The Wisdom of the Enneagram

by Don Richard Riso

The Buddhists say, “There are no holy people or holy places, only holy moments”—moments of grace. All of us have experienced such moments. True moments of grace, when we are fully alive and awake, have an entirely different quality, even in our memories, than other events that we might recall. Essential moments are much more vivid and real because they are still with us; they possess immediacy because the impact of life has penetrated the dullness of our consciousness and awakened us. We realize that as we learn to let go of fear, resistance, and self-image, we become more available to these transformative moments and they nourish our spirits. Thus, while we may not yet be able to produce such moments at will, we can create the conditions in ourselves that make it easier for us to have them.