Note: While there are a number of interpretations of and uses for the Enneagram, the two most well known practitioners are: Helen Palmer’s Enneagram Worldwide and The Enneagram Institute, founded by Don Richard Riso and Russ Hudson.  Because of variations in descriptions and approach you may be more drawn to one or the other (or blend them as I have), so I am highlighting each of them in separate posts.  For information from Enneagram Worldwide, see May 11, 2006 post: What is the Enneagram? Part 1.

~ The Enneagram Institute ~

founded by Don Richard Riso and Russ Hudson

The Enneagram of Personality Types is a modern synthesis of a number of ancient wisdom traditions, but the person who originally put the system together was Oscar Ichazo.  Ichazo was born in Bolivia, raised there and in Peru, and studied in Buenos Aires and in Asia, gathering other knowledge before returning to South America to begin putting together a systematic approach to all he had learned.

After many years of developing his ideas, he created the AricaSchool, teaching in Chile in the late 1960's and early 70's, before moving to the United States where he still resides.  

In 1970 a group of Americans, including noted psychologists and writers Claudio Naranjo and John Lilly, went to Arica, Chile to study with Ichazo and to experience firsthand the methods for attaining self-realization that he had developed.  This group spent several weeks with Ichazo, learning the basics of his system and engaged in the practices he taught them.

Among the highlights for many of the participants was a system of teachings based on the ancient symbol of the Enneagram.  The Enneagram symbol has roots in antiquity and can be traced back at least as far as the works of Pythagoras.  However, the "Traditional Enneagram" only goes back to the 1960's when Ichazo was first teaching it, although the philosophy behind the Enneagram contains components from mystical Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Taoism, Buddhism, and ancient Greek philosophy (particularly Socrates, Plato, and the Neo-Platonists)—all traditions that stretch back into antiquity.

From one point of view, the Enneagram can be seen as a set of nine distinct personality types, with each number on the Enneagram denoting one type.  It is common to find a little of yourself in all nine of the types, although one of them should stand out as being closest to yourself.  This is your basic personality type.

Everyone emerges from childhood with one of the nine types dominating their personality, with inborn temperament and other pre-natal factors being the main determinants of our type.  This is one area where most all of the major Enneagram authors agree—we are born with a dominant type.  Subsequently, this inborn orientation largely determines the ways in which we learn to adapt to our early childhood environment.  It also seems to lead to certain unconscious orientations toward our parental figures, but why this is so, we still do not know. In any case, by the time children are four or five years old, their consciousness has developed sufficiently to have a separate sense of self.  Although their identity is still very fluid, at this age children begin to establish themselves and find ways of fitting into the world on their own.

The Nine Types and Four Key Descriptors

1 THE REFORMER

The Rational, Idealistic Type:

Principled, Purposeful, Self-Controlled, and Perfectionistic

2 THE HELPER

The Caring, Interpersonal Type:

Demonstrative, Generous, People-Pleasing, and Possessive

3 THE ACHIEVER

The Success-Oriented, Pragmatic Type:

Adaptive, Excelling, Driven, and Image-Conscious

4 THE INDIVIDUALIST

The Sensitive, Withdrawn Type:

Expressive, Dramatic, Self-Absorbed, and Temperamental

5 THE INVESTIGATOR

The Intense, Cerebral Type:

Perceptive, Innovative, Secretive, and Isolated

6 THE LOYALIST

The Committed, Security-Oriented Type:

Engaging, Responsible, Anxious, and Suspicious

7 THE ENTHUSIAST

The Busy, Fun-Loving Type:

Spontaneous, Versatile, Distractible, and Scattered

8 THE CHALLENGER

The Powerful, Dominating Type:

Self-Confident, Decisive, Willful, and Confrontational

9 THE PEACEMAKER

The Easygoing, Self-Effacing Type:

Receptive, Reassuring, Agreeable, and Complacent

For more information: The Enneagram Institute 

Buddhist Meditation May Produce

Lasting Changes in the Brain

By Jennifer Warner

Reviewed By Brunilda Nazario, MD
on Wednesday, November 10, 2004
WebMD Medical News

Nov. 10, 2004 -- Meditation may not only produce a calming effect, but new research suggests that the practice of Buddhist meditation may produce lasting changes in the brain. 

Researchers found that monks who spent many years in Buddhist meditation training show significantly greater brain activity in areas associated with learning and happiness than those who have never practiced meditation.  The results suggest that long-term mental training, such as Buddhist meditation, may prompt both short and long-term changes in brain activity and function.

Buddhist Meditation May Change the Brain

In the study, which appears in this week's online edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science, researchers compared the brain activity of eight long-time Buddhist monks and 10 healthy students.  The average age of the monks was 49, and each had undergone mental training in meditation for 10,000 to 50,000 hours over the course of 15 to 40 years.  The students' average age was 21. They had no prior experience in meditation and received one week of meditative training before the start of the study.

Both groups were asked to practice compassionate meditation, which does not require concentration on specific things. Instead, the participants are instructed to generate a feeling of love and compassion without drawing attention to a particular objects.

Researchers measured brain activity before, during and after meditation using electroencephalograms.  They found striking differences between the two groups in a type of brain activity called gamma wave activity, which is involved in mental processes including attention, working memory, learning and conscious perception.

The Buddhist monks had a higher level of this sort of gamma wave activity before they began meditation, and this difference increased dramatically during meditation. In fact, researchers say the extremely high levels of gamma wave activity are the highest ever reported.

The monks also had more activity in areas associated with positive emotions, such as happiness.

Researchers say the fact that the monks had higher levels of this type of brain activity before meditation began suggests that long-term practice of Buddhist or other forms of meditation may alter the brain.

Although age differences may also account for some of the differences found by this study, researchers say that the hours of meditation practice, rather than age, significantly predicted gamma wave activity.

Researchers say more studies are needed to look at whether differences in brain activity are caused by long-term meditation training itself or by individual differences before training.

SOURCE: Lutz, A. Proceedings of the National Academy of Science, online early edition, Nov. 8, 2004.

Acupressure therapists receive training at schools such as the Acupressure Institute in Berkeley, California, or at certified massage schools.  Since acupressure involves massage, it is important to find someone you feel comfortable with.  A word-of-mouth recommendation from a friend or co-worker may be the best place to start.  A phone conversation with the therapist before your first visit may help you determine if you are comfortable to proceed with your appointment.

During a treatment, which can last anywhere from 15 minutes to nearly an hour depending on the severity of the problem, an acupressure therapist may have you sit or lie on a massage table.  Some acupressure therapists will work through clothing; others will ask you to undress (you will be covered with a towel).

The therapist will then locate and work on the specific points that relate to your condition.  Pressing a point behind your knee, for example, can help address low back pain.  Or pressing a point on the top of the foot may help ease the pain of migraine.  Typically, the therapist will press each point for about three to ten seconds (longer in some cases).  The points may be pressed and released repeatedly.  If the problem doesn't respond after about 20 to 30 minutes of treatment, acupressure may not be effective for you on that particular day, or for that particular ailment.  After a treatment, you will probably feel looser and more relaxed.  You may experience a slight achiness, but you shouldn't be in pain.  Within three to eight visits, you should know whether the treatment is working for your ailment.  Stress management usually requires a series of about six regular (weekly or monthly) treatments.

There are many different types of acupressure, and each practitioner may draw from a variety of methods.  One of the most popular is shiatsu, a Japanese technique based on ancient Chinese principles, which involves applying strong pressure with thumbs and hands to rub and press acupressure points.  In the Chinese acupressure variation known as Tui Na, practitioners use their hands for massage-like kneading motions.  Reflexology is a type of acupressure that involves pressure points on the feet and sometimes the hands.

Even if you prefer to do acupressure on yourself, you may wish to see an acupressure practitioner for a visit or two first to help you learn where the particular acupressure points are on your body.

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"With an eye made quiet by the power of harmony, and the deep power of joy, we see into the life of things."

- William Wordsworth

 

Hundreds of dewdrops to greet the dawn,
Hundreds of bees in the purple clover,
Hundreds of butterflies on the lawn,
But only one mother the wide world over.

~ George Cooper

Oh, the comfort, the inexpressible comfort of feeling safe with a person, having neither to weigh thoughts nor measure words, but pouring them all out, just as they are, chaff and grain together, certain that a faithful hand will take and sift them, keep what is worth keeping, and with a breath of kindness blow the rest away.

~ Dinah Craik

Source: The Quote Garden

http://www.quotegarden.com/

The word chakra is Sanskrit for wheel or disk and according to tradition signifies one of seven basic energy centers in the body.  It is widely thought that keeping the energy in the chakras unblocked and balanced can help support good health and internal harmony (see May 1, 2006 post: What are the Chakras?).

Focusing on the First Chakra may help release blocked energy in the base of the spine and pelvic regions.  Meditating on the First Chakra may also help generate a sense of stability and a more grounded state of being.

The First Chakra is located on the perineum at the bottom of the pelvis, between the thighs and behind the genital area.  Also known as the "Root Chakra," this energy center flows out of the sacral nerve plexus and is associated with the color red.

Bring your attention to the First Chakra and imagine energy flowing out from its center, radiating outward and downward into the ground.  If you can picture the color red in your mind’s eye, see the chakra energy as a vivid red as it swirls outward to include the base of the spine and the genital area and then radiates downward.  Imagine a strong sense of connection to the ground underneath you and to the Earth.  Allow yourself to feel supported by the First Chakra energy as it connects to the Earth.

Continue working with the grounding, stabilizing energy of the First Chakra until you are ready to end your meditation or to shift to another focus (if you wish to continue with the next chakra, see May 20, 2006 post - Chakra Focus: Second Chakra).

-  A.G.R

 

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The Enneagram

by Helen Palmer

It would be impossible for most of us to spend a day without coming into direct or indirect contact with dozens of people — family, friends, people in the street, at the office, on television, in our fantasies and fears.  Our relationships with others are the most changeable, infuriating, pleasurable and mystifying elements in our lives.

Personality types, based on the ancient system of the Enneagram, will help you to enjoy more satisfying and fulfilling relationships in all areas of your life by introducing you to the nine basic personality types inherent in human nature.  This knowledge will help you better understand how others think and why they behave as they do, as well as increasing your awareness of your own individual personality.

Written by the leading world authority on the Enneagram, it offers a framework for understanding ourselves and those around us, as well as a wealth of practical insights for anyone interested in psychology, counselling, teaching, social work, journalism and personal management.

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Helen Palmer is a pioneer in the development and interpretation of the Enneagram.  This book was my introduction to this powerful system and had a profound impact on my understanding of self and others.  - A.G.R