The Wisdom of the Enneagram

by Don Richard Riso

When we arrive at the Level of Liberation, it usually comes as a big surprise to find that we already have the very qualities that we have been looking for. We become aware that they were present all along, but that we were going about looking for them in the wrong way. Just like Dorothy at the end of The Wizard of Oz, we discover that we were closer to realizing our goal than we imagined. Everything we need for our transformation, everything we require to be complete human beings, is available to us in our Essential nature and always has been. In fact, at Level 1, we actually achieve our Basic Desire. Once we understand this, our most burning question becomes how we can sustain this more open, vibrant state—or really, how we can allow it to be sustained in us. How can we continue to open ourselves to the action of grace?