The Enneagram

The Enneagram (pronounced ‘any-a-gram’ - with the emphasis on ‘any’) is a powerful and dynamic system that describes nine distinct and fundamentally different personality types, each having its own pattern of thinking, feeling, and acting. It incorporates very ancient wisdom from different paths of personal and spiritual growth accumulated over thousands of years, yet this knowledge is as relevant now as it would have been when taught in ancient times. Life may have changed out of all recognition, yet the way the knowledge of the Enneagram can help us in modern times makes this essential wisdom and understanding one of the most important ways for humanity to move forward, both on an individual and a global basis.

The Enneagram brings about understanding, compassion and acceptance of ourselves and others. It leads to greater peace and harmony in relationships and fulfilment of our greatest potential.

It shows us:

• what motivates us.
• what drives us.
• what matters most to us and why.
• what we are unconsciously seeking.
• what causes our relationships to flourish or flounder.
• what we need to focus on for our personal and spiritual growth.

It helps us understand:

• our internal emotional reactions.
• our defence mechanisms.
• our behaviour and the behaviour of others.
• how our self-defeating patterns cause us difficulty and pain.
• our highest qualities and purpose in life.

Without self-knowledge we cannot get very far on our personal or spiritual journey, nor can we sustain whatever progress we have made. Until we can let go of our self-defeating patterns we will always find ourselves slipping back into our old ways.

Very few programmes for personal or spiritual growth take into account the fact that there are many different personality types - telling some types to focus more on their feelings is like throwing water over a drowning man; telling other types that they need to be more assertive is as likely to be effective as pushing against a wall!

Through the Enneagram we discover and understand our true selves, and see our negative patterns clearly without self-criticism or ego. This knowledge can then lead us to use our gifts to the full, attract and maintain healthy relationships, and lead happier and more fulfilling lives.

A Brief History of the Enneagram

In ancient times the wisdom of the Enneagram was taught as an essential part of education and growth. It was entirely accepted as a part of life. At what point in history the knowledge was lost is unknown, but aspects of it can be recognised in spiritual philosophy of many different traditions, from the teachings of the Sufis to the Jewish Kabbalah. The Enneagram symbol was rediscovered at the end of the nineteenth century but it was not until the 1950’s that there was some understanding of the nine personality types and their relation to the figure. Since then, many people have sought to fit religious and psychological theory into the Enneagram, which at best, has given only a limited understanding of its wisdom and knowledge, and at worst has been misleading.

On the Enneagram Programme only the pure knowledge is taught, undistorted by modern theory, giving depth, insight and balance not offered before.

An important note, especially for those with some knowledge about the Enneagram:

There are many opportunities to discover your Enneagram type – many books and questionnaires are available for this purpose – but it is important to understand that knowing whether you are a type 2, a type 7, or whatever, is not the purpose of the Enneagram knowledge. The purpose is to see yourself honestly and clearly, including recognising and acknowledging your most unhealthy traits, how they cause you pain and difficulty and how to let them go. Ultimately the Enneagram is about spiritual growth, and becoming all that you were meant to be.

When using only a book or an impersonal questionnaire to find our type, it can be very hard to acknowledge the less acceptable aspects of our personality, and so some people are only willing to acknowledge in themselves the positive or high functioning traits of their type. This form of self-delusion means the Enneagram knowledge cannot benefit them in terms of their emotional or spiritual growth.

Worse still, because some people want to see themselves in a more acceptable or attractive light, they are highly likely to mis-identify their type and then the Enneagram is of no use at all.
When we are prepared to look at ourselves clearly and honestly, we maybe exposed to truths about ourselves that have never been known before, or we may experience old fears, hurts or anger. Yet it takes courage to go there. If we reject these aspects of ourselves we cannot achieve real growth.

For this reason, the best place to identify your personality type is in a compassionate, healing environment, within which you can begin stripping away the most destructive parts of the personality. The Enneagram Programme provides just such an environment.

Veronica, your programme leader, is highly experienced in helping people to understand their personality type clearly, and an essential part of this programme is a Soul freedom Process which involves gently and permanently letting go of the most negative and self-defeating aspects of your type.

The Enneagram Programme, Fig Tree Farm, Butterleigh, Cullompton, Devon, EX15 1PQ, UK
tel: +44 (0) 1884 855759 ~ email: enquiries@enneagram-uk.com

© Veronica Croft 2008