WHAT IS THE ENNEAGRAM?

In the sections below, we describe the Enneagram's main ideas and how the system works. Click the buttons to navigate.

What is the Enneagram?

The Enneagram is not just a personality system — it is a symbolic map of movement and transformation, rooted in esoteric mathematics, music theory, the law of octaves, the law of three, and the law of seven as taught by Gurdjieff.  *(Read more)*

Each of its 9 points represents a relationship to the core need/question of one of the three Centers of Intelligence (Body, Heart, Head),

Each point is situated between two adjacent types (its wings). Just as a musical scale naturally moves from one tone to the next, each type falls into one of the two adjacent expressions to stabilize or express its core motivation.

Centers

These survival strategies are not random — they organize themselves around three primary areas of awareness known as the Centers of Intelligence: The Gut, the Heart, and the Head

These centers are the foundational systems through which the identity processes reality in an attempt to restore inner stability after the original wound. 

As a result, each individual has one of these centers working overtime.

Each core Enneagram type emerges from a unique sensitivity — a predisposition that comes into the world with a particular motivational imprint. 

When that core motivation is disrupted, the child experiences it as a threat to their essential orientation.

IF you want to know more, check the Centers of Intelligence page.