There are lots things to say about the Enneagram, a spiritual personality system comprised of nine ways of approaching the world. But the most important thing to know about it is this:
The Enneagram is like Kryptonite to the ego.
Just like that alien mineral had the power to deprive Superman of his powers, so the Enneagram has the capacity to dismantle the blind spots and personality traits that get in the way of living a happy, fulfilling life.
In other words, it kicks some serious spiritual ass.
I’ve written about the Enneagram before. Here’s a post with some basic info about the system. Here’s another post about the animal archetypes Melissa and I developed for each type.
If you’re already an Enneagram freak like me, Hello! So glad you’re here.
If you’re not already an Enneagram freak like me, here’s a little story to pique your interest. (The story is also for the Enneagram freaks. Freaks and Non Freaks alike – Listen up!)
I’m an Enneagram Five. Fives have a tendency to minimize their needs in order to avoid relying on others or being vulnerable.
Actually, tendency is perhaps too mild a word. Some Enneagram teachers use the term fixation to describe it.
(In the spirit of further interest piquing, the fixations of each type are as follows: One – Resentment, Two – Flattery, Three – Vanity, Four – Melancholy, Five – Stinginess, Six – Cowardice, Seven – Planning, Eight – Vengeance, Nine – Sloth.)
Fixations are powerful things. They’re invasive. Like mold.
Or an earworm of, say, “Let It Go” from Frozen.
And, like mold or an annoying song, fixations won’t give up easily. They take over everything.
For a Five, the fixation to minimize your needs to stay “safe” can show up in the weirdest of places.
Like kitty litter.
Check it out:
Our cat Guru Max uses a litter box as part of his spiritual practice. I think it’s because he’s teaching us to care for others by blessing us with his offerings on a daily.
And yet while I am being blessed and strengthened by the practice of caring for the Guru, I bring my Five fixation with me. In this case, I bring my minimization tendencies. (I’ma gonna use that word instead of stinginess. Cuz I can.)
My stinginess minimization tendencies caused me to use the smallest amount of litter in the Guru’s box. Not just to save money, but also because I convinced myself that it somehow made everything easier to have less. Less less less. The song of the Five.
[()] (Just for kicks, here are the songs of the other eight types. Ones – Wrong wrong wrong. Twos – You you you. Threes – Achieve achieve achieve. Fours – Woe woe woe. Six – Scary scary scary. Sevens – Plan plan plan. Eights – Fuck you! Nines – Ignore ignore ignore.)
The beauty of the Enneagram is that it hacks your song. It causes you to wake up, even just slightly, and question your fixation.
So there I was, singing my less less less song in relation to the Guru’s litter, and I woke up.
Why is it better to have less litter? Maybe I should try using a bit more. Or even lots more. Oooooooooh. How bold and radical of me! Let’s give it a try. Less less less! More more more!
And that’s what I did. I doubled the amount of litter in the Guru’s box, and guess what?
It was easier to use. It was easier to clean. Everything about the whole experience was sooooo much better. I luxuriated in the abundance and flow of kitty litter.
As I did so, I watched my Five song slip away. Even though it was just in this one area, releasing the less less less – even a little – made an impact.
Just as I was allowing an abundance of Guru litter, so too could I allow an abundance of love. And peace. And abundance of all kinds.
What a concept!
So if you’re not already an Enneagram freak, I highly highly highly recommend checking it out. The system allows you to be hip to your blind spots – and the song that supports them – in a way that nothing else does.
Whether it’s the Less less less of the Five, the Achieve achieve achieve of the Three, or even the glorious Fuck you! of our friends the Eights, that little tune in our heads can hijack our happiness.
And who wants their happiness hijacked?
Not me!
Not you either! (Just sayin.)
So bust out the badass spiritual Kryptonite of the Enneagram and watch your life change for the better.
What’s your experience with the Enneagram? Share your comments below!
