~converting vice to virtue on the path of personal transformation
The foundational concept of the Enneagram personality typology system (EPS) is that humans have only two ways of seeing the world. One way renders freedom, and the other way connotes bondage. We are either fully aware in the present moment, or we are kidnapped by our physiology. There is no middle ground.
Spiritual traditions throughout the ages have suggested names for the experience of nonjudgmental presence in the moment. Examples may include Love, Bodhicitta, Yoga, Christ, the True Self, the Naked Now, Spirit, and Beingness Itself. Some psychological systems also refer to this state, such as the Self energy of Internal Family Systems and the Wise Adult in inner child theory. The opposite mind state has been called fear, the false self, a part, the inner child, the ego, and the flesh, for example. The EPS calls pure awareness Essence and our genetics plus our conditioning, personality or type. I will use the terms conditioning and personality interchangeably through this article, as well as the terms consciousness and Essence.
There is a physiological basis for our personality. It relates to the genetic imprint with which we are born combined with our triune brain, which is part of our central nervous system. The triune brain is composed of the brain stem or reptilian brain, the limbic or mammalian brain, and the neocortex.
The oldest part of the human brain is the reptilian brain. It is ready for action when a baby is born and is responsible for our instinctual needs, such as sleeping, eating, crying, breathing, hunger, pain, urination, defecation, and experiencing temperature. Together with the hypothalamus, the reptilian brain maintains our basic life support system and the body’s internal balance.
The limbic brain, directly above the brain stem, is the second part of the triune brain. It is the home of our emotions and our ability to cope within social systems. It also helps us sense danger, discern pleasure and what is unnecessary for survival. Whereas the reptilian brain is online at birth, the limbic brain develops in relation to the environment. In a very real sense, the development of the limbic brain is the creation of our conditioned responses to life. This part of the brain gives us a felt sense of the world, rather than making cognitive sense of a situation.
The neocortex is the top layer of the brain and the center of our rationality. These frontal lobes equip us to use language, assign meaning to information, employ creativity, plan, predict, and use abstract logic. The emotional brain, a combination of the limbic and reptilian brains, is a global response system; whereas the neocortex or rational brain analyzes data. The neocortex is also where empathy originates through the vehicle of mirror neurons. These receivers allow us to ascertain intentions and emotional states, imitate, and synchronize or entrain with others.
Through our understanding of the triune brain, we see that our personality is not bad or wrong. Rather, it is a function of our individual physiology and our interaction with the environment. Therefore, we may release any judgment of ourselves when we get kidnapped by our conditioning. We are simply being human.
Interestingly, there is another aspect to our humanity that we cannot locate biologically. That part is our consciousness or awareness, the EPS concept of Essence. Scientists call this the hard problem of consciousness. Berent (2023) explained, “The ‘problem’ is to explain how physical processes in the brain give rise to subjective experience” (p. 564). No one has been able to pinpoint the origin of consciousness. Yet, we know that we have consciousness because we have the ability to observe ourselves thinking, feeling, and behaving. Nevertheless, our consciousness seems to be beyond human senses. That is why sages over the centuries link consciousness to spirituality (from spiritus which may be translated as life or breath)—it is intangible.
So, humans are endowed with both consciousness and physiological processes, and neither is good nor bad. They are both simply part of our human experience. That being said, however, what philosophers over the years have noticed is that when a human being is seeing through the lens of pure consciousness or present moment awareness, the effect, consequence, or fruit, as the biblical writer, Paul, calls it (see Galatians 5), is peace. In contrast, when we are seeing through the lens of conditioning, the effect, consequence, or fruit is strife.
Hence, the entire point of the EPS is to offer the necessary tools to recognize when we are resting in Essence or kidnapped by the personality. This recognition is called self-transcendence. It may be likened to removing the blinders that prevent us from clear seeing in the present moment. According to self-transcendence researcher, Pamela Reed, self-transcendence is fundamental to wellbeing, expands one’s viewpoint, facilitates a sense of connection with all beings and the environment, and encourages a meaningful synthesis of the aging process (Reed, 2018).
Social justice advocate, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (pp. 42-43), explained it this way:
A second lesson comes to us from Jesus’ prayer on the cross. It is an expression of Jesus’ awareness of man’s intellectual and spiritual blindness. “They know not what they do,” said Jesus. Blindness was their trouble; enlightenment was their need. We must recognize that Jesus was nailed to the cross not simply by sin but also by blindness. The men who cried, ‘Crucify him,’ were not bad men but rather blind me. The jeering mob that lined the roadside which led to Calvary was composed not of evil people but of blind people. They knew not what they did. What a tragedy!
History reverberates with testimonies of this shameful tragedy. Centuries ago a sage named Socrates was forced to drink hemlock. The men who called for his death were not bad men with demonic blood running through their veins. On the contrary, they were sincere and respectable citizens of Greece. They genuinely thought that Socrates was an atheist because his idea of God had a philosophical depth that probed beyond traditional concepts. Not badness but blindness killed Socrates. Saul was not an evil-intentioned man when he persecuted Christians. He was a sincere, conscientious devotee of Israel’s faith. He thought he was right. He persecuted Christians, not because he was devoid of integrity, but because he was devoid of enlightenment. The Christians who engaged in infamous persecutions and shameful inquisitions were not evil men but misguided men. . . And so Christ’s words from the cross are written in sharp-etched terms across some of the most inexpressible tragedies of history, “They know not what they do.”
When we are seeing through the lens of personality, we know not what we do. We are kidnapped from the clarity that is only found in the present moment. We are psychologically blind.
Likewise, Buddhist monk, Thich Nhat Hahn, described how conditions must align for things to manifest, using the example of radio waves. Radio waves are invisible, but when you tune into them with a receiver, they manifest as sound or sound plus visual images, as experienced through television. Using this metaphor, self-transcendence may be likened to attunement. Either I am attuned to the present moment, or I am attuned to the static of my conditioning. According to EPS theory, when I am fully attuned to the present moment, certain virtues naturally arise, such as love and compassion. Alternatively, when all I hear is static, anxiety and fear manifest. EPS teachers Riso and Hudson (1999) put it this way, “Remember, the Enneagram does not put us in a box, it shows us the box we are already in and the way out” (p. 28).
So, I will close with an adaptation of a familiar teaching tale.
Once upon a time before the road between Lafayette, Louisiana and Scott, Louisiana was paved, an elderly wise woman sat on the side of the path under a tree. A traveler approached the woman and said, "I am moving to Lafayette from Scott. Is Lafayette a nice place to live?" The wise woman asked in return, "Was Scott pleasant? Did you have many friends?" The traveler replied, "Oh no, it was a filthy place, and the residents were thieves!" The woman looked at him kindly and answered, "You will find that Lafayette is no better."
A few hours later a second traveler was walking down the path and posed the same question to the wise woman. Again the woman asked, "How was Scott? Were the citizens unpleasant?" "Oh no!" responded the traveler. "The city was beautiful and the people very friendly!" The woman looked at him with understanding and said, "You will find that Lafayette is a very nice place to live and the residents are most friendly."
The point is that perspective is everything. When we look through the eyes of our personality, we see through the filter of our insecurities, and the world seems distastefully flawed. When we look through the eyes of Essence (nonjudgmental presence and radical acceptance), we observe the glory and the suffering of the world without rejection. Through the lens of Essence, we are present to everything without agenda, and all is poignantly beautiful.
At first glance, these two perspectives may seem to represent a duality because EPS theory explains this concept as an either/or. Yet, inherent in the concept of Essence is presence; meaning that when we are seeing the world from this vantage point, we are not detached observers, but rather engaged participants. Essence represents the nonduality of an integrated perspective. Therefore, I would suggest that the true understanding of Essence is as a third force.
One way to understand this integration is through another EPS concept, the Law of Three, represented by the triangle within the Enneagram symbol (Bourgeault, 2013; Chestnut, 2013; Palmer, 1988). G.W. Hegel, 19th century German philosopher, expressed this concept as the logic of the absolute, which depicts a process of becoming, whereby initiation meets differentiation and is transformed into a new expression through integration. Stated another way, the law of three demonstrates thesis + antithesis + synthesis or affirming + denying + reconciling.
In this example, the perspective of personality represents the extreme of being enmeshed with your own reactivity. The opposite of that perspective is to be detached from your personality and experience life solely as an observer. The perspective of Essence, however, is being fully present to your own experience of life in a compassionate way — one foot in and one foot out, so to speak. It might be represented as Enmeshment + Detachment + Compassionate Presence. I have noticed in my own life and the life of others that compassionate presence is usually the third force that facilitates the manifestation of love.
It is also important to note that detachment is actually an important part of the process of becoming, when considering how our personalities are readily triggered or activated. Specifically, activation or triggering typically occurs when someone does or says something (or an event happens), and we feel flooded with big emotions. To make a skillful choice most often requires that we offer ourselves some space from the circumstance, such as a time out as we allow the feelings to flow through us and our bodies to settle back into equilibrium. Detaching from the environment and our own reaction is a healthy step in gaining perspective. From this vantage point and a felt sense of safety, we can choose to re-engage with compassionate presence — in Essence. The fractal dance of enmeshment + detachment + compassionate presence helps us to navigate our relationships (with ourselves and others) more skillfully.
So I invite you not to take my word for any of this, but to experiment with different viewpoints. Notice what it feels like for you when you are enmeshed with your own reactivity, when you detach to gain a sense of safety, and when you are able to meet yourself and others with compassionate presence. May we all go gently and lightly, offering ourselves tender love and a perspective that fosters peace.
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References
Berent, I. (2023). The “hard problem of consciousness” arises from human psychology. Open Mind, 7, 564–587. https://doi.org/10.1162/opmi_a_00094
Hanh, T. N. (2003). No death, no fear: Comforting wisdom for life. Penguin.
King Jr, M. L. (2019). Strength to love. Beacon Press.
National Human Genome Research Institute. (2025, February 11). Genetic Imprinting. https://www.genome.gov/genetics-glossary/Genetic-Imprinting#:~:text=Definition&text=Genomic%20imprinting%20is%20the%20process,the%20other%20copy%20is%20suppressed
Reed, P. G. (2018). Theory of self-transcendence. In M. J. Smith & P. R. Liehr (Eds.), Middle range theory for nursing (pp. 105–129). Springer. http://stikespanritahusada.ac.id/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/Mary-Jane-Smith-PhD-RN-Patricia-R.-Liehr-PhD-RN-Middle-Range-Theory-for-Nursing_-Third-Edition-Springer-Publishing-Company-2013.pdf#page=130
Riso, D. R., & Hudson, R. (1999). The wisdom of the Enneagram: The complete guide to psychological and spiritual growth for the nine personality types. Bantam.
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