This comes from my readings on Riso and Hudson. I got inspired to write this up from NSG's post in a test she took.
One thing that confuses people, is the commonality among different Enneagram types. The lack of common terms that MBTI does have (Types share attitude, percept, judgement and drive) through 2 different letters seems to be absent in Enneagram, as it seems to describe each of the 9 types completely different from one another.
This really isn't the case, as Riso and Hudson have detailed. Enneagram types can be clustered up in different groups, and some of the most popularly used are:
Triads:
Hornevian Groups:
Harmonic Groups:
And to put it in another format too
This can come in great aid to select wings, as I have seen is often the confusion among people here. For example, a type 8 would have to think if he/she is more assertive or withdrawn (8w7 or 8w9). This also clears up some confusion among people that think "I'm not sure if I'm a 4w5, or a 5w4", as one just has to consider if the drive is more competent or reactive.
Opposites are also introduced here. This is not as easy as in MBTI, where one can just say "Since I'm an extrovert, my opposite would be an introvert!". This is my theory on how opposites work, and this is in observation on wings.
We start out with the triads. As it is well known, Enneagram contains the tritypes. In these tritypes, the important rule is to "choose" one direction from each triad. Your head has a direction, your heart has another, and so does you gut. The best analogy I can explain the direction is by the example of how you can observe an object. One dimension is vertical spectrum, the other one is the horizontal spectrum, and the last one is the depth. Regardless of which you choose, you are focusing and ANALYZING ONE DIMENSION OUT OF THREE at a time.
Following on, from human experience, we are well aware that we our eyes observe in two-dimensional pictures. We cannot observe the width, the length and the depth of an object at the same time, without rotating/translating the object/ourselves, which goes beyond the point of mere visualization. The point of reference for your analysis will be supplied by another dimension for which you choose to take.
Here is an exercise to visualize what I am trying to denote. Grab any object around you, say a pen, and place it right in front of your eyes. Now, point the tip of the pencil down. How would you measure all of it's dimensions? You can estimate the width of it, as well as the length, but it is impossible to see past through it to check the depth. To observe this other spectrum, one needs to move one's hands, a component detached from the eyes. We can point it aiming at us, and now we will be able to see what is it's width and depth, but what happens to the length? If properly placed in front of the eyes, it becomes impossible to estimate it.
This leads to the idea then that the opposite of one will be in the same triad. Head types might differ quite a bit from one another, and have different motivations to take actions, or to analyze.
Next, comes more specification. Since Enneagram seems to focus so much on the number 3 (3x3 types, three categories, tree members in each group, tree instinctual variants), I will follow exemplify for type 3. We now know that the opposite of a 3 will be either a 2, or a 4, but how to determine which? This is where the Harmonic and Hornevian groups appear. Since I have established the properties of a 3, it will be easier for me to explain through examples
Opposites of types 3:
Types 3 are Assertive (Hornevian) and deals with stress through Competency (Harmonic), and belong to the heart triad. Now let's observe the differences between a 3w2 and 3w4.
a 3w2, after being Assertive and Competent, follows a path of being Compliant, and dealing further with stress through a positive outlook. This would mean that this type rejects the idea of being withdrawn, and coping with stress by being reactant. The type that prefers to view the world this way is type 4 (funny coincidence that it fell in the heart triad huh?).
a 3w4, after being Assertive and Competent, follows a path of being Withdrawn, and dealing further with stress through reaction. This would mean that this type rejects the idea of being Compliant, and coping with stress through a positive outlook. The type that prefers to view the world like this is... type 2!.
So we have characterized which type is the opposite... but that's not yet enough. We have used the wings to identify the opposite type, so why is the opposite subwing not there? The way to come up with this is a little more abstract, but it is possible to get it. We have to start out now from the end, to tie everything in together. So now, let's analyze two types in the heart triad with a 3 subwing, 4w3 and 2w3:
A 4w3, after being Withdrawn and Reactant, follows a path of being Assertive, and dealing further with stress through competency. This would mean that this type rejects the idea of being Compliant, and coping with stress by Positive Outlook. The type that prefers these opposite views is type 2.
a 2w3, after being Compliant and having a Positive Outlook, follows a path of being assertive, while dealing further with stress through competency. This would mean that this type rejects the idea of being withdrawn, and coping with stress by being reactant. The type that prefers these opposite views is type 4.
So what do we have so far?
Type 1w9: 8w9
Type 1w2: 8w7
Type 2w1: 3w4
Type 2w3: 4w3
Type 3w2: 4w5
Type 3w4: 2w1
Type 4w3: 2w3
Type 4w5: 3w2
Type 5w4: 6w7
Type 5w6: 7w6
Type 6w5: 7w8
Type 6w7: 5w4
Type 7w6: 5w6
Type 7w8: 6w5
Type 8w7: 9w1
Type 8w9: 1w9
Type 9w8: 1w2
Type 9w1: 8w7
What are your thoughts? Comments?
Thank you for reading.
One thing that confuses people, is the commonality among different Enneagram types. The lack of common terms that MBTI does have (Types share attitude, percept, judgement and drive) through 2 different letters seems to be absent in Enneagram, as it seems to describe each of the 9 types completely different from one another.
This really isn't the case, as Riso and Hudson have detailed. Enneagram types can be clustered up in different groups, and some of the most popularly used are:
Triads:
- Gut:
- Type 8 - The Challenger
- Type 9 - The Peacemaker
- Type 1 - The Reformer
- Heart:
- Type 2 - The Helper
- Type 3 - The Achiever
- Type 4 - The Individualist
- Head:
- Type 5 - The Investigator
- Type 6 - The Loyalist
- Type 7 - The Enthusiast
Hornevian Groups:
- Assertive:
- Type 3 - The Achiever
- Type 7 - The Enthusiast
- Type 8 - The Challenger
- Compliant:
- Type 1 - The Reformer
- Type 2 - The Helper
- Type 6 - The Loyalist
- Withdrawn:
- Type 4 - The Individualist
- Type 5 - The Investigator
- Type 9 - The Peacemaker
Harmonic Groups:
- Positive Outlook:
- Type 2 - The Helper
- Type 7 - The Enthusiast
- Type 9 - The Peacemaker
- Competency:
- Type 1 - The Reformer
- Type 3 - The Achiever
- Type 5 - The Investigator
- Reactive:
- Type 4 - The Individualist
- Type 6 - The Loyalist
- Type 8 - The Challenger
And to put it in another format too
- Type 1 - The Reformer (Gut, Compliant, Competent)
- Type 2 - The Helper (Heart, Compliant, Positive Outlook)
- Type 3 - The Achiever (Heart, Assertive, Competency)
- Type 4 - The Individualist (Heart, Withdrawn, Reactive)
- Type 5 - The Thinker (Head, Withdrawn, Competency)
- Type 6 - The Loyalist (Head, Compliant, Reactive)
- Type 7 - The Enthusiast (Head, Assertive, Positive Outlook)
- Type 8 - The Challenger (Gut, Assertive, Reactive)
- Type 9 - The Peacemaker (Gut, Withdrawn, Positive Outlook)
This can come in great aid to select wings, as I have seen is often the confusion among people here. For example, a type 8 would have to think if he/she is more assertive or withdrawn (8w7 or 8w9). This also clears up some confusion among people that think "I'm not sure if I'm a 4w5, or a 5w4", as one just has to consider if the drive is more competent or reactive.
Opposites are also introduced here. This is not as easy as in MBTI, where one can just say "Since I'm an extrovert, my opposite would be an introvert!". This is my theory on how opposites work, and this is in observation on wings.
We start out with the triads. As it is well known, Enneagram contains the tritypes. In these tritypes, the important rule is to "choose" one direction from each triad. Your head has a direction, your heart has another, and so does you gut. The best analogy I can explain the direction is by the example of how you can observe an object. One dimension is vertical spectrum, the other one is the horizontal spectrum, and the last one is the depth. Regardless of which you choose, you are focusing and ANALYZING ONE DIMENSION OUT OF THREE at a time.
Following on, from human experience, we are well aware that we our eyes observe in two-dimensional pictures. We cannot observe the width, the length and the depth of an object at the same time, without rotating/translating the object/ourselves, which goes beyond the point of mere visualization. The point of reference for your analysis will be supplied by another dimension for which you choose to take.
Here is an exercise to visualize what I am trying to denote. Grab any object around you, say a pen, and place it right in front of your eyes. Now, point the tip of the pencil down. How would you measure all of it's dimensions? You can estimate the width of it, as well as the length, but it is impossible to see past through it to check the depth. To observe this other spectrum, one needs to move one's hands, a component detached from the eyes. We can point it aiming at us, and now we will be able to see what is it's width and depth, but what happens to the length? If properly placed in front of the eyes, it becomes impossible to estimate it.
This leads to the idea then that the opposite of one will be in the same triad. Head types might differ quite a bit from one another, and have different motivations to take actions, or to analyze.
Next, comes more specification. Since Enneagram seems to focus so much on the number 3 (3x3 types, three categories, tree members in each group, tree instinctual variants), I will follow exemplify for type 3. We now know that the opposite of a 3 will be either a 2, or a 4, but how to determine which? This is where the Harmonic and Hornevian groups appear. Since I have established the properties of a 3, it will be easier for me to explain through examples
Opposites of types 3:
Types 3 are Assertive (Hornevian) and deals with stress through Competency (Harmonic), and belong to the heart triad. Now let's observe the differences between a 3w2 and 3w4.
a 3w2, after being Assertive and Competent, follows a path of being Compliant, and dealing further with stress through a positive outlook. This would mean that this type rejects the idea of being withdrawn, and coping with stress by being reactant. The type that prefers to view the world this way is type 4 (funny coincidence that it fell in the heart triad huh?).
a 3w4, after being Assertive and Competent, follows a path of being Withdrawn, and dealing further with stress through reaction. This would mean that this type rejects the idea of being Compliant, and coping with stress through a positive outlook. The type that prefers to view the world like this is... type 2!.
So we have characterized which type is the opposite... but that's not yet enough. We have used the wings to identify the opposite type, so why is the opposite subwing not there? The way to come up with this is a little more abstract, but it is possible to get it. We have to start out now from the end, to tie everything in together. So now, let's analyze two types in the heart triad with a 3 subwing, 4w3 and 2w3:
A 4w3, after being Withdrawn and Reactant, follows a path of being Assertive, and dealing further with stress through competency. This would mean that this type rejects the idea of being Compliant, and coping with stress by Positive Outlook. The type that prefers these opposite views is type 2.
a 2w3, after being Compliant and having a Positive Outlook, follows a path of being assertive, while dealing further with stress through competency. This would mean that this type rejects the idea of being withdrawn, and coping with stress by being reactant. The type that prefers these opposite views is type 4.
So what do we have so far?
Therefore, with the assumptions we have already made, and for the sake of equilibrium, the types that would oppose type 3 would be 2w1 and 4w5. Therefore2w3 opposes 4
3w2 opposes 4
3w4 opposes 2
4w3 opposes 2
With this, it is easy to follow which types clearly rival each other. 2w1 opposes 3, and 3w4 opposes 2, and therefore, these two types are opposite from one another. So the complete list for the heart triad would be:2w1 opposes 3
2w3 opposes 4
3w2 opposes 4
3w4 opposes 2
4w3 opposes 2
4w5 opposes 3
Too lazy to do it yourself for your triad? Be thankful I can be a busybody:2w1 opposes 3w4
2w3 opposes 4w3
3w2 opposes 4w5
3w4 opposes 2w1
4w3 opposes 2w3
4w5 opposes 3w2
Type 1w9: 8w9
Type 1w2: 8w7
Type 2w1: 3w4
Type 2w3: 4w3
Type 3w2: 4w5
Type 3w4: 2w1
Type 4w3: 2w3
Type 4w5: 3w2
Type 5w4: 6w7
Type 5w6: 7w6
Type 6w5: 7w8
Type 6w7: 5w4
Type 7w6: 5w6
Type 7w8: 6w5
Type 8w7: 9w1
Type 8w9: 1w9
Type 9w8: 1w2
Type 9w1: 8w7
What are your thoughts? Comments?
Thank you for reading.