The Enneagram’s Source
The Enneagram came to the west via George Gurdjieff and subsequently through the teachings of Oscar Ichazo and Claudio Naranjo. The Enneagram has developed into a way of helping people to understand themselves by looking at the behaviors that get in their way. Helen Palmer is one of the psychologists who helped to introduce the Enneagram. She says in her Enneagram book that they decided the best way to tell people’s type was through looking at their phobias and negative personality traits.
The Enneagram Typing Method
There are several of ways of determining your Enneatype: either through a panel of experts, observation, or self-selection using questions or type descriptions. The Enneagram typing method thus depends on observational or self-answered questions on personal beliefs and behavior. You might have taken a test or a quiz to determine your Enneatype that was free on the internet.
Challenges of This Process in Determining Natural Number
We are rarely seen clearly by the world around us and we rarely see ourselves clearly. Natural Number does not repeat in families, unless there are more than nine people. This means we are raised by people of a different Natural Number, who often expect us to be like they are. None of our family members understand how our bodies are different, how that affects who we are, and what we care about. This means we are rarely effectively supported in our strengths.
As a result, when left to our beautiful minds, we rarely accurately self-report our core characteristics or are even able to see them. We are more likely to pick what we would like to be or think we should be, than what we are. Or, we choose from the ways we have learned to cope – the nurture, not the nature.
What Are The Differences Between the Body of 9 and the Enneagram Method?
The Enneagram and the Body of 9 are not contradictory to one another, but we do believe our context balances and builds on its teachings. In many ways, the Enneagram and the Body of 9 are very similar. They both acknowledge the existence of nine distinct personalities within humanity. They both believe that understanding your unique type will help you better understand yourself and others. They both believe that this knowledge will help you live a better life personally and professionally.
Though they share these qualities, these two concepts remain very distinct from one another. The Body of 9 seeks to explain your ‘nature,’ not your ‘nurture.’ We believe that it is not just the way you develop socially, but that your skills, abilities and attributes can be predicted by the structure of your bones, muscles, facia, facial features, eye quality, and movement centers. We also believe that you can find ways to harness the power of the other eight Natural Numbers to become a more whole and fulfilled human being.
Another difference in our work to that of the Enneagram,is that we teach the activation of the primary region that defines tone’s Natural Number. It is clear to us that the Natural Number region has more than just a passive effect on a person’s existence. It does, after all, affect what they care about, how they process data, use their eyes, form relationships and even the region from which they start their movements.
Acknowledgement and activation of the primary region produces immediate and positive changes including self validation, becoming less fearful and having a more positive attitude. There is some evidence that people who have learned the simple physical adjustment that activates their primary region are measurably happier and feel more on track with their lives within 6 months. Teaching the conscious activation of a person’s primary region gets them back ‘into the zone’.
But that is just their own region. We also teach the activation of the other 8 regions. We have had 2 graduating classes since 2019 with students learning to activate all 9 regions in their bodies. Each additional activation provides a more complete awareness of the environment in which one resides, and by the time all 9 regions are activated, that person’s life is permanently changed, to become a more whole human being.
Will My Enneatype and Natural Number Match?
After working with thousands of people who know both their Enneatype and their Natural Number, we cannot conclude from our data that a person’s Enneatype is likely to directly match their Natural Number. Due to the fact that identification of one’s Enneatype often reflects the way a person has learned to cope through the experiences and traumas of their life, we see the Enneagram as a reflection of the Nurture, rather than the Nature of an Individual. Enneatype is determined from behaviors where Natural Number is determined by your physiology and how your body develops.
So while the Enneagram has great value, it is not a perfect predictor of Natural Number.
Working together to understand the relationship between your Enneatype and your Natural Number, when they differ, can be a very healing process. People have found great value in knowing their Enneagram type as something different than their Natural Number. It shows the relationship between your nurture and your nature. Understanding both when they differ can be a good indicator of a pathway back to who you are at the level of your nature. You can download the free ‘Four Practices for Presence’ worksheet here, and begin exploring the impact you can!
If you are interested in finding out more and having your Natural Number Identified, hit the Button!
