The Complete Enneagram: 27 Paths to Greater Self-Knowledge

by Beatrice Chestnut

The Type Eight archetype represents a “desire or impulse which is unchecked by any kind of authority.” It is “libido [psychic energy] in its natural state” and “the instinctual ground from which our consciousness springs.”

In addition to this human drive, the Eight archetype also represents an aspect of the masculine principle, or the animus. Just as the Type Two archetype embodies a version of “the inner feminine” principle, the Type Eight archetype communicates the archetypal idea of “the masculine” in women and in men.

Type Eights are thus the prototype for that tendency in all of us to feel the need to “get big” and take the most direct route to getting what we need by pushing back on internal and external forces that seek to restrain our instinctual impulses. As Enneagram scholar Sandra Maitri puts it, the Eight archetype represents our identification “with the body and with its drives and biological imperatives.”8 Just as the Three archetype represents the way we all take on a personality and the Four archetype highlights the universal presence of the Shadow, the Eight archetype channels the energetic momentum of our animal drives to fulfill our need to thrive and multiply.

JUST AS THE EIGHT POINT REPRESENTS the way we become big and powerful to get what we need when it doesn’t work to be small and vulnerable, the Eight path of growth shows us all how to transform the lustful energy behind our instinctual drives into a conscious sense of purpose and trust about who we are and what we can be.

In each of the Type Eight subtypes, we see a specific character who shows us what is possible when we can turn lustful rebellion against limitations on our animal power into an awakened ability to feel, own, and integrate our most vulnerable emotions and innocent needs for love.

In this way, Type Eights teach us all about the beauty of innocence when they can embody a state of being that flows in ease and harmony with the natural world through the alchemy of self...

TYPE SEVEN REPRESENTS THE ARCHETYPE of the person who seeks pleasure in different forms as a distraction from the discomfort, darkness, and downside of life. This archetype’s drive is to defend against the experience of pain using intelligence, imagination, charm, and enthusiasm, and to avoid fear through an optimistic outlook.

The Jungian concept of the “puer” or the “divine child” is another form of this archetype. It represents a “symbol for future hopes…the potentiality of life, newness itself… frivolity, pleasure, and play.”1 Jung characterizes this archetype as the “Eternal Child,” who resists growing up as a way of trying to avoid taking on responsibility, along with its commitments, encumbrances, and difficulties.

Type Sevens represent that tendency in all of us to focus on the positive parts of life, on the upside, on the light instead of the dark. In much the same way that the Enneagram’s Type Four represents the human tendency to focus on the Shadow—on what’s missing or feels bad—Type Seven typifies that part of us that looks to the light as a way of avoiding the Shadow. This attraction toward positive feelings like excitement and happiness, and the difficulty of experiencing uncomfortable feelings like sadness, fear, or pain, is a universal human experience.

JUST AS THE SEVEN POINT represents the way we avoid feeling pain and focus on pleasure in order to cope with a world that seems to threaten to trap us in fear and bad feelings, the Seven path of growth shows us how to use an awareness of our pain to fully awaken to the “good” and the “bad” of all that we are so that we can grow into all we can be.

In each of the Type Seven subtypes we see a specific character who teaches us what is possible when we can turn our fear of fear and our unconscious aversion to pain into a fully awake ability to live from the reality of who we are and how we feel, opening up to our higher capacities through the alchemy of self-observation, self-development, self-acceptance, and self-knowledge.

TYPE SIX REPRESENTS THE ARCHETYPE of the person who, given the fear of impending threat, seeks to find safety through the protection of others or by taking refuge in their own strength. The drive of this archetype is to scan for danger in a scary world and defensively manage fear and anxiety through fight, flight, or friends.

Type Sixes are thus the prototype for that tendency in all of us that needs to find a sense of security in the world in the face of the fears that naturally arise as part of being human—fears we feel (especially) as we seek to dis-identify with our personality. All the personality types feel afraid in different ways, but the Six’s placement on the Enneagram map communicates the idea that “as long as we are identified with our personality structure, we live in fear.”1 The “acorn-self” doesn’t know a life without fear; only the “oak tree–Self” grows beyond fear and anxiety.

THE SIX POINT REPRESENTS the way we guard ourselves from others and the world out of a need to feel safe.

The Six path of growth shows us how to transform our fear and all its manifestations into the courage and strength of purpose that allow us to find a greater sense of security within ourselves so that we can do the work of waking up to all we may become.

In each of the Type Six subtypes we see a specific character who teaches us what is possible when we can turn our fear into a fully awakened capacity to have the courage to face what scares us—on the inside and the outside—through the al...

TYPE FIVE REPRESENTS THE ARCHETYPE of the person who withdraws into thinking and detaches from feeling as a way of taking refuge in the inner world. This functions as a way of finding privacy and freedom in a world that seems intrusive or neglectful or overwhelming.

The central drive of this archetype is to find security by minimizing needs and using resources economically so that external demands can be limited and controlled.

In Fives, the natural human need for people can be displaced into a thirst for knowledge, such that internal support comes through information and firm...

We see a major characteristic of this archetype in Jung’s concept of “introversion.” While being introverted, or oriented primarily to the inner world rather than the outer world, is a general attitude that any of the personality types may have, “the introvert” as described in Jungian...

According to Jungian analyst and author June Singer, the introvert “is directed primarily toward an understanding of what he perceives.”1 The introvert’s attention is focused mainly on “his own being,” which is the “center of every interest.” People on the outside are important because of the way they may affect the introvert, and the introvert’s “interest in sel...

The introvert “defends himself against external claims, consolidating his position”3 of security. In Naranjo’s words, introversion consists of “a movement away from the outer to ...

Type Fives are the prototype for that tendency in all of us to see ourselves as separate and disconnected from everything else, which causes us to feel the need to withdraw and hold on to whatever we have to survive.

In everyday life, this universal archetype may manifest in the need to have time alone to rest, or “recharge,” away from the prying eyes and emotional needs of others. It represents that part of us that would rather observe than participate and likes to withdraw periodically to a place of refuge.

In the face of conflict, difficulty, or hurt feelings, this stance sees withdrawal and distance as the best strategy.

Fives have analytical minds and tend to spend a lot of time pursuing their intellectual interests. They often possess a great deal of knowledge and expertise in particular areas of study.

As with all the archetypal personalities, however, Type Fives’ gifts and strengths also represent their “fatal flaw” or “Achilles heel:” they can isolate themselves from others, feel inhibited in relationships, and be detached and withdrawn in social situations.

While Fives excel at objective analysis, they can be overly analytical and unemotional to the point that it can be hard for them to connect with others.

They maintain a calm demeanor, but may not be able to express themselves emotionally. They may have too many or overly rigid boundaries ...

They may hold themselves back from social interactions out of a fear of having their energy ...

Fives, however, become introverted, walled off from others, and focused on the protection and economical management of their inner resources. Fives become adept at avoiding situations in which fear might arise.

Fives adapt to their environment and manage early anxiety by automatically moving away from others, by protecting their inner lives and withdrawing emotionally from others when necessary.

Finding other people either threatening or depriving, Fives essentially give up on receiving the sustenance provided by relationships and find satisfaction in knowledge and intellectual interests instead.

To avoid needing other people and having to open up to dependent relationships, Fives minimize their needs and adopt an economical way of being. This leads to a tendency to withhold limited resources, and to a “greediness” or hoarding mentality when it comes to time, energy, information, and material supplies.

This defensive strategy naturally leads Fives to acquire habits through which they distance themselves from others. This strategy can make Fives seem aloof and uncaring, but they are much more sensitive on the inside than they appear.

To protect themselves from having to feel painful feelings like sadness or fear or loneliness, Fives withdraw from people who might stir up these feelings, separate their thoughts from their emotions, and identify themselves with their thinking function.

On the inside, Fives focus on minimizing needs, analyzing, and thinking, and on the conservation and judicious use of energy and resources.

One Five I know likens his sense of his energy to a gas tank. When he wakes up in the morning, he has a sense that he has a certain amount of energy in his “tank” that has to last for the whole day. Not wanting to run out of gas, but regularly fearful that he will, he has become an expert at knowing when someone or something might threaten to deplete his energy supply too much.

Characteristically introverted, Fives can assess very quickly whether or not they want to be involved with specific individuals. And when they do interact with others, they can get a lot out of a little—they can be present and sincerely engaged with others socially, but on a limited basis. In addition, they can be highly selective, because they want the energy they devote to social interactions to be limited to people they really like and trust—and also subject to time limits of their choosing.

Fives naturally fear being depleted, which leads to a defensive expectation of impoverishment. This poverty mentality in turn motivates Fives to reduce their needs and hold back from giving to others: “By giving the little they feel is theirs they feel that they will be left with nothing at all.”

Avarice induces Fives to erect firm boundaries, withdraw from others, and otherwise avoid situations in which they might get depleted. Their desire not to be interfered with, invaded, or subjected to external demands becomes a passion, leading them to search inside themselves for what others look for outside themselves.

People can be intrusive and threatening to my personal comfort.

The world doesn’t always provide what you need, so it pays to find ways to be self-sufficient.

Other people want more from me than I...

I must protect my time and energy by having firm boundaries and maintaining my private space; other...

The emotional demands others make on me will exhaust my inner resources an...

If I open up to relationships, others will expect and demand more than I have to give. Having too many relationships with the wrong kind of people lead...

Commitments to others are burdens that are too heavy to carry with me. It’...

I am powerless when it comes to negotiating my needs and desires, and others may not listen anyway, so the safest...

Overall, separation from others feels more comfortable th...