Human Design: Discover the Person You Were Born to Be

by Chetan Parkyn

Third Lines All third lines bring a touch of innovation and flair to a gate, but there is something noncommittal, evasive, indecisive, and quite impersonal about the third-line influence. Third lines bring movement, mutation, and some unpredictability. There is a versatile, adaptable element to them that adds an uncertainty to any expression.

Failures become lessons, successes enable growth. That’s why there is something of the “try it and see” attitude about all third lines. They bring an element of spice, danger, risk, excitement — and haphazardness — to all relationships, situations, and projects.

Having sixth lines induces an air of detached authority and objectivity, complete with an all-seeing wisdom. The difficulty here is maintaining interest because, due to your lofty position, your head can be in the clouds. You are looking over everything and so there is a low boredom threshold. Sixth lines also tend to bring high ideals to a gate.

And yet a sixth line can bring the power to make dreams happen. With it, you can grasp situations with expert hands and take charge. Unlike the third line, the sixth line brings a wholehearted commitment that can lift and carry everything and everyone.

Quite simply, your profile is determined from the top two numbers on either side of the encircled dot that is the symbol for the Sun. In your life chart, you’ll note the two larger fonts of the gate numbers, but the profile is determined by noting the two line numbers, the smaller numbers .

As already indicated, the sixty-four gates in the life chart correspond to the sixty-four hexagrams in the I Ching. There are six lines in each hexagram, thus six levels to each gate’s structure. All first lines have a common accord or harmony with all other first lines, all second lines harmonize with all other second lines, and so on.

Also, a resonance or common frequency, like symphonic notes in a musical scale, exists between all first lines and all fourth lines, all second and fifth lines, and all third and sixth lines.

and the third line is a less experienced frequency or more risk-taking version of the administrative and naturally authoritative sixth line.

The 3/5 Profile

Of all profiles, you are the most likely to stick your fingers into an electric socket just to find out what goes on in there! You are your own worst enemy, such is your insatiable inquisitiveness and curiosity. You like to leave no stone unturned in your pursuit of reward and joy, and there is an indefatigable spirit to the way you embrace life, come what may.

You are a capable and adaptable leader in a crisis, with a wisdom that shapes a visionary element, and there is something of the rebel in you, wanting to challenge authority and point out what is and isn’t working. You want to be a force for change in all areas of life. Your adaptability makes you expert in a storm of crisis, because you’ve been there, done that, and know how the drama ends!

The fascinating mix of this profile is the third-line element, which needs the juice of life, together with the illusory yet hypnotic nature of the fifth line. This turns you into a charismatic, persuasive seducer, subtly reeling others into relationships, projects, or pursuits.

I daresay you could come across as a bit of a dreamer, but doubtless there would be a multitude of crazy anecdotes, all carried off with a self-deprecating humor concealing the pain of the time. When you fall back on your sharp wit, you are one of the funniest people around. Humor is both your medicine and your master deflector.

You are done with the trials, tribulations, and tests and want to throw in the towel. When 3/5 profiles feel beaten, despite their best efforts, they surrender. But their nature will not rest and will always seek to propel them into a fresh adventure. So surrendering will only exacerbate any inner frustrations. The third line will never stop catapulting the 3/5 into all sorts of relationships, projects, travels, travails, purchases, and lifestyles. The unconscious fifth line sometimes paddles hard to make real life match the fantasies.

You are always seeking that special someone who can bring inner peace amid the chaos. When that person is found, commitment is total. In accepting chaos, you accept yourself. Life will never be a destination but is an eternal journey.

An escape clause should be written into any love contract with a third-line element, especially when coupled with the dreamy nature of the fifth line, which brings a strong degree of romanticism and big promises. The 3/5 profile is forever in search of the perfect relationship and will not compromise its ideals. Did I say “perfect”? What I meant to say was “purrr-fect.” These people need to be met, and understood, on every possible level before they give 100 percent commitment. These are highly selective individuals when searching for a life mate.

They can be deeply emotional partners, but the tears of laughter need to balance the tears of pain. Grant them this much and you will come to know and admire a true ally and arbiter and the bridge builder of an unpredictable but exciting future. When 3/5s feel they have met their match, they bring the greatest level of commitment and stability to a relationship that is possible.

The 4/6 Profile

As an astute observer of life, you are someone who spends too much time either in the head or in the heart, not knowing where is best! But when you do arrive at a point of conclusion or conviction, the combined wisdom of the head and heart knows which direction to go in and can be of enormous help to you and influence on others.

Of course, that’s a big ask when the more conscious fears of rejection are fueled by the fourth line. This leads to a tendency to reject before being rejected and to withdraw rashly from projects. Yet each time this happens, you ignore a higher wisdom and forget the extent of your valuable contribution and the love you are capable of bringing into the world.

Maybe this explains why friendship first forms the platform to everything you engage in: getting to know someone first enables you to gauge who and what is reliable and genuine.

What matters is that your surrounding family and social community prosper and grow. You want others to succeed as much as you want it for yourself. You are a compassionate humanitarian with an open heart whose nature finds affinity in united and harmonious relations.

I’d remind you that your demonstrative love was a pure gift; that you could turn hatred and misgivings into love in the blink of an eye; that you could lock onto an inspiring vision when everyone else seemed stuck and standing still. I would tell you that you were a force for great love and great change. So what a waste, therefore, to be cut off and isolated. How would you feel then?

Your 4/6 partner is a potentially complex soul: oh so wise and sure on one hand, oh so afraid and vulnerable on the other.

You need to be aware that 4/6s can sometimes jab so hard that you’ve no idea where it came from or why it happened. When something wounds their heart, it brings out the mean streak of the fourth line and the aloof withdrawal of the sixth. You must realize that this is not personal, but a trigger reaction that requires understanding and patience to assuage. Also know that they regard themselves as being right about most things and need to be acknowledged accordingly.

When they open their hearts, you will find the warmest and wisest of lovers.

First, be conscious of the messages contained within your centers. These represent an essential starting point and form the foundation to your nature. The most telling insights and understandings stem from knowing your type, supported by adopting the correct strategy of your authority. And then your profile provides the framework to your place in and interactions with the world.

You are creating the acronym TAP — type, authority, profile — tapping into the most immediately informative insights. For instance, you may find you’re a Generator, meaning you’ve an enormous wellspring of life-force energy, but do you also have Emotional authority? If so, you’ll need to wait to reach an internal truth with clarity, to get a green light before acting. Maybe you’ve a 6/2 profile, with an authoritative overview that will help others come up to speed, or you’ve a 2/4 profile and will startle everyone with your guileless and heartfelt input. Then, from that TAP platform, explore the facets to your character by reading the channels and gates. You’ll discover that all these pieces combine to form a fascinating picture, your complete inside story.

anything, therefore, Human Design is the promoter and cultivator of personal freedom, because there is nothing more freeing than being allowed to be yourself. This system does not remove or tamper with your freedom of choice, nor does it predetermine your life, or fate. It does predetermine your makeup and true nature, but within that predetermination lie your freedom, truth, happiness, and integrity. A predestined design brings freedom when honored.

If only we could accept that life is intended to be a mystery to be lived, not a problem to be solved. If only we could step back and see that to nurture our nature leads, with practice, to a self-acceptance that transmutes into a self-love that dances into the challenges of life.