the Sacred Backdrop aspect of this same spaciousness. Rather than spreading its influence throughout the environment, Nine energy serves as the divine ground—or sky—on which all other things appear. Theologian Karl Rahner has this Sacred Idea in mind when he calls God the “Horizon of Being.” Rather than vying for attention in the foreground, the Nine knows how to empower all things—accommodating them all— from a backdrop position. Rather than drawing attention to itself, Nine energy puts the focus on all of the beings that arise out of its spacious letting-be. In this sense, the Nine aspect of the Ultimate Mystery is the most fundamental of the types for revealing the sacredness of all things. However, for the transformed Nine, this ability to serve as a backdrop has become intentional and conscious rather than non-intentional and unconscious. * Stephen Hatch — Eckhart Tolle speaks of the Sacred Backdrop in terms of the sky-like space-consciousness that undergirds all things. * Some people never forget . . . the shift in identity from being the content of their mind to being the awareness in the background. When you are no longer totally identified with forms, consciousness— who you are—becomes freed from its imprisonment in form. This freedom is the arising of inner space. It comes as a stillness, a subtle peace deep within you, even in the face of something seemingly bad . . . Suddenly there is space around the event. There is also space around the emotional highs and lows, even around pain. And above all, there is space between your thoughts. And from that space emanates a peace that is not “of this world,” because this world is form, and the peace is space. This is the peace of God . . . Object consciousness needs to be balanced by space consciousness for sanity to return to our planet and for humanity to fulfill its destiny. The arising of

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space consciousness is the next state in the evolution of humanity. Space consciousness means that in addition to being conscious of things—which always come down to sense perceptions, thoughts, and emotions—there is an undercurrent of awareness. Awareness implies that you are not only conscious of things (objects), but you are also conscious of . . . an alert stillness in the background while things happen in the foreground . . . Space consciousness has little to do with being “spaced out.” Both states are beyond thought. This they have in common. The fundamental difference, however, is that in the former, you rise above thought; in the latter, you fall below it . . . [A] sense of contentment, peace and aliveness . . . is the invisible background without which . . . experiences would not be possible. Whenever there is beauty, kindness, the recognition of the goodness of simple things in your life, look for the background to that experience within yourself. But don’t look for it as if you were looking for something. You cannot pin it down and say, “Now I have it,” or grasp it mentally and define it in some way. It is like the cloudless sky. It has no form. It is space; it is stillness, the sweetness of Being and infinitely more than these words, which are only pointers . . . So when you appreciate something simple, . . . sense the inner spaciousness that is the source and background to that experience . . . It is the spacious womb of all creation, all form . . . Actually, it is not you, the person, who is looking and listening, but the alert stillness itself . . . All creativity comes out of inner spaciousness . . . [S]tillness is in the background . . . When consciousness is no longer totally absorbed by thinking, some of it remains in its formless, unconditional, original state. This is inner space . . . It is the luminous space in which the world arises and subsides. That space is the life that I Am . . . It is the underlying I Am, . . . the substratum, the underlying background to every experience, thought, feeling . . . Eckhart Tolle, Spiritual teacher * Stephen Hatch — While Buddhist insight meditation envisions Sacred Backdrop as a spacious expanse, Christian contemplatives sometimes view it as a flowing river that underlies and supports all things. Like some Asian harbors, the water may not be visible owing to the various boats crowding the water. One could walk from boat to boat without ever coming into contact with the underlying river or sea. However—all the while—it is truly present, supporting all of those boats without ever needing to be acknowledged. The following description of centering prayer illustrates this principle. This method makes use of a “sacred word” that points like an arrow to the river of God’s presence rather than to the boats. The basic method involves gently thinking the sacred word whenever one gets hooked on a thought, and then letting the thought go into the silence of the River. *

Centering prayer as a discipline is designed to withdraw our attention from the ordinary flow of thoughts. We tend to identify ourselves with that flow. But there is a deeper part of ourselves. This prayer opens our awareness to the spiritual level of our being. This level might be compared to a great river on which our memories, images, feelings, inner experiences, and the awareness of outward things are resting. Many people are so identified with the ordinary flow of their thoughts and feelings that they are not aware of the source from which these mental objects are emerging. Like boats or debris floating along the surface of a river, our thoughts and feelings must be resting on something. They are resting on the inner stream of consciousness, which is our participation in God’s being. That level is not immediately evident to ordinary consciousness. Since we are not in immediate contact with that level, we have to do something to develop our awareness of it. It is the level of our being that makes us most human. The values that we find there are more delightful than the values that float along the surface of the psyche. We need to refresh ourselves at this deep level every day. Just as we need exercise, food, rest, and sleep, so also we need moments of interior silence because they bring the deepest kind of refreshment. Thomas Keating * Stephen Hatch — In the following passages, Thomas Merton, the famous Trappist monk, speaks both of the hiddenness of this Sacred Backdrop, and of its all-pervasiveness. * To be one with One Whom one cannot see is to be hidden, to be nowhere, to be no one; it is to be unknown as He is unknown, forgotten as He is forgotten, lost as He is lost to the world which nevertheless exists in Him. Yet to live in Him is to live by His power, to reach from end to end of the universe in the might of His wisdom, to rule and form all things in and with Him. It is to be the hidden instrument of His Divine action, the minister of His redemption, the channel of His mercy, and the messenger of His infinite Love. * I disappear from the world as an object of interest in order to be everywhere in it by hiddenness and compassion. To exist everywhere I have to be Noone. Thomas Merton, Trappist monk * Stephen Hatch — Some modern Christian theologians—most notably, Paul Tillich, John A.T. Robinson and John Macquarrie, refer to God as the “Ground of Being” or as “Being Itself.” For them, to speak of the “existence of God” is meaningless because it implies that God is a being rather than Being Itself. To ask if Being exists would be redundant. Rather, God as the Ground of Being is a Sacred Backdrop, one who “lets be.” In the following passage from a Hindu/Buddhist, we see that our identification with the Sacred Backdrop enables us, in union with the Divine Presence, to become the hidden source out of which all things arise.

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I make the effort to maintain a ground of oceanic silence out of which arises the multitude of phenomena of daily life . . . I often fail in these aspirations . . . But I make the effort. Ram Dass, spiritual teacher * Stephen Hatch — The following Taoist text from the Tao Te Ching speaks of Sacred Backdrop in terms of the nameless, hidden Tao. This passage also makes reference to another Sacred Idea of the Nine: Sacred Self-Forgetting. * The Tao that can be told is not the eternal Tao. The name that can be named is not the eternal name. The nameless is the beginning of heaven and earth . . .  erefore the sage goes about doing nothing, Th teaching no-talking. The ten thousand things rise and fall without cease, [The Tao is ever] Creating, yet not possessing, Working, yet not taking credit. Work is done, then forgotten. Therefore it lasts forever . . . The Tao is an empty vessel; it is used, but never filled. Oh, unfathomable source of ten thousand things! Oh, hidden deep but ever present! I do not know from whence it comes. It is the forefather of the emperors . . . Thirty spokes share the wheel’s hub; It is the center hole that makes it useful. Shape clay into a vessel; It is the space within that makes it useful. Cut doors and windows for a room; It is the holes which make it useful. Therefore profit comes from what is there; Usefulness from what is not there . . . Empty yourself of everything. Let the mind rest at peace. The ten thousand things rise and fall while the Self watches their return. They grow and flourish and then return to the source. Returning to the source is stillness, which is the way of nature . . . The greatest Virtue is to follow Tao and Tao alone... Therefore wise men embrace the one And set an example to all. Not putting on a display, They shine forth. Not justifying themselves, They are distinguished. Not boasting, They receive recognition. Not bragging, They never falter. They do not quarrel,

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So no one quarrels with them. Therefore, the ancients say, “Yield and overcome.” Is that an empty saying? Be really whole, And all things will come to you . . .  e great Tao flows everywhere, both to the left Th and to the right. The ten thousand things depend upon it; it holds nothing back. It fulfills its purpose silently and makes no claim. It nourishes the ten thousand things, And yet is not their lord. It has no aim; it is very small. The ten thousand things return to it, Yet it is not their lord.

It is very great. It does not show greatness, And is therefore truly great . . . A truly good man is not aware of his goodness, And is therefore good. A foolish man tries to be good, And is therefore not good. Lao Tsu, 6th Century B.C.E. * Stephen Hatch — A second Sacred Idea of the Nine aspect of the Divine is Sacred Self-Forgetting. Though it is the Source of all things, the divine presence forgets itself and merges with them. However, while the Nine often forgets the self unconsciously, the Divine does so intentionally and consciously. Thus, Divine self-forgetting is often called “self-emptying” by spiritual writers. * On a visit to the East Coast, Suzuki Roshi arrived

Andrea Isaacs The Inner Side of Life — emotional intelligence for effective living [email protected] • www.TheInnerSide.com

Emotional and Physical Intelligence

EnneaMotion and EPI Training with Andrea Isaacs January 11-17 The Glen Ivy Center Corona CA

February 6 Sunrise Ranch Loveland, CO

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An experiential approach to the Enneagram, this program can be taken for your personal development and is also part of the certification track for those of you who plan to use it in your coaching or therapy practice, teach it

March 6-7 Santa Cruz, CA More details tba

or use it in any other way. The training includes two tracks of EnneaMotion (as a participant and as a facilitator), creating your own mudras and mantras to help access the best qualities of all humanity, and time with

• EnneaMotion: The Somatic Enneagram Translate the emotional energy of each type into physical energy. Whether you’re new to or well-versed in the system, this will deepen your understanding of all types of people. • Mantras (sound) and Mudras (gesture) Custom-design mantras and mudras that can be used to evoke the healthy attributes of all the personality styles. • Increase emotional intelligence

your own inner work. You’ll get teaching guidelines, on-site practice facilitation (if desired and arranged), and supervision with the one-on-one coaching work which will be videotaped for learning purposes.

• Deep personal work A safe environment to work on your fixation, troubled habitual responses and hot buttons. One-on-one sessions with Andrea. • Somatic Coaching; tips and experience • Yoga, Chi Gong, Meditation • EPI Certification Part of EPI Certification, but participants do not have to be on the certification track.

Andrea’s contribution to the Enneagram and inner Work is significant and constantly growing. Her work has to be experienced to be fully appreciated; it goes deep and is transformative. — Don Richard Riso, author

To experience Andrea is to experience a true master at work. — Russ Hudson, author

Andrea guides us to emotional depth within ourselves. Her programs bring our inner nature to light in a deep, useful, enjoyable and humorous way that offers personal growth both personally and professionally. — David Daniels, M.D.

Andrea’s playful inviting presence and well-conceived method made the whole experience pure unadulterated fun. — Bruce Stunkard United Methodist Minister

California training (fee includes lodging and meals):

Colorado Workshop: belly types (8,9,1)

Before November 15: $1750 (double room); 1960 (single) After November 15: $1950 (double room); 2160 (single) Contact: [email protected] or +1-518-265-5058

To register, contact Sunrise Ranch at 970-679-4200 Fee: $85

100 Sunrise Ranch Rd

•

Loveland CO 80538

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970-679-4307 or 518-265-5058

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at the meeting place of the Cambridge Buddhist Society to find everyone scrubbing down the interior in anticipation of his visit. They were surprised to see him, because he had written that he would arrive on the following day. He tied back the sleeves of his robe and insisted on joining the preparations “for the grand day of my arrival.” David Chadwick on Shunryu Suzuki * When you give, . . . do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing. Matthew 6:3 * The primary phenomenon given by faith is precisely the self-emptying of God . . . Insofar as in his abiding and infinite fullness he empties himself, the other [the world] comes to be as God’s very own reality . . . [H]e creates by emptying himself, and therefore, of course, he himself is in the emptying . . . He possesses the possibility of establishing the other as his own reality by dispossessing himself, by giving himself away . . . God goes out of himself . . . Because he can do this, because this is his free and primary possibility, for this reason he is defined in scripture as love. Karl Rahner, Catholic theologian * We are God’s prayer. We are, in fact, God’s thought. And God is hopelessly lost in thinking us . . . Be quiet and self-forgetful, dear friends. Don’t miss out. You must know for yourself that Someone is thinking you . . . each creative moment. The only good choice is to love and trust yourself in God. Richard Rohr, Franciscan friar * God has no “self ” apart from me, no self “before he met me,” no self into which he retreats leaving me in myself. God “of his nature” companions me, is for me. God is—by nature, by definition— “thinking-about-me,” “thinking-about-you,” “thinking-about-the-world.” God is—by nature, by definition—“being-for-me,” “being-for-you,” “beingfor-the-world.” The statement of Angelus Silesius, “If God stopped thinking of me he would cease to exist,” is strictly orthodox: God, by definition, is “thinkingof-me” . . . Now the thing we most want God for, the thing we most want there to be, is a reality that combines, nay identifies, “its own being” with “being-for-me,” or “otherness” with “for-me-ness,” or “being” with “lovingness.” Now the fascinating thing about our complaint that God is not more “visible” is that if he were, if we could take him in our mental “sights,” he would not be this strange being that equates being with being-for, because this identity, which we passionately and desperately desire to be a reality, is inconceivable to us! We only perceive lovingness in definite people who have plenty of interests other than ourselves. The “lovingness” that is not such a quality in a person but is the being of the person— that is right off the scale. But we want it! Sebastian Moore, Benedictine monk

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* Stephen Hatch — Buddhist teachers think of this self-forgetting and self-emptying in non-theistic terms. They revel in the fact that our thoughts and perceptions arise from a spacious awareness that is empty of all self. * Having courage to look into your own mind, you realize Aha! No mind. It is unsubstantial, it is not a fixed, solid thing. There is no self, no ego. When we are first asked to find the thinker, we all say, “Obviously I am the thinker, I have all these thoughts. Who produces these thoughts but me?” But when we look more closely, we find ourselves wondering, “My God, where are these thoughts coming from? I don’t know! They seem to be coming out of nowhere, out of empty space.” They come like bubbles, rising up. They appear and then disappear . . . There is no one here, just space! The self is emptied of the self. Dennis Genpo Merzel, Zen roshi * Stephen Hatch — In the following passages, wilderness explorer John Muir writes about his experience of self-loss within the joy-filled landscapes of California’s Sierra Nevada Range. * You cannot feel yourself out of doors; plain, sky, and mountains ray beauty which you feel. You bathe in these spirit-beams, turning round and round, as if warming at a camp-fire. Presently you lose consciousness of your own separate existence; you blend with the landscape, and become part and parcel of nature. John Muir at Twenty Hill Hollow, 19th Century wilderness explorer * It is a bright sunful day, two or three o’clock in the afternoon. You are facing northward with spray driven about you, but you do not feel the spray— the sights and sounds and tremendous energy of the crowd of waters preventing all knowledge of yourself. John Muir at Yosemite Falls * Stephen Hatch — In an interview with Lutheran minister Thomas Mails, Lakota holy man Frank Fools Crow speaks of the importance of human selfemptying in allowing the Creator to heal and work through us. * Thomas Mails: The great holy man, Black Elk, said, “I cured with the power that came through me. Of course it was not I who cured. It was the power from the outer world, and the visions and ceremonies had only made me like a hole through which the power could come to the two-leggeds. If I thought that I was doing it myself, the hole would close up and no power could come through. Then everything I could do would be foolish.” As Fools Crow and I discussed the matter of how a person serves the Higher Powers, I asked, “Do you agree with Black Elk that the medicine person is a hole that Wakan-Tanka [God] and the Helpers work through to help people?”

Frank Fools Crow: “We [Black Elk and I] talked about this several times. We agreed that the Higher Powers had taught us this same thing. We are just holes. But as I have used hollow bones for curing, I have decided that it is better to think of medicine people as little hollow bones.” * Stephen Hatch — Self-forgetting and self-emptying are spiritual practices that are best done consciously. However, Nines also have a tendency to practice a rather unspiritual self-forgetting. That is, they forget who they really are at their core—their spiritual identity—and therefore view themselves as unimportant. This tendency can, however, be transformed spiritually when it is taken up into a higher Reality. A modern Sufi reveals how the divine core of the world—which he calls “Life,” “the heart of the world” and “the soul of the world”—has forgotten who she really is. Since the Divine’s self-consciousness is bound up with human spiritual evolution, it makes sense to realize that our cultural self-forgetting of the Oneness underlying all things has in turn led to Divine self-forgetting. This self-forgetting is the result of our current immersion in materialism and our corresponding failure to view the physical world in its spiritual Oneness. In the following passage, Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee reminds us that we will only return self-consciousness to the soul of the world when we give up the ego-centered “I.” * Our spiritual practice, our aspiration and awareness, are part of the lifeblood of the planet . . . We are needed to help life to awaken from a dream that is destroying it . . . But if we are to live the real potential of our spiritual practice, we need to break free from the focus on our own individual journey. We need to reclaim the simple truth that spiritual life is “not about us,” and open to a larger, all-embracing vision. If spiritual life is not about the whole, it has lost its true nature; it has instead been subverted by the ego and its patterns of self-concern . . . Just as the individual can forget her true nature and real purpose, as many of us have painfully experienced, so can life itself forget. Life is an interdependent living organism that reflects the collective consciousness of humanity. As humanity has become obsessed with materialism and forgotten the sacred nature of life, so has life forgotten its own sacred nature, its primal purpose of divine revelation. We need to redeem this desecration, give back to the world an awareness of its divine nature. This is the work of the mystic. The mystic, the spiritual seeker, belongs to the core of life, to the mystery of life’s revelation. We carry within our spiritual centers the secrets of life, and we know the deep joy in recognizing life’s need for what is real, what has been hidden within the heart. Part of our purpose is to give these secrets back to life: to help life become aware of its true nature. Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee, Sufi teacher * Stephen Hatch — The third Sacred Idea of the Nine is Sacred Bliss. This is a basic sense of wellbeing that arises from self-loss and union with the Di-

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vine. Because Nines so often live in what A.H. Almaas calls “non-conceptual positivity,” they often don’t relate to the word “bliss.” They generally think of their reality as rather ordinary. However, as a motivating factor in sharing their gifts with others, it is important for them to realize how special they are. Applying the word “bliss” to the Nine’s fundamental experience of contentment can help in this regard. The reading below comes from the writings of a famous Hindu guru. * Bliss is God’s consciousness—His being, His supreme quality, His infinite life. Feeling an everincreasing bliss in attentive meditation is the surest sign of His presence. The greater the bliss, the deeper the contact with God. There are two ways of experiencing bliss: by sabikalpa samadhi and by nirbikalpa samadhi. In the sabikalpa state, the meditating devotee becomes so inwardly immersed in bliss that thoughts, feelings, memory images, all sensibilities of the world, fall from the consciousness. Just as one who is deeply engrossed in reading an interesting story does not see or hear what is going on around him, the devotee becomes so absorbed in the enjoyment of bliss within that his awareness is wholly absent without . . . In nirbikalpa samadhi, or complete union, the yogi enjoys simultaneously the transcendental bliss of the Absolute beyond creation as well as Spirit’s blissful omnipresence in all universal manifestations—the unmanifested ocean of Spirit and Its manifested waves of creation in the universe. In this state, with closed or open eyes, while walking, talking, sleeping, meditating, the devotee consciously contacts the all-pervading bliss as summum bonum—transcendent, but also immanent in all creation. He realizes that bliss—conscious, intelligent, everlasting, all-pervading, ever new joy—has frozen itself into . . . physical creations. As one becomes immersed in bliss by deeper and deeper silent meditation, he finds the fountain of bliss spraying through the pores of his consciousness, thoughts, feelings, and sense-perceptions. Paramahansa Yogananda, Hindu mystic * Stephen Hatch — On its most fundamental level, Sacred Bliss is the practice of “just being,” and of “resting in God.” It is also a sort of spiritual “sleep.” All of these terms may appeal to the Nine in all of us. * Contemplation . . . is a resting in God. In this resting or stillness the mind and heart are not actively seeking Him, but are beginning to experience— “taste”—what they have been seeking. This places them in a state of repose, tranquility, and profound interior peace. Fr. Thomas Keating, Trappist monk * Stephen Hatch — As the above passages imply, “peace” is another way of expressing bliss. This makes sense, since Nines are often called peacemakers. Indeed, Richard Rohr says that perhaps Nine is the only Enneagram type that won’t blow up the world. But

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working for peace in the external world must begin with inner peace if it is to be lasting. In the first passage below, Christian spiritual master Francois Fenelon writes eloquently of divine peace. In typical Nine fashion, he connects peace to self-forgetting. In the second passage, Thomas Merton reminds us that peacefulness is a part of our very nature. * Remain in peace, because peace is the will of God for us, in whatever state we may be. There is, indeed, a peace of confidence which even great sinners ought to have in their sorrow for their sins. Their very contrition should be peaceful and mingled with consolation. Remember those good words which touched you so much: “The Lord is not in the earthquake” . . . God is never anywhere but in peace; and wherever peace is not, God is not there, although we may imagine we see Him there by deceiving ourselves with fine pretenses . . . God is only found in peace. As soon as peace is lost God retires . . . I wish very much that your heart may be in the peace of pure abandonment [to God], which is an unbounded and unchanging peace . . . The thing that I desire for you more than all the rest is a profound forgetfulness of yourself. We wish to see God within us, and we must only see ourselves in God . . . Rest in Him Who tranquilizes all things, and Who is Peace itself. Bury yourself in Him until you lose yourself in Him, and find yourself no more. It is in the forgetfulness of the “I” that peace dwells. Wherever the “I” creeps in, it throws the heart into convulsions . . . Happy is he who gives himself to God without reserve, without reflection, without even thinking that he is giving himself! Francois Fenelon, 18th Century spiritual director * Ahimsa (nonviolence) is for Gandhi the basic law of our being. That is why it can be used as the most effective principle for social action, since it is in deep accord with the truth of human nature and corresponds to our innate desire for peace, justice, order, freedom, and personal dignity . . . Since ahimsa is in human nature itself, it can be learned by all. Thomas Merton, Trappist monk * __________ References: “Some people never forget . . .”: Eckhart Tolle, A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose. New York: Plume, 2006. pp. 30, 226, 227, 228, 229, 235, 236, 238, 239, 241, 242, 243. “Centering Prayer as a discipline . . .”: Thomas Keating, Open Mind, Open Heart: The Contemplative Dimension of the Gospel. Amity, NY: Amity House, 1986. pp. 34-35. “To be one with One . . .”: Thomas Merton, The Silent Life. Thomas Merton: In My Own Words. Liguori, MO: Liguori, 2007. p. 54.

“I make the effort . . .”: Ram Dass. Quoted by Elizabeth Roberts and Elias Amidon in Life Prayers. San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 1996. p. 10. “The Tao that can be told . . .”: Lao Tsu, Tao Te Ching. Translated by Gia-Fu Feng and Jane English. New York: Vintage Books, 1972. Excerpts from chapters 1, 2, 4, 11, 16, 21, 22, 34, 38, 43, 66, 73, 78. “On a visit to the East Coast . . .”: David Chadwick, To Shine One Corner of the World: Moments with Shunryu Suzuki. New York: Broadway Books, 2001. p. 47. “The primary phenomenon given by faith . . .”: Karl Rahner, Foundations of Christian Faith. New York: Seabury Press, 1978. p. 222. “We are God’s prayer . . .”: Richard Rohr, Radical Grace: Daily Meditations. Cincinnati: St. Anthony Messenger Press, 1993. pp. 206, 207. “God has no “self ” apart from me . . .”: Sebastian Moore, The Inner Loneliness. New York: Crossroad, 1982. pp. 33, 41. “Having courage to look . . .”: Dennis Genpo Merzel. The Eye Never Sleeps: Striking to the Heart of Zen. Boston: Shambhala, 1991. pp. 7-8, 13. “You cannot feel yourself . . .”: John Muir at Twenty Hill Hollow in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. In “A Thousand Mile Walk to the Gulf.” The Eight Wilderness Discovery Books. Seattle: The Mountaineers, 1992. pp. 182-183. “It is a bright sunful day . . .”: John Muir on the edge of the gorge between Upper and Lower Yosemite Falls. John of the Mountains: The Unpublished Journals of John Muir. Edited by Linnie Marsh Wolfe. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1938. p. 125. “The great holy man, Black Elk . . .”: Frank Fools Crow, Fools Crow: Wisdom and Power, by Thomas Mails. Lincoln, NE: Council Oak Books, 2001. pp. 30, 31, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40. “Our spiritual practice . . .”: Llewellyn VaughanLee, Awakening the World: A Global Dimension to Spiritual Practice. Inverness, CA: The Golden Sufi Center, 2006. pp. xiv, xv, 1, 11, 13, 14, 28-29. “Bliss is God’s consciousness . . .”: Paramahansa Yogananda. The Divine Romance. Los Angeles: SelfRealization Fellowship, 1986. pp. 413, 414. “Contemplation . . . is a resting in God . . .”: Thomas Keating, “Contemplative Prayer in the Christian Tradition: An Historical Perspective.” In Finding Grace at the Center. Still River, MA: St. Bede Publications, 1978. p. 36. “Remain in peace . . .”: Francois Fenelon, The Spiritual Letters of Francois de Salignac de la Mothe Fenelon, Volume 1. London: St. Anselm’s Society, 1892. pp. 252, 306, 319, 390-391. “Ahimsa (non-violence) is for Gandhi the basic law . . .”: Thomas Merton, Seeds. Edited by Robert Inchausti. Boston: Shambhala, 2002. pp. 143-144. •

“I disappear from the world . . .”: Thomas Merton, Honorable Reader. pp. 106-107.

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The Permeable Boundary Between 5 & 4

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here’s no clear boundary between Five and Four. Fours with Five-wings are virtually indistinguishable from Fives with Four-wings. For instance, the very popular Eclectic Energies test (eclecticenergies.com) gives this as a summary of the Five-Four distinction: “Intellectual Fours tend to mistakenly type themselves as Fives, and a heavy wing can certainly exacerbate this tendency.  Fours, however, unlike Fives, tend to be self-revealing and comfortable with emotional expression.”  Meanwhile, “Fives, especially with the Four wing, sometimes mistype themselves as Fours.  Such Fives recognize that they have strong emotions and don’t identify with the often extremely cerebral portrait of type Five.  But, Fives, unlike Fours, always retain some degree of discomfort when it comes to the expression of their emotional states … the language of emotion is not their native tongue.” Riso & Hudson indicate that both of these types are drawn to surrealism. Judith Searle has written at length about literature and type in The Literary Enneagram, and her types for Four often think of suicide as a grand theatrical gesture.  Anna Karenina actually throws herself under a train.  Searle comments, “At their unhealthy extreme Fours are more likely than most Enneagram styles to attempt suicide, usually to punish others for not loving the Four sufficiently” (136).  However, when Searle discusses the Fives, she also includes suicidal tendencies as an aspect of the Five.  In the novel Turtle Diary, William, who is described as being a Five with a Six-wing, thinks of suicide: “I had been thinking of it [suicide] right enough, I often do, always have the idea of it huddled like a sick ape in a corner of my mind.  But I’d never do it.  At least I don’t think I’d do it….  Well, that’s not true either” (176). I have thought about suicide, but never terribly seriously. It’s a comfort to think that I don’t have to put up with life, but always prefer to go on rather than to check out. But the very fact that it’s an option, is very pleasant!  However, as we have seen, it’s not determinative! In her article “The Gap at the Bottom of the Enneagram,” that appeared in EM September 1997, Searle writes about Four and Five as possessing an empty space, and links the two together so tightly that there is almost no distinction.  Furthermore, she identifies Edgar Allen Poe as an example of a Five, although he is placed in the Four category in Riso’s Personality Types.  She says it is on account of his fascination with horror as a genre, but Poe’s horror stories are often to do with macabre revenge fantasies due to an insult.  “The Cask of Amontillado” for instance, has to do with what seems like a sexual Four’s payback for an insult that’s never precisely named. He walls up the insulter and gets the last laugh.  Poe’s “The Raven,” is both precisely planned out (almost gleefully fivish as he writes about how he composed it) and yet it is about missing a loved one (fourish).  Meanwhile, Poe also had a nearly unknown humor-

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Kirby Olson ous side to his work (see the volume entitled The Other Poe, which reprints many quite droll stories that he squibbed and which were just as popular in his own day as his horrific stories). Every time a new book comes out, I look to see if anyone has yet demarcated a boundary between the two zones that can help me find my own designation. When The Positive Enneagram was recently published by Susan Rhodes I jumped at the chance to get a copy of the book because it had three tests in the back.  However, they proved to be inconclusive, because first I thought, aha, I am a Five, taking the test as I am now, but then, wondered, what if I took the test as I was at 25, and came out a Four.  On the other hand, the subtype test was clear in both cases: I remained a Sexual.  That helps, as I can now look through the sub-types of Four and Five at only the Sexuals, I thought, and see which one fits (however, they both fit, depending on my mood.  And then there’s the other problem which is that I have also been convinced that I am a Social and a Self-pres by other books or tests — David Fauvre’s test at enneagram.net convinced me I am a Social Four, but in conversations with Elizabeth Wagele she has said that she thinks we’re both Self-pres).  I almost feel a bit like Penelope of the Odyssey, weaving a vast picture every day, only to have it unwoven during the night, only in my case I swear I am not deliberately unraveling it.  Maybe Sisyphus with his boulder would be a better analogy. The Riso-Hudson tests try to differentiate between wanting to minimize (5) and wanting to maximize emotions (4).  But of course if you’re used to being dragged screaming into drama by your emotions, anybody over the age of three would start to minimize like crazy.  So that doesn’t help, since I don’t think they are mutually exclusive.  Alan Fensin’s out of print book Your Secret Self (Avon Books, 1993) claims that the mother is unbearable for the Five, and that this is the source of the fivish fixation.  My mom was a fairly overbearing One, and bugged me a lot (although I did like her, and wanted her approval, too).  But he also claims that Fives can’t handle small talk, and that they are “cold” in their interactions. I’m not cold, and I like chit-chat, especially if it’s mindless and amusing.  I also like to gossip. Fensin meanwhile claims that a missing father is the source of the Four fixation. My dad was around, and friendly, but he was often reading the newspaper, or watching The Rockford Files while half-asleep in his rocker. In Eli Jaxon-Bear’s  From Fixation to Freedom, he overturns Fensin’s focus on the mother as the key trait of the Four.  Jaxon-Bear writes, “Fours most often fixate on the loss of the father.  The exception to this is when the mother is perceived as the dominant partner” (155).  So my mom was clearly the dominant partner (my dad was a Nine, or a very ninish Three

and not very present, except when I was playing sports with him).  My dad worked as a sports professor at a state college, and would come alive when throwing a football, baseball, or hitting a badminton birdie.  My mom worked as a reading teacher in first grade.  I got a lot from both of them, but probably my mother’s values are more dominant in my case.  My dad was always there, a bit distant, but always available.  They were both from small-town Iowa, born in the early 1930s, and had a very small-town common sense, but were open, and wanted to be part of the twentieth century, too.  They golfed, and went to national parks in RVs, and read widely in their fields.  Often when I’m reading about the traumatic relationship of many people to their parents, I just can’t relate.  My parents didn’t drink or smoke, or fool around, or hit us, and never failed to eat their vegetables.  It seems to me that those who had incredibly traumatic childhoods have a stronger understanding of their numbers.  For those of us from milder backgrounds, the delineations are not so clear.  After many years of thinking about the types, and finding them of use in analyzing others, I’ve narrowed my number down to 4 or 5, in spite of one scholar who typed me as a Nine (Mary Bast).  I have not always been a loner, but I do like to be alone.  I could happily spend a year in solitary confinement so long as I received books.  I’m not a One, Two, or Three, as they have too much get up and go (I like to go to bed late, and get up late).  The 1s, 2s, and 3s, have a lot of pep, or it seems to me.  The 6s, 7s, and 8s are quite amiable in their own way, and don’t like to be alone.  Ditto for Nines.  I like a few hours a day around other people, and then I like to be alone to read or study.  Plus, I identify most strongly with the poet-artists-theorists.  Looking through the list, I am somewhere in that crew.  So perhaps the distinction between Five and Four is that the Fives think, or analyze, and the Four emotes, or feels.  But JaxonBear overturns that distinction, too.  “The dichotomy in Four is called analytic/disoriented… unlike the disoriented Four, the analytic Four attempts to stay in the realm of thought.  Sometimes male Fours, because they wish to avoid the deep feelings that are not considered “manly,” appear on the surface to be analytical.  However, just below the surface is the full torrent of the Four’s emotional sea.  It often bubbles up at inappropriate times…” (159).  I’ve often felt that the description of Fours tends to focus on the females of this category.  The male examples, such as Prince and Michael Jackson, tend to be extremely overblown emotionally.  Try being Prince when you are not on stage and see if you can keep your job in an insurance office, or get respect from a tenure committee.  It’s not that you can’t cry in academia (where I work as a humanities professor), but if you found yourself crying, you certainly wouldn’t do it in the faculty lounge, or certainly not every day, and certainly not on the Dean’s shoulder. By “bubbles up”  does Jaxon-Bear mean the true Four will cry suddenly and all day long?  Well, of course I cry. I cried for two straight weeks after my

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father’s funeral.  But then that would be appropriate crying, right?  I cry sometimes when I see a beautiful work of ballet, or even a perfect goal in soccer, or when a spiraling football arcs into the hands of a wide receiver.  That would be appropriate, though, right?  So here the question is displaced on to the appropriate meaning of “appropriate.” I might shed a tear or two over a perfectly executed Hamlet, or a wonderful rendition of Lear as he holds his dear dead Cordelia in the closing moments of his play, and thinks about what love really is for the first time in his life (in Judith Searle’s The Literary Enneagram she makes Lear comprehensible as a Two—the only time I’ve ever understood Lear’s motivations in thirty years of thinking about the play). The examples of Five on the other hand tend to focus on male figures.  David Byrne, Albert Einstein, the Unabomber, Ezra Pound, and others, are all male figures, but figures to which I can’t quite relate, partially because they seem so self-enclosed, as if they don’t need others, and can never be anything but razors. I have been to various experts (off to see the wizard).  A Seven told me on the basis of an email that I had to be a Four, because I wasn’t mental enough to be a Five, or rather that because I am “mental” I’d have to be a Four.  (I’m a political centrist, and this expert was way out to the left in terms of wanting a total redistribution of income, and felt I was mental for not sharing his economic philosophy.)  I believe that government should be Lockean, and that the four fundamental rights (these were listed in Locke as life, liberty, health and property—Jefferson took out the last two and appended “pursuit of happiness” probably because he was a Seven) are all more important than control of the workplace, which is how Marxism seduces, but never actually delivers.  I never figured out why this expert pinned me down as a Four, except he said I came up with comparisons easily and quickly, which revealed quick access to my imagination (I do have that!).  But if Fives are all about Horror, don’t they have access to imagination, and don’t they actually feel overwhelmed by imagination?    So let’s turn to exemplary figures.  Riso and Hudson claim that Bob Dylan is a Four.  Jaxon-Bear says that Dylan’s a Five.  Sandra Maitri claims Dylan’s a Five, and then uses him as an example of a Five, in her book, The Spiritual Dimension of the Enneagram.  “Dylan’s sense of self-enclosure is evident as he refrains from making eye contact with his audience during concerts” (207).  But many others claim that he is a clear Four. Michelle Pfeiffer is described as a counterphobic Five with a Six-wing in Thomas Condon’s Movie and Video Guide (114).  But then, in Jaxon-Bear’s book, she is described as a Sexual Four (165). Reading the various books and trying to find clarity, one comes across different categorizations of key persons, and one begins to wish for a mafia-style “sit-down” between the various capos of the Enneaworld, so that they can agree on common designations.  What’s difficult is that readers are looking for traits that are clear and specific, and thus minute enough to be certain.  Things like “likes anchovies on pizza” are not general enough.  More enormous traits like quiet, or vengeful, might depend on what point

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of life one was in, whether there was a baby sleeping in a backroom, or whether one has something to be vengeful about, like having one’s significant other stolen by one’s best friend. Some experts tell you that you should think of yourself in your early twenties (Susan Reynold’s Everything Enneagram Book), and others tell you to think of yourself in your mid-twenties. Still others say think about yourself as you are now, or as you have been generally.  But how are you supposed to do this?  How can you focus specifically on something that’s general?  Lives are enormous, and you can easily find common themes if you go looking. I think I am for instance quite sensitive, and therefore, vengeful, but also, forgiving.  I never act on the revenge.  In first grade when a teacher shocked me with insensitive comments regarding my handwriting, or scolded me about forgetting my homework, it would take days to recover. I would draw a torture tunnel beneath my desk, dragging the teacher through shark-infested pools, having her face firebreathing dinosaurs, and facing gladiator-combat

I am a Five, taking the test as I am now, but then, wondered, what if I took the test as I was at 25, and came out a Four. Still others say think about yourself as you are now, or as you have been generally.  But how are you supposed to do this?  How can you focus specifically on something that’s general? with Wiccan giants, until she finally apologized or I began to feel sorry for her.  I never openly asked for an apology, and got over the insults in time without her awareness of ever having insulted me.  I generally ended up having good memories of my teachers. In high school my brother said I could never play soccer, so I began to secretly practice, and three years later was All-League twice in a row.  I don’t think he ever knew my motivation was to prove him wrong.  Had he never said this to me, I would probably have never played soccer, and certainly not at the level I attained. I have that “I’ll show you,” quality of the Sexual Four (listed in Helen Palmer’s classic book as the sole criterion of the SX 4).  But I’m rarely open about it.  I nurse small insults, and turn them into accomplishments. I was once told by an uncle that I would probably never publish a book since few manage this. I loved this challenge, and started writing, and eventually started publishing books. I’ve now published a half a dozen, and have written several more (I would rather write them now than box them up and get them published, because the secretarial aspect of publishing is an enormous chore, and one that I prefer to avoid in favor of creativity itself, as now I no longer have anything to prove). I do remember that one of the great promises of writing was that I might be able to support myself without ever having to talk to anybody. That’s fivish,

no?  (Btw., It’s not true. You have to meet people, especially publishers, and charm them.  You then have to meet potential readers, and charm them, too.  I did not know that, as Johnny Carson used to joke.)  And it’s not too awful.  I can go in front of people.  I’m scared to do it, but I force myself through it, and often find it to be a positive experience.  I write poetry and have published it in the top journals, and write novels, and have been reviewed in the top journals, but I have half-forgotten that the original motivation came from what I took as a child to be a challenge, or at least to be stated as a relative impossibility.  I also write literary criticism.  My favorite writer early on was Richard Brautigan.  Is he a Five or a Four? He was a loner, but one who had access to his imagination.  He committed suicide.  If you read biographies of him, it doesn’t seem like anybody ever really understood him, or knew him.  He did try to stir up envy among his colleagues, especially envy over his tremendous sales.  He sold millions of copies of books, even his terrible poetry books, while much better poets were barely publishing (poet Michael McClure has reflected on this side of Brautigan in several articles).  I like the hilarity of Brautigan, and sometimes the brutally funny qualities of Charles Baudelaire, with his combination of wit and penetrating intellect.  But I can’t stand Marcel Proust, as he gets too overly emotional and is seldom funny.  (Judith Searle’s book doesn’t tackle humorists or work on the qualities of humor according to type, but she has recently written to me that that is her newest project!)  Fives have an interest in science.  I have no interest in science, and could not be a scientist, unless it also impinged on creativity (how poets minds’ work, for instance, on a neuronal level).  But I can spend all day on Sudoku puzzles, so I am not averse to the puzzle-mania of the Five.  One of my favorite poets is Marianne Moore, who Elizabeth Wagele places into the Five category, but who was certainly odd as heck, with her tricorn hat, and her relish for bizarre plants such as The Camperdown Elm and unique animals such as The Jerboa).  Philip Larkin, too, seems to have traits of both Five and Four and you can find him listed on both sides of the invisible curtain. Could we have a mafia-style sit-down, please, and decide a clear boundary between Five and Four?  David Daniels writes, “Romantics are the most feeling and emotional type—wanting more from others and having difficulty keeping their personal boundaries.  In contrast, Observers are the most detached type— wanting less and keeping more self-contained with clearer personal boundaries” (Essential Enneagram 64).  I feel that I am constantly struggling between these two motivations of wanting to keep boundaries and wanting to let go of them.  There’s a push-pull between these traits. My wife is a Four, and this summer we spent time watching David Fauvre and his wife go over the Michael Jackson biography in enormous detail in an online video.  I confess that I can’t stand Jackson’s high feminine voice, although he seems like a nice guy.  I just can’t relate.  My wife could relate to him, and found him enchanting.  The few figureheads I genuinely relate to—are virtually unknown especially within Ennea-circles. There is a once-famous surreal-

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ist writer in French circles named Philippe Soupault.  I think I am very similar to him, but the last book of his that was translated into English was done in 1926, and few have read him since (I’ve read all his eighty books).  A wonderful poet named Henry JeanMarie Levet wrote 11 poems in 1906 and then died from some obscure disease, and I’ve translated his entire work (they are online at http://jacketmagazine. com/18/levet.html).  I love to live inside those poems, delighting in their contours and jests and melancholy.  When looking through the figures in enneagram books I perceive enormously famous rock stars and film stars whose work I generally can’t stand to spend time within, but rarely any of the lesser known poets whose work I like better.   I love the quiet French humorous poets and writers such as Levet.  For those of us who can’t find an enneagram number (it might be something like 30% who have never been certain?) do these kinds of analogue figures help us to figure out our number?  It might do this if all the major enneagram figures would agree on a type, and would give very specific reasons behind their thinking, so that we could all understand the logic.  My wife likes all the surrealist painters and stars listed as Four with a Three-Wing (especially Warhol, Dali, and Michael Jackson).  I’m terribly interested in surrealism, but those three feel a bit fraudulent and too commercial for my taste, and prefer something that is more recondite — like someone talking to themselves about

nothing, a group of which really do exist, especially in France and in Spain. Speaking of Spain, it is good to remember that the enneagram was originally (in its most recent incarnation) from South America, and that both Oscar Ichazo and Claudio Naranjo were Spanish speakers.  To what extent this has colored the enneagram is hard to determine. While Ichazo’s work is hard to find, Naranjo’s Character and Neurosis is probably the classic of the whole field although it is rarely mentioned in the literature. Naranjo has an edge over many enneagram interpreters in that he is an M.D., and a psychotherapist.  His book correlates the enneagram with various personality theories including DSM III, MBTI, body types, and others, diving deep into the 20th and 19th century literature.  This may make it the best book of all in terms of clarity and depth.  For the Five he lists “anhedonic” as a major characteristic, and “masochism” as a major characteristic of the Four.  Furthermore, he lists INTP as the correlative of the Five, and INFP as the correlative of the Four.  While I have trouble with those two types (I can’t determine which is which for me), a book called Writing and Personality by Tiberio and Jensen argues that the INTP writes like a scientist — cold, clean, and factual, whereas the INFP tends toward poetry and putting more warmth and personality on the page.  I am therefore an INFP, which would also link me closer to the Four.  Using Naranjo I am perhaps a bit more

POSITIVE The

the positive enneagram

Enneagram

on the Four side of things.  Unfortunately, Naranjo has apparently abandoned American ennea-circles in disgust at what he perceives as the rampant commercialization of the field and the lack of rigor. I feel my own self is something like Andorra — somewhat forgotten and on the border between France and Spain.  I know clear Fives and clear Fours.  I belong to a border state — perhaps more like the Basque — in search of some kind of country I can call my own.  The various maps and descriptions of the nine reigning states differ in confusing ways.  Every map has something useful.  Too often, however, they disagree on boundaries.  The key figures are placed in different categories.  The traits differ from book to book.  Which maps are the most authoritative?   A map is meant to help us locate ourselves, and give us some sense of where we are going, where we have been, and some sense of self-definition, and it shouldn’t just make us feel lost.  I feel lost in looking through most of the enneagram books.  Naranjo’s is a bit better delineated than most.  Few refer to it, but it’s the classic, and I think the whole field should  begin its clarification with a survey of the boundaries Naranjo drew.  His book is the Ur-map, and it would be helpful if all subsequent writers remembered that.  Which is not to say that even it is perfectly clear, but it’s perhaps the most helpful for those who are trying to achieve self-definition, with a country, and a flag, of our own. •

What people are saying about

The Positive Enneagram: “The enneagram of personality has fascinated me as a way of understanding problematical aspects of one’s personality. But I suspected there were a lot of positive uses for it in developing psychologically and spiritually that have been overlooked. Somebody needed to point them out in a useful way: Susan Rhodes has done that in this book, and we are indebted to her for this service. Fascinating reading!” – Charles T. Tart, Ph.D., author of Transpersonal Psychologies & The End of Materialism “Very impressive. Insightful, engaging, and instructive.” – Professor Ronald A. Howard, Decisions & Ethics Center Director, Stanford University “Susan Rhodes defines the core of a much-needed unified field theory of the Enneagram through integrating Gurdjieff ’s Enneagram of Process with Ichazo’s Enneagram of Personality.” – Judith Searle, author of The Literary Enneagram “An inspiring description of the enneagram and its value for society. Logically presented and easy to follow, it’s an exceptional resource for the business enneagram community.” – Bill Dyke, business trainer & consultant “Clear, cogent, and concise. Susan Rhodes looks at the enneagram through a positive psychology lens and opens up new territory.” – Jerome Wagner, Ph.D., author of The Enneagram Spectrum of Personality Styles   

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Susan Rhodes

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Nature of Enneagram Subtypes.... ited in scope, but soon realized that I needed to talk about all three topics in order to present a coherent picture of my ideas. The reasons for this should become clear as we proceed. The article is divided into three parts: Background, Part I, and Part II. The Background section introduces the topic and provides the context for further discussion. Part I focuses on current assumptions about the types, the enneagram energy centers, and the subtypes. Part II proposes an alternative view and some ideas for working with the enneagram based on that view.

Background I became interested in the enneagram as a means of looking at individual differences in motivation. As a cognitive psychologist, I’d long been interested in looking at how variables like sex, age, and cultural differences affect our psychology. I was also interested in the effects of our basic disposition or character, so I studied the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) to gain insight into that dimension of the psyche. Based on a Jungian approach to typology, the MBTI generates 16 personality profiles. One thing that I like about the MBTI is that these profiles are pretty value-neutral. This means that the MBTI profiles simply distinguish individuals on the basis of temperament. They aren’t designed to evaluate the character of the individual by reference to any particular set of moral, psychological, or spiritual standards. As a result, the MBTI system can be used in a wide range of contexts. When I first heard about the enneagram, it took me a while to see why I should study it. One reason is that the enneagram only delineated nine personality types, while the MBTI delineated 16, so the enneagram seemed to offer a less detailed breakdown. Another reason is that the enneagram seemed less objective than the MBTI. Unlike the MBTI profiles, most of the enneagram profiles seemed mildly to moderately negative in focus. Although the negative focus initially put my off, I eventually learned enough about the enneagram to appreciate its three great assets: (a) a focus on motivation, (b) a geometric dimension, and (c) a way of combining different aspects of type that makes it possible to distinguish many more than nine types. Over time, I came to realize that these advantages far outweighed the disadvantage of seeing the enneagram types described in mostly negative terms. I realized that the types themselves were more basic than any of the descriptions that people generated. So I could study them directly and gradually generate my own (more value-neutral) descriptions of the types. With this in mind, I began to delve more deeply into the enneagram. I saw that the negative descriptions of type arise out of two related assumptions: (a) that enneagram types = personality types and (b) that personality is inherently unregenerate. That means that, in moral terms, the personality self is sinful and in psychological terms, it’s pathological. How did the personality come to gain such a neg-

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ative reputation? It wasn’t clear to me at the outset. But after some investigation, I began to understand why the enneagram profiles seemed to focus so much on the negative aspects of human nature. In some ways, the reasons for this negative focus may be traceable to a single person: George Gurdjieff Gurdjieff was the first person to publicly present teachings on the enneagram. He was a spiritual teacher of some magnitude whose influence is still strong more than half a century after his death. Gurdjieff was not a retiring mystic, but a spiritual master with an iron will and magnetic personality. He had an extremely robust and provocative style of teaching. His confrontational style was designed to effect a radical transformation in those students who were willing to submit themselves to its rigors. Gurdjieff’s approach is based on an ancient model of the relationship between a spiritual master and his disciple. It assumes the presence of three elements: a true spiritual master, a deeply committed aspirant, and the shared goal of effecting a radical and permanent restructuring of the inner self of the student. Since most teachers and students have traditionally been male, this approach is a very masculine in nature. It’s based on a “slay the dragon” view of life that’s quite direct and adversarial. The ego or personality self is viewed as an enemy of the higher good and is ruthlessly attacked in order to strip away its defenses so that the disciple might realize its limitations. This approach has its uses, but it’s risky. And in the wrong hands, it can be disastrous. As Jungian scholar James Hollis observed in an interview for What is Enlightenment? magazine, “the ego is a necessary formation for the creation of identity, consciousness, intentionality, and purpose—all of which are pluses.”1 But he says that the ego is also malleable. It can be dominated by influences of both the inner psyche and the outer world if it lacks the strength and resiliency necessary to maintain its integrity. So from this perspective, what we need isn’t to destroy the ego, but to support it. With proper support, the ego can develop in a healthy way. It can help us function in the world without interfering with our ability to be inwardly attentive to the energies of the [higher] Self. An integrated ego-personality helps us develop both inner balance and outer poise. It can support us in finding our life’s calling. And this, as Hollis observes, has very little to do with ego in the selfish sense. Today, the idea of slaying the ego seems harsh and out of step with the times. This is because the consciousness of the collective is changing, and we now

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have ways of working with the psyche that are both more effective and less wrenching than the methods of the past. If we can work with the self is a gentler way, why not do it? Why make the task of changing harder than it needs to be? To ask such questions is not to criticize Gurdjieff or his methods, but simply to observe that teachings intended for one era may not be appropriate for another. If Gurdjieff were alive today, I doubt very much whether he would take the same approach he did during the early part of the twentieth century. He would adapt his approach to fit the times. The decades since Gurdjieff’s death have seen some major shifts in consciousness—not just among the spiritual elite, but across a broad swatch of the public. We’re now living in a post-Newtonian world, where we’re told that there’s order in chaos, time isn’t real, and everything is interconnected. The actual implications of the new physics may not have sunk in yet, but the intuitive sense that separatism and duality are illusions is definitely in the air. Many people sense that we’re on the brink of a real shift in perspective—of a completely new way of being in the world. This new paradigm is holistic, inclusive, and dynamic in nature. It takes us beyond the old “good vs. bad” dualities. It helps us see beyond our apparent differences to the underlying unity of all life. The transition from the old paradigm to the new is, like all transitions, somewhat awkward and confusing. I see the enneagram as a tool that can help us bridge the gap between the old and the new. I suspect that this is the real reason that enneagram suddenly appeared on the public scene a couple of decades ago. What’s strange to me is how such a revolutionary tool as the enneagram has become constrained by a way of thinking that is not of the present, but of the past. Of course it’s possible to use the enneagram to catalog our qualities, neatly dividing them into good and bad categories. But when we do this, we split ourselves in two. The “bad” qualities begin to seem like the ones that we actually experience in ordinary life while the “good” qualities recede into some elusive realm of spiritual transcendence. We reject ordinary life as gross and impure, looking for deliverance elsewhere. This kind of thinking is dualistic. It splits the psyche and makes it hard to be completely present in the moment. It can cause us to lose momentum, falling under the weight of our accumulated sense of sin. Why not instead use the enneagram to cultivate a sense of inner wholeness and integrity? To see how seeming limitations (our individual points of view) can instead be viewed as areas of specialization when seen from the perspective of wholeness? If we look at each point of view as an area of specialization, then the enneagram subtypes become key to understanding the many faces of type. They also give clues we can use to discover our dharma or purpose in life. I’ll talk more about this later.

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To recap, I see the enneagram in its ability to help us see our true worth and relate to one another in an intelligent way. Realizing who and what we really are is the challenge for the coming era. Focusing on what is false about us doesn’t really help us see what is real. And it’s seeing the real that gives us the courage to leap into the unknown. My intention in writing this article is to share a vision of the enneagram that I find both inspiring and evocative. This is what I talk about in Part II of the paper.

Part 1: The Received Wisdom

Before leaping into new territory, I have to spend a little time talking about how we came to inherit the current vision of the enneagram, particularly how it came to have such a negative focus. So this section is about what I’m calling the received wisdom in the field. I’ll talk about the received wisdom regarding the nature of the enneagram itself, the types, the energy centers, and the subtypes. The Enneagram and the Types If you ask someone to describe the enneagram, you’ll get different answers depending on who you ask. Basically, there are two major views of the enneagram. In one view, it’s a map of a life process. In the other, it’s a map of the human psyche.2 Gurdjieff taught his students a process-oriented version of the enneagram, and it’s this enneagram that Fourth Way (Gurdjieff) students consider the “real” enneagram. Arica founder Oscar Ichazo later adapted Gurdjieff’s process-oriented enneagram to look at differences in human temperament or personality. Nowadays, it’s Ichazo’s version of the enneagram that’s the most well-known. Actually, Ichazo didn’t just teach one enneagram, but many. Which enneagram he taught depended one what aspect of human nature he wanted to emphasize. But there are two of his enneagrams are now the best known: (a) the enneagram of the emotional passions and (b) the enneagram of the cognitive fixations. One reason for the focus on these two particular enneagrams may be that they are the ones of most interest to one of Ichazo’s most influential students, Dr. Claudio Naranjo. In the 1970s, Naranjo was a student of Oscar Ichazo. However, within a decade, he became an influential teacher of the enneagram in his own right. Many of the people who became later become prominent in the enneagram community started out as Naranjo’s students. Naranjo also wrote several books on the enneagram. All of them focus primarily on the deficiency motivations (core neuroses) associated with each enneagram type. Figure 3 summarizes the categories he developed for characterizing the different types of psychological imbalance that can be mapped to each enneagram type. Naranjo goes into great depth in Character and Neurosis and his other books to describe the person-

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9 - over-adaptative 8 - anti-social / sadistic

7 - hedonistic/ narcissistic

1 - obsessivecompulsive

Personality Disorders by Enneagram Type

6 - anxious

2 - histrionic

3 - “Type A” overachieving 5 - schizoid/ withdrawn

4 - depressivemasochistic

Figure 3. Naranjo’s Character (Personality) Disorders by Enneagram Type

ality disorders associated with each point. But he provides little or no description of the balanced personality. I didn’t understand why until it dawned on me that, unlike James Hollis, Naranjo does not seem to believe that it’s actually possible for the personality self to become balanced. This is evident from many passages in his books.3 His philosophical perspective (which seem akin to that of both Gurdjieff and Ichazo) is that personality is inherently flawed. While its flaws can be exposed and its limitations can be transcended (via spiritual work), the ego-personality self can never become a fully integrated and functional part of the psyche. If this were true, it would be rather discouraginnews, since most of us spend a lot of our waking hours functioning at the level of the ego-personality. Even spiritual masters can’t stay in meditation all the time—they still spend a lot of time functioning in ordinary consciousness. I don’t think that the ego-personality is by nature distorted or wrong-headed. It’s simply limited. In order to function properly, it has to know its own limits and look beyond itself (to the larger psyche) for support and guidance. It doesn’t have to disappear, it just has to come into alignment with a deeper inner purpose. If this kind of alignment is possible, then the personality healed of its wounds and stable in its foundation might become the very vehicle by which to create a better life. I find the idea that the personality self can be integrated into the larger psyche tremendously encouraging. It provides a real impetus to do the work that makes this kind of integration possible. But what kind of work is this? Is it the same for all of us? I doubt it. I think the kind of work we need to do must depend on the kind of person we are. And the kind of person we are is revealed by our enneagram type. However, it’s awfully hard to find an enneagram author who focuses solely on the opportunities for integration at each enneagram point of view. Kathleen Hurley and Ted Dobson characterize the enneagram as a way of describing “nine compulsive ways of dealing with the world.”4 Sandra Maitri speaks of humanity as “imprisoned in the labyrinth of our own ego structures.”5 Don Riso and Russ Hudson say that the basic fear of each type is what set[s] in motion the mechanism of personality.6 They describe the per-

sonality self as “a collection of conditioned reactions, fears, and beliefs” that develops as the result of early loss and conditioning.7 Descriptions like these are common. They imply that our enneagram type depends entirely on the nature of the conditioning received in childhood. This may be true, but it’s not a foregone conclusion. It’s just as possible that type is innate (pre-personality). If type is innate, then the motivation it provides is not really personal, but comes from the deeper (or higher) psyche. This is a bit scary to contemplate, but it’s exciting, too. I tend to regard enneagram type as innate. My training as a cognitive psychologist tells me that although early conditioning is extremely powerful, it can’t actually create basic psychic structures such as the personality. It can only affect the functionality of such structures. The idea that type might be pre-personality doesn’t seem to be discussed much in the enneagram community (at least not in print). But A. H. Almaas surprised an audience at the 2005 International Enneagram Association by casually mentioning that he sees type as innate. He said that this is why type is with us for life—why it doesn’t go away in response to the work we do on ourselves. If our enneagram type is actually innate, then it has to be something more than an ego defense mechanism. From a systems perspective, it has to serve some purpose in sustaining the larger system that gives rise to it. It’s this real purpose of the enneagram and the enneagram types that interests me, not its ability to provide what Naranjo calls “an organizing map for...[a] set of [character] pathologies.”8 Gurdjieff’s Energy Centers Like the enneagram types, the energy centers are a central concept in enneagram studies. They’re particularly relevant to an understanding of the enneagr m subtype behaviors. Gurdjieff’s concept of the energy centers. There are various ways that Gurdjieff characterized the energy centers within human beings. One way was to divide each of the three centers into three sections or levels (the intelligent, the motivational, and the mechanical), and each of these levels into two polarities (negative and positive). I used the color shades in Figure 4 to depict these six qualities of each center.

Physical center

Emotional center

Mental center

Figure 4. Gurdjieff’s Three Energy Centers (at Three Levels and Two Polarities).

Another way was to characterize the physical center as having three centers of its own: an instinctive or instinctual center, a sexual center, and a moving center. See Figure 5. A third way was to characterize the centers as higher and lower manifestations of the energy in question. In this case, the physical center is said to have only a “lower” form while the emotional and mental centers

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Physical center

Emotional center

Mental center

Figure 5. Gurdjieff’s Three Centers (Showing the Three Sub-centers of the Physical Center).

are said to have both a higher and lower form (see Figure 6). The lower centers are those that we use to function in everyday life. The higher centers are those that only become active as the result of inner work. There are several other potential variations on this theme. This is because Gurdjieff was a moving target; he like to take his students by surprise, so he presented his teachings in different ways at different times. However, the scheme shown in Figure 6 is the one on which most modern enneagram theorists base their ideas, as we’ll see below.9

Higher emotional center

Higher mental center

Lower emotional center

Lower mental center

gram types. The three points that make up each center are called a triad: • Points 8 9 1: The Body Center Triad. The energy of these points is natural, unassuming, and unselfconscious. People whose home base is at Points 8, 9, or 1 have the potential to be particularly attuned to the wisdom of the body (to be aware of their “gut instincts”) and to the natural rhythms of life. • Points 2 3 4: The Heart Center Triad. The energy of these points is feminine, emotional, and interpersonal. People whose home base is at Point 2, 3, or 4 have the potential to be particularly attuned to the emotional states of others and the feeling dimension of life. • Points 5 6 7: The Head Center Triad. The energy of these points is masculine, linear, and detached. People whose home base is at Point 5, 6, or 7 have the potential to be particularly aware of ideas and the mental dimension of life. At the same time that each point belongs to a given center, each of these centers is paradoxically said to be within each of us (as shown in Figure 8). However,

work. They devised ways to characterize the properties of each point by reference to five energy centers: the mental or head center (higher and lower), the emotional or heart center (higher and lower), and the physical or body center.12 For the head (mental) center at each point, the lower aspect was termed a cognitive fixation and the higher aspect, a Holy Idea. For the heart (emotional) center at each point, the lower aspect was termed a Higher emotional center

(Lower) physical center

(subtype behaviors)

Higher mental center

(Holy Virtues)

(Holy Ideas)

Lower emotional center

Lower mental center

(passions)

(fixations)

Figure 9. The Two-tiered Model of the Enneagram Energy Centers.

Personality Enneagram Energy Centers There’s no indication that Gurdjieff ever taught anything akin to the personality enneagram developed by Oscar Ichazo. Gurdjieff’s enneagram was strictly process-oriented. So Gurdjieff never created an illustration like Figure 7. Ho w e v 9 er, fifty years 8 1 later, when Oscar IcBody hazo and his Center successors 2 7 began using Gurdjieff ’s Heart Head processCenter Center oriented en3 6 neagram as a tool for 5 4 looking at Figure 7. The Three Enneagram personality Energy Centers. types, they combined Gurdjieff’s theory of the centers with the personality enneagram to develop a theory of personality that’s intimately intertwined with Gurdjieff’s theory on the centers.10 Out of this perspective has come the idea that there are nine personality types, each of which “belongs” to a certain center. What this means is that each center is dominant for three of the nine ennea-

passion and the higher aspect, a virtue.13 The body (physical) center at each point was conceived to have only one level of functioning, which is equivalent to the lower aspect of the other two centers. Body Center Head Center However, the body center was conHeart Center ceived to have three sub-centers, and it’s 9 Body Center Body Center these sub-centers that describe the three Head Center Head Center areas of life in which the body center can 8 1 Heart Center Heart Center be involved. The first area is self-care and personal comfort. The second area is sexuality, transformation and intimacy. Body Center Body Center 2 The third area is social participation and Head Center Head Center 7 Heart Center political organization. Heart Center For a given individual, one of these arenas of activity is assumed to be more Body Center Body Center 3 Head Center compelling than the other two. This Head Center 6 Heart Center Heart Center dominant arena is what determines a person’s subtype. I discuss these in more Body Center 5 Body Center 4 detail below, but for now it’s sufficient to Head Center Head Center note that the three colored circles in the Heart Center Heart Center Figure 9 are the subtype arenas and that Figure 8. The Three Energy Centers at Each Enneagram Point. these circles roughly correspond to the three colored circles in the earlier Figures the center that’s home to our enneagram type tends (5 and 6) that describe Gurdjieff’s physical center. to exert more influence than the other two centers. (I say “roughly,” because although only Gurdjieff’s So if my type is Two, Three, or Four, for example, sexual center clearly matches the sexual subtype and although I’m subject to the influence of all three cenGurdjieff’s instinctive center is a pretty good match ters, the heart center is likely to be more influential for the subtype that focuses on self-care, it’s harder to than the other two centers. see the exact relationship between Gurdjieff’s moving center and the social subtype, although it could be How Gurdjieff’s Centers Show Up at argued that the moving center is about moving outEach Enneagram Point. ward into the social world.) As I mentioned above, Gurdjieff sometimes emphasized the difference between ordinary perception The Enneagram Subtypes and subtle (expanded) perception by talking about For each enneagram type, I was taught that the the energy centers as having higher and lower aspects. three subtypes each represent a preoccupation of one However, as shown in Figure 6, he only attributed of three areas of life: higher aspects to two of the centers: the mental cenSelf-preservation subtype: here the focus is said 11 ter and the emotional center. to be on satisfactory self-survival. Sexuality or intimate subtype: here the focus is When Oscar Ichazo and his successors developed said to be on gaining satisfaction through intimate the personality enneagram, they favored this version relationships. of Gurdjieff’s teachings as the cornerstone of their

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(Lower) physical center

Figure 6. Gurdjieff’s Two-tiered Version of the Three Centers.

enneagram monthly

union

appetite satisfaction

family

anxiety

Self-preservation subtype

warmth

“me-first”

security refuge

daultlessness

possession/ surrender suggestibility

heat/jealousy

Sexual subtype

strength/ beauty confidence

participation

aggression/ seduction masculinity/ famininity competition/hate

friendship

sacrifice

inadaptibility

ambition

Social subtype

duty

prestige totems

shame

Figure 10. Traditional Labels for the 27 Subtypes.

Social subtype: here the focus is said to be on gaining satisfaction via group participation. I was also taught that enneagram subtypes, like enneagram types, are stable throughout life. And I was taught that the enneagram subtypes describe a set of behaviors that reflects the passions associated with each person’s enneagram type. According to Helen Palmer, “the subtype focus of attention is revealed by a behavior that is motivated by instinct dominated by the passion of type.”14 Sandra Maitri echoes Palmer’s statements, saying that “the passion of our ennea-type comes out most strongly in [the]…arena of life [that is our subtype],” attributing this definition to Claudio Naranjo.15 The subtype is determined by combining the enneagram type with the subtype arena. For each of the nine types, there are three subtype arenas, so there are 27 subtypes in all. Figure 10 shows one common way of labelling the subtypes; the same labels are shown from a point-oriented perspective in Figure 11.16 Both type and subtype are often said to be personality structures that develop as a response to trauma during early childhood. This view is, for example, reflected in Don Riso & Russ Hudson’s assertion that “the Instinctual Variants [aka instinctual subtypes] indicate which of our three basic instincts have been most distorted in childhood.”17 Thus, the enneagram subtypes are considered to be major elements in the ego defense system described by the personality enneagram. So when we study both type and subtype, what we’re learning about are the workings of this ego defense system. The idea is that by learning how this defense system works, we can begin to dismantle it (or perhaps allow it to be dismantled). Within this general framework, there are some differences of opinion about the nature of the subtypes.

fixations. This is significant, because it means that the Helen Palmer and David Daniels teach that subtypes are subtypes have no existence independent of the comentirely a subset of type, an idea that I believe originated plex of attitudes and behaviors that we associate with with Ichazo and Naranjo. However, Don Riso and Russ an unbalanced personality. Hudson teach that subtypes are a system in their own right. It’s for this SP=appetite reason that the two SX=union viewpoints differ in SOC=participation their terminology; SP=satisfaction SP=anxiety 9 Palmer & Daniels SX=possession/ SX=heat/jealousy refer to the subtypes surrender SOC=inadaptibility 8 as instinctual subtypes 1 SOC=friendship while Riso & Hudson call them instinctual variants. Although Riso & SP=”me first” SP=family 2 SX=aggression/ Hudson make a plau7 SX=suggestibility sible case for why they seduction SOC=sacrifice think that subtypes SOC=ambition are an independent way of looking at human activity, their 3 SP=security 6 SP=warmth observations came SX=masculinity/ SX=strength/beauty long after the term feminiity S0C=duty subtype was firmly esSOC=prestige tablished. That’s one 5 4 SP=refuge reason I refer to the SP=dauntlessness SX=confidence SX=competition/hate subtypes in this arSOC=totems SOC=shame ticle. It’s simply more familiar to people in Figure 11. Traditional Subtype Descriptions by Enneagram Point. the enneagram comI find this view of the subtypes hard to accept. In munity. Whatever their differences, both positions have in Part II, I talk in greater detail about the reasons why and delineate an alternative theory about the nature common the idea that subtypes are instinctual in nature—that they arise in the physical (body) center. They of the enneagram types, centers, and subtypes. also share the view that the subtypes operate in conStay tuned, continued in next issue. . . . cert with the emotional passions and the cognitive

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october 2009

enneagram monthly

Enneagram Interactions....

Because the productive as well as the less productive interactions between the styles is highly predictable, anticipate these and make a commitment to engage in behaviors that support an effective work relationship.

The following is an example of how these three principles work, based on the following story of two lawyers with serious interpersonal issues, Robert and Howard. Lawyers at Work Robert and Howard were both senior attorneys at a large firm and could not tolerate being in the same room together. Because Robert, a Three, and Howard, a Six, avoided all contact with each other whenever possible, their hostile relationship was not such a huge problem for them; it did, however, pose an enormous dilemma for the firm. Robert, a rainmaker, provided one-third of the firm’s revenue, while Howard’s area of legal specialization made it necessary for him to be involved in 95 percent of the firm’s cases, including many of Robert’s. As a Three, Robert dismissed Howard because he felt annoyed by what he perceived as Howard’s perpetual worrying and pessimistic attitude. Howard, a Six, perceived Robert as a showman, with more bravado than substance. They worked together when they were absolutely forced to do so. Had Robert and Howard been able to understand how they were each contributing to the situation, the dynamics between them, and what to do to de-escalate the situation, they would have saved the firm a great deal of money and spared themselves undue stress and frustration. The following information about how to do this is excerpted from a section of the Enneagram Learning Portal (“Interactions at Work”), a subscription-based portal that is part of the new The Enneagram in Business website that allows you to follow all three principles at the click of a button. Principle 1: Make yourself easy to work with for everyone by engaging in type-specific self-development activities. For Robert, an Enneagram Style Three, to make himself easy to work with. Others want to work with you because you are probably… Optimistic—Your overall optimism and can-do attitude, even in the face of challenges, encourages others to feel and do the same. Confident and enthusiastic—Your self-confidence makes you the kind of person others like to associate with, and your enthusiasm is contagious. Results and achievement oriented—Others know they can count on you to get things done well. Intellectually bright and pragmatic—Because your mind works quickly and your ideas are pragmatic, others are drawn to working with you.

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october 2009

….CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

Well-organized and focused—Your ability to focus on concrete goals and to organize the work accordingly—both effectively and efficiently—makes you a reliable and valuable partner in work. You can create challenges for others as a result of your potential to be… Abrupt—When your effective interpersonal style turns to abruptness or coldness—usually, when you are stressed or overworked—others want to stay away from you. Competitive—When your competitiveness is focused on your peers or when people begin to see you as overly competitive in general, others are likely to feel distrustful of you. Overdriven and overfocused—Although drive and focus are assets, being overdriven and overfocused gives the strong message that you don’t have time for other people and that nothing will get between you and your goals. Frustrated and agitated when something takes too long, insurmountable obstacles arise, or others don’t do their share of the work—Because you normally appear somewhat relaxed at work and treat obstacles as something you can easily overcome, others can be taken by surprise and not know what to do to help when you become frustrated, agitated, and very angry about such things. Not completely genuine in how you present yourself—When you mask your true feelings and thoughts in an effort to always appear confident and successful, others perceive this and may wonder if you are sincere and genuine. Self-development activities for Robert: Deeply explore your inner thoughts, feelings, ®

and experiences in order to become more genuine…first and foremost, be honest with yourself. It is likely that you have thoughts and feelings that you are somewhat aware of but do not share with others. You may focus on work or activities instead of allowing yourself time to fully experience your feelings. Spend more time honestly exploring your reactions so you are more conscious of them every day. Allot 10 to 15 minutes each evening for reviewing the day’s events and your feelings about them. When you feel something during the day, but immediately dive into work, stop and explore your reactions for 5 minutes. In addition, don’t keep your feelings to yourself; discuss your emotional reactions with others. Go more with the flow of events and experiences and become less driven to continuously try to make things happen…go with the flow. Ask yourself this: Do I really believe that I can make everything happen if I focus on goals and then plan how to get there? Will things fall apart if I don’t? You may believe this to be true. However, you can certainly understand that this belief is both unrealistic and somewhat grandiose—even if you don’t intend grandiosity. When you fully grasp the concept that there is a natural flow and that you can’t actually redirect it, use this realization as a reminder when you go into hyperdrive. You’ll begin to go more with the flow of events. Learn the difference between doing and being, and appreciate yourself for who you are rather than for what you do…sit still for 10 minutes. Do this right now. Most Threes can’t tolerate the thought of doing what they define as nothing and have little concept of how to sit still for more than

Ginger Lapid-Bogda, Ph.D. &

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two minutes. If you have this reaction, this activity is just what you need in order to learn how to be. Simply sit or stand where you are, and do nothing for 10 minutes. Experience what happens. Do this every day, and you will discover being rather than doing. For Howard, an Enneagram Style Six, to make himself easy to work with. Others want to work with you because you are probably… Dedicated—People can usually count on you to be dedicated to your work, the customer, and the coworkers on whom you depend and who depend on you. Humorous and clever—It is likely that you amuse people with spontaneous insights that allow people to laugh at human nature and all its foibles. This creates comic relief for challenging situations at work. Loyal—You consistently demonstrate your loyalty—to your coworkers, bosses, and the organization—and show others that they can count on you, especially in turbulent times. Team oriented—Most Sixes feel that the teams they are on are more like tribes in which each member matters and the team as a whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Team members can count on you to put the team first. Sincere and approachable—Your warmth, understanding, and sincere desire to engage others without pretense makes others feel they can easily talk to you about things they might not feel free to discuss with others. You can create challenges for others as a result of your potential to be… Problem focused—Although you may work hard not to come across in a negative way, the fact that you anticipate problems and issues so readily and then bring them to discussion quickly can cause others to perceive you as pessimistic or not sufficiently future oriented. Continually worried—Even when you don’t discuss your concerns with others, they can sense your worry both by the way you say things and through your nonverbal signals, such as a furrowed brow. This can affect others in several ways: they can be concerned for you but not know what to do; they can feel frustrated or impatient if they perceive you as not moving forward; or they can begin to doubt your ability to handle situations. Projecting onto others—You may not be aware that you project your own thoughts, feelings, motivations, and concerns onto others, believing these— sometimes incorrectly—to also be those of the other person. When your projections are affirmative ones, others may wonder why you are so overly positive; when the projections are negative attributes, others often feel falsely accused. Highly reactive when concerned—You may react more quickly to events than other people do. Others may not have had time to consider their own responses, yet they still feel they have to address your reactions immediately. In addition, some of your strong reactions may feel like overreactions to others. Doubtful and/or suspicious—Your tendency to

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doubt other people, particularly when they perceive no reason for the questions or speculations you raise, can cause them to perceive you as unnecessarily suspicious. Suspiciousness often becomes a vicious circle; you may suspect others and then they in turn wonder about you, which makes you even more suspicious of them. Self development activities for Howard... Learn to differentiate between an insight and a projection (something based on imagination). Pay close attention to your degree of reactivity. When you are trying to discern whether something is a pure projection (something you’ve created in your mind) or a true insight (something that is completely objective and accurate), pay attention to your internal reactivity. If you are highly emotionally reactive, what you’re experiencing is probably a projection rather

If you are highly emotionally reactive, what you’re experiencing is probably a projection rather than an insight. If you are not highly emotionally reactive, it is more likely to be an insight. than an insight. If you are not highly emotionally reactive, it is more likely to be an insight. Ask several other whom you trust—and who are different from you—about their reactions to and interpretations of events to which you have strong reactions. Comparing their responses and yours can be helpful to you in differentiating between an insight and a projection. However, don’t assume that others are correct in their responses and that you are wrong; simply factor their responses into your conclusions. Trust your own inner authority rather than looking to someone or something outside yourself for meaning and certainty. Make a list of 10 things you absolutely know to be true. Because you probably have a great deal of insight and wisdom, although you may doubt these insights when it comes to your own life, it can help if you make a list of 10 things you absolutely know are true. Begin by brainstorming 25 items, then review this list and shorten it to the top 10 items. Put this list in several places where you can review it daily— e.g., on your computer, by your telephone, and on the bathroom mirror. Use this list as a guidepost for your behavior. Have faith in yourself and in others to be able to handle whatever occurs. Anchor your “faith in yourself ” in your body. There have certainly been times when you have made excellent decisions that have worked exceedingly well. Select one of these times, remember what you decided and how you acted, then anchor this memory somewhere in your body (such as your stomach, your shoulders, or your heart area). The next time you begin to doubt yourself, put your attention into that part of your body, remember the experience located there, and allow this memory to give you more faith in your capacity to make wise decisions.

Principle 2: Work effectively with individuals of each style by understanding their reactivity triggers and choosing behaviors that do not trigger negative reactions. If Robert understood the following triggers that ignite a Six’s reactivity and then chose to behave in ways that did not ignite Howards trigger’s, Robert and Howard would have a far better working relationship. What Robert needs to know about Howard: Reactivity Triggers for Sixes Trigger 1: Pressure Sixes put continuous pressure on themselves to make things go well, to reduce the potential for problems, and to keep their commitments. Consequently, they may perceive any pressure from others—even a simple question—as intense pressure, and they may react with anxiety and/or anger. What Robert can do to avoid this trigger in Sixes • Phrase requests to Sixes as something you would like their help with, if they can provide it. • If Sixes respond as though you are pressuring them, particularly when you are not intending to do so, honor their feelings and reassure them that there is plenty of time to consider the issue. • Before discussing non-urgent issues with Sixes, read their body language. If they appear to be already feeling stressed, wait for a more opportune time.

While differentiating between an insight and a projection can be a challenge for Sixes themselves, they become defensive and/or agitated if someone tells them they’re imagining something. Trigger 2: Lack of genuineness and warmth Sixes, like the other two Head Center styles (Five and Seven), have concerns about trust. Sixes, in particular, sense whether they can trust others based in part on the other person’s genuineness or realness and his or her interpersonal warmth. Both factors make Sixes feel safer. What Robert can do to avoid this trigger in Sixes • Be sincere and honest in your interactions with Sixes. • Smile, be warm, and use responsive body language. • Even if your natural style is not interpersonally warm, make sure to maintain eye contact with Sixes, but do so in a receptive rather than overly direct way. Trigger 3: Being told they’re imagining something Although Sixes can be quite insightful, they can also create negative scenarios that are based primarily on their own fears, thoughts, and motivations, projecting these onto others. While differentiating be-

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tween an insight and a projection can be a challenge for Sixes themselves, they become defensive and/ or agitated if someone tells them they’re imagining something. What Robert can do to avoid this trigger in Sixes • Never tell Sixes they are imagining something; instead, ask them for the data behind their perceptions, making sure to do so in a non-accusatory manner. • If Sixes accuse you of doing something you don’t believe you have done, listen to them completely before you respond, then give them your perspective. • When Sixes express a great deal of anxiety and concern, say, “That certainly makes sense from your perspective. I’d like to offer some additional thoughts about what might be occurring.” Trigger 4: Lack of commitment and loyalty Trying to prove that others can count on them, Sixes make every effort to prove their loyalty and commitment to their work and personal relationships as well as to teams on which they participate, to their bosses, and to their organizations. Sixes look for this same behavior in others. What Robert can do to avoid this trigger in Sixes • Make sure your words and actions indicate support for the team, whether you are a team member or a team leader. Explain your intentions and thoughts before you do something rather than having to justify them afterward. • Stand up for Sixes when they feel threatened at work. This means making overt, public displays of support—if you truly feel that way—and providing support for Sixes behind the scenes, such as listening or offering advice. • If Sixes accuse you of not being loyal or committed, find out exactly what they mean before defending yourself, then determine whether there is something you can do to improve the situation. Trigger 5: Abusive use of authority Sixes relate to authority figures with ambivalence, hoping and expecting that they will keep Sixes and others protected and safe and simultaneously being concerned that those with power may wield it in an abusive manner. Sixes also seek solace and support from others at work when they perceive powerful individuals as acting abusively. What Robert can do to avoid this trigger in Sixes • When a Six wants to discuss concerns about authority with you—whether you are the authority figure or a coworker—listen without discounting the Six’s perspective. • When Sixes want you to take action against authority figures whom they consider abusive, be clear about what you think, feel, and are willing or unwilling to do. Sixes prefer this clarity to being promised support that is then not forthcoming. • Realize that when Sixes are concerned about abuse, they are likely feeling highly anxious. Help them reduce their anxiety by aiding them

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in understanding alternative, and equally legitimate, perspectives—if there are any—and helping them to consider various options for action, some of which do not entail either passive withdrawal or confrontational action. If Howard understood the following triggers that ignite a Three’s reactivity and then chose to behave in ways that did not ignite Robert’s triggers, Howard and Robert would have a far better working relationship. What Howard needs to know about Robert: Reactivity Triggers for Threes Being in a position of potential failure Threes focus on reaching goals, achieving success, and avoiding failure. When they feel they may be in a situation where failure is looming, they go into overdrive, try to circumvent the situation to prevent it from occurring, and/or become anxious and angry. What Howard can do to avoid this trigger in Threes • IIf the Three’s work product or results are in any way dependent on your work product or any behavior on your part, make sure that your work is of good quality and that your behavior supports the Three’s success. • IListen to the Three’s concerns about work or work relationships, and help them problemsolve when issues arise. • IAvoid discussing failures; frame concerns as ways to achieve better results or to become more efficient and effective. Not looking good professionally Threes not only want to be successful, but they also want to appear that way. They work very hard to appear self-confident and professional; they try to make it look easy even when they are actually putting forth a great deal of effort. Threes become quite agitated when they believe their image is being tarnished and like to be around others who appear confident and professional, believing that this reflects positively on them. What Howard can do to avoid this trigger in Threes • INever embarrass Threes in public. Ask them challenging questions and give them feedback when others are not present. • IIf you work with or for a Three, or if a Three works for you, make sure you maintain a professional image at all times and keep your composure under duress. • IWhen Threes share concerns or anxieties with you, take this as a sign of respect, listen closely, and offer support and ideas to help them problem solve. Being blamed for the poor work of others Because Threes abhor failure, they will do whatever is necessary to make their work efforts successful. This includes redoing the work of others that is sub-par, which they resent but do anyway. However, in situations where they end up being blamed for the inferior work of others, they become very distressed.

What Howard can do to avoid this trigger in Threes • IIf you are on a team with a Three, do everything you can to achieve an excellent work product. • IIf you manage Threes, try to make sure they work with others who are highly competent and motivated. Make certain you know what work Threes have done as opposed to what others have done, and communicate this to third parties. • IIf you have a Three manager, make sure your work is good and also that it looks good. Your Three manager will perceive your work as a reflection on him or her. Not receiving credit for work they have done Threes like to be acknowledged for what they have done. This does not mean they want excessive applause or effusive accolades in public. They just want to know they have done well and that others respect them for it. When this does not occur, they can become very de-motivated. What Howard can do to avoid this trigger in Threes • ITell Threes you appreciate their work, whether you are their manager, peer, or subordinate. • IThe more specific you can be about what the Three did and the effect of his or her behavior, without going into excessive detail, the more the Three will appreciate what you say. • IMake sure you don’t take credit or give someone else credit for work the Three has done. Having to discuss emotional issues at length Although Threes are one of the three Heart Center styles (along with Twos and Fours), they don’t like to dwell on emotions at length, whether the feelings are theirs or another’s. Discussing emotions at length distracts them from their work and goal focus, even if lengthier discussions might be beneficial for them or the other person. What Howard can do to avoid this trigger in Threes • IDiscuss emotional issues when Threes are not overworked or exhausted. • IThink through beforehand what you want to discuss so you will be focused during the discussion: keep the agenda short—unless they want to extend the time -- and emphasize practical solutions. • ITry not to do anything that could elicit in Threes the feeling that they have done something terribly wrong. Use a problem-solving approach framed in terms of making things better rather than if pointing out what is wrong. Principle 3: Understand the predictable work dynamics between the styles, and engage in behaviors that enhance these relationships. If both Robert, a Three, and Howard, a Six, understood the predictable relationship dynamics between Threes and Sixes as well as how to enhance these relationships, Howard and Robert would have a far better working relationship. When Threes and Sixes Work Well Together Threes and Sixes at work often have complex rela-

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tionships. Because Threes and Sixes are on arrow lines to each other on the Enneagram, it is quite common for Threes to have a number of Enneagram style Six characteristics and vice versa. This movement— although it doesn’t change the basic or core characteristics of their types, it simply provides possible new dimensions to the personality—enables Threes and Sixes to understand each other well and to also appreciate one another. For example, Threes often cite their respect for the insight, thoughtfulness, and depth of Six coworkers, and Sixes frequently have respect and admiration for the ability of many Threes

Threes and Sixes understand and appreciate one another. For example, Threes often cite their respect for the insight, thoughtfulness, and depth of Six coworkers, and Sixes frequently have respect and admiration for the ability of many Threes to appear so at ease and confident and to take action so readily. to appear so at ease and confident and to take action so readily. Most often, when Threes show movement to incorporate some aspects of style Six, they tend to become more incisive in their thinking and verbal expression, more focused on the importance of teaming, and more expressive of their anxiety when they feel it, something they typically try hard to not display. Most typically, when Sixes show movement to incorporate some aspect of style Three, they tend to appear more confident, goal-focused, and resultsdriven, which provides an antidote to their tendency to analyze excessively before taking action. Threes and Sixes can also appreciate one another’s humor, with the Three’s humor, which focuses on emergent topics, being bolder or more direct in nature, and the Six’s humor being more cerebral, caustic, and oblique. While Three’s tend to be most amusing when they are relaxed or slightly tired— otherwise they tend to be more serious or become sarcastic—Sixes tend to be funniest when they are slightly stressed and somewhat frustrated, using humor as a way of blowing off steam. Both Threes and Sixes tend to make jokes about human interactions, specific individuals, or the existential nature of being human, so their content areas overlap and support a mutually enjoyable relationship. Trouble Spots between Threes and Sixes Threes and Sixes can also have a volatile relationship, one that may not be immediately apparent even to them. Although they can admire and enjoy one another, at the same time, they can experience one another as troubling and/or annoying. In many instances, their response to each other triggers something deep inside them that they believe at first has everything to do with the other person and little to do with themselves. Threes, consciously and unconsciously, make a concerted effort to appear confident, successful, at ease, and optimistic, trying to cover or hide feelings

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of anxiety, stress, and uncertainty. In addition, their results orientation creates a forward movement in them that has them generally assume there will be few obstacles in their path and when these arise, they can be dealt with at that time. Sixes, by contrast, are advance problem-solvers, creating anticipatory scenarios—sometimes instantaneous ones and at other times, through a more extended analytical process. Their proclivity is to plan in advance in order to remove so they can feel prepared. Sixes want to be able to choose the best path or to clear the way to achieving the desired outcomes, and this is not something they can easily hide from others. In fact, Sixes often verbalize their thought processes and even when they are less vocal about them, their concerns and inner

Threes appear confident, and optimistic, trying to hide feelings of uncertainty. Sixes, by contrast, are advance problemsolvers, creating anticipatory scenarios—instantaneous ones or through a more extended analytical process.

reactions to their anticipatory planning often shows in their behavior—for example, not wanting to move to action before these concerns have been discussed, the appearance of tension on their faces through a furrowed brow, tense facial muscles, or concern in their eyes. It’s not that Threes are never anxious; they are but they purposely hide it. It’s not that Sixes aren’t successful or confident; they simply use anticipatory planning as the road to success and their questioning orientation can make them appear uncertain. All of this is to say that Threes can become quite irritated with what they perceive as the Sixes can’t do attitude. Threes often interpret the questioning as holding them back. In addition, because Threes work hard to hide their own anxiety, they can become incredulous at why someone else might not be so concerned about their public image and keep their concerns to themselves. The other side of this is how Sixes can perceive Threes. Sixes, who tend to appear very human, including showing both their foibles and their strengths, can perceive Threes as disingenuous and superficial, and, therefore, untrustworthy. Trust is as essential to Sixes in work relationships as appearing successful and associating with confident people is to Threes. Thus, both Threes and Sixes can dislike in the other the areas in which they have not acknowledged or fully developed themselves. How Threes and Sixes can enhance their Relationship Threes can work to be more forthcoming with Sixes about their own anxieties and Sixes can work on stating their concerns in a more action oriented manner—for example, rather than raising something in the negative, they can say the same idea with a solution attached. Instead of a Six saying, “What if we don’t have the money to fund such a project?”, Sixes can say, “money could be a concern, but we could

fund the project in this way.” Threes and Sixes can learn to recognize the dynamic between them that could deteriorate into a negative spiral. The more Threes push forward without considering various obstacles, the more Sixes feel a need to articulate them. The more Sixes raise concerns, the more Threes feel compelled to move forward. However, when Threes begin to name obstacles early on and when Sixes make suggestions

The more Threes push forward without considering various obstacles, the more Sixes feel a need to articulate them. The more Sixes raise concerns, the more Threes feel compelled to move forward. about moving forward, the dynamic between them becomes synergistic rather than combative. Threes and Sixes can learn a great deal from emulating one another, and these areas of development make both individuals more effective. Threes can learn how to access their insights from Sixes, simply by watching how they do it and then spending more time analyzing situations. Sixes can learn how to move beyond their tendency to analyze situations in great detail and move to action more quickly by emulating how Threes focus on precise goals, then plan against these goals and not against every possible contingency. Summary Robert and Howard can use the Enneagram to resolve their own interpersonal issues, for their own good and for the benefit of the firm. Because Robert and Howard work in different legal areas of specialty in the firm, their direct managers—called practice leaders—can also use the Enneagram to understand both the interactions between Robert and Howard and then how to coach each of these lawyers to improve the relationship. In addition, the practice leaders can use “Interactions at Work” on The Enneagram Learning Portal to understand the dynamics of their own Enneagram styles with Robert and Howard in the manager-employee relationship and during the performance review, should they need to raise these issues during that time. __________ Ginger Lapid-Bogda, Ph.D., has worked as a consultant, trainer, and coach for over 35 years and is the author of three Enneagram-business books: Bringing Out the Best in Yourself at Work, What Type of Leader Are You? and her latest book, Bringing Out the Best in Everyone You Coach (November, 2009). In addition, she has certified over 500 professionals worldwide; provides state-of-the-art Enneagrambusiness training materials available in multiple languages; and conducts both Train-the-Trainer programs and a coaching certificate program. The EnneagraminBusiness.com provides comprehensive Enneagram-business information as well as e-learning opportunities on the Enneagram Learning Portal. [email protected]. •

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Enneagram Teachers A.H. Almaas (Ridhwan) www.ahalmaas.com Arica® Institute Kent, CT (860) 927-1006 info@ arica.org, www.arica.org Carolyn Bartlett and John Reynolds Ft. Collins CO 970-484-7868 www.insightforchange.com Betsey Bittlingmaier New Hope PA (215) 297-0563 Mark Bodnarczuk Breckenridge, CO 1-800303-2554, www.divingin.com Dennis Butler Kansas City, MO (913) 2549999 [email protected] Ginger Lapid-Bogda (310) 829-3309 S.Monica, CA [email protected] Loretta Brady Chgo IL (847) 491-1367 Mary Ann Briley-Emmons Vilas NC 828-9636911 [email protected] Evelyn Challis Santa Monica, CA, 310-453-8753 [email protected] Toni Marie Clifton S.Rafael CA (415) 339-8668; NC 910-933-9305 www.enneagramcenter.com Claire Cloutier & Pat Helin Ben Lomond, CA 831-336-8813 [email protected] Mona Coates Huntington Beach CA (714) 9683418 Tom Condon (541) 382-1894 Gloria Cuevas-Barnett Phoenix AZ [email protected] (602) 996-7768 David Daniels Palo Alto CA 650 329-0994 Enneagram Center/Ohio Valley Cincinnati (513) 723-5054; Dayton (937) 643-0091, Louisville (502) 339-8849 Enneagram Institute: Albuquerque: Brian Grodner 505-255-8682 x186; Atlanta: Gloria White 770-452-0494 enneagramofatl@bellsouth. net; Baltimore: Ann Kirby 410-663-2587 [email protected]; Boulder: Catherine Breeding 970-227-3551; Gayle Scott 303-5455767; Columbus, OH: [email protected] Belinda Gore 614-227-9903; Philadelphia: Sarah Aschenbach [email protected] 610-486-0552 San Francisco: Roxanne Howe-Murphy, 650-726-3353

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This is a free listing we provide as a service to the Enneagram community. Submissions by subscribers will be included as space allows. This listing is not an endorsement. 3975 [email protected] Edward E. Morler Sonoma CA (707) 935-7797 [email protected] www.morler.com Peter O’Hanrahan [email protected] Norm Ouellet Providence RI (401) 353-0825 [email protected] Renee Owen LMFT San Rafael CA 415-453-8117 Helen Palmer (Enneagram Studies) [email protected] or 866-ENN-TYPE Susan Rhodes Seattle WA www.enneagramdimensions.net Don Riso & Russ Hudson (212) 932-3306 [email protected] Joan R. Ryan, JD, Boston, MA, 617-796-0192, [email protected] Terry Saracino SF CA (650) 854-7234 or [email protected] Carolyn Schuham Boulder CO (303) 440-5740 [email protected] Gayle Scott Boulder CO (303) 545-5767 www. enneagayle.com Judith Searle Santa Monica CA (310) 393-5372 jsearle479@aolcom Louise Phipps Senft (Baltimore Mediation) www.BaltimoreMediation.com 443-524-0833 Noreen Shaughnessy St.Paul MN 651-207-5491 Mario Sikora Philadelphia, PA; [email protected] (215) 739-8144 Sandra Smith, Asheville, NC 828-684-2339 [email protected] Dennis Tallon Denver CO 303-751-0830 [email protected] Lois Miller-Tallon Portland, OR [email protected] or 503-230-9642 Donna Thome Milw. WI (414) 423-6703 Elizabeth Wagele Berkeley CA 510-841-7691 [email protected] Jerome Wagner Chicago IL (800) 424-1238 Eric Wheeler LaCrosse WI (608) 785-7383 [email protected] Pat Wyman Ballwin, MO 314-941-8790

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