Lesson 1 of a 12 Part Introduction to the Enneagram
Today we will look at one of the fundamental ideas that permeate the Enneagram – the three centers of intelligence. Traditionally, the IQ or mental intelligence was the only intelligence that was recognized. With the work of Howard Gardner, the notion of multiple intelligences became popular. Many people in spiritual circles – like Heart Math, have recognized the heart as a viable center of knowing and most people are familiar with the term, ‘trust your gut’ – which is also seen as a major center of spiritual intelligence, sometimes known as ‘the spiritual womb’.
Each or us acts from all of these centers but one clearly predominates according to our Enneagram ‘point’ or ‘type’ These centers provide a range of information that not only helps us understand our own gifts and challenges, but also why others see the world so differently. They also provide a way to create greater balance within yourself as part of your everyday growth practice.
In the depiction of the 9 points of the Enneagram:
- Body types are Eight, Nine and One
- Heart types are Two, Three and Four
- Head types are Five, Six and Seven
There are three centers of intelligence, the Body, Heart and Head. Each provides us with basic skills that we need for full living.
The Body, or gut center, gives us the ability to act, get into motion, experience our physical sensations. It helps us to kinesthetically experience life around us and sense what is happening in order to get things accomplished.
For Body based types, the Eights, Nines and Ones, are excellent on their ability to focus on their physical sensations as a way to react and respond to the world. They use their body as a way to control their immediate environment and to help them achieve whatever their immediate goal is. Most Body types focus on being practical, quickly seeking out the one right way to do things and get them done.
The Heart, or emotional center, gives us the ability to feel our feelings, connect with others emotionally, and be sensitive to their emotional reactions. In other words, high EQ. It’s the most direct way to relate to other people and to form and maintain relationships in our lives.
Heart based types, the Twos, Threes and Fours, see the world through the lens of their emotions. Their heart energy reads the room, connecting to the hearts of other people, getting a sense of how they feel. They focus on maintaining relationships, so all Heart types adapt themselves in some way to be accepted.
The Head, or thinking center, gives us the ability to gather and analyze information, brainstorm new ways of doing things, and make plans for the future. It helps us to experience and express our thoughts, beliefs and perform other cognitive tasks like visualization and imagination.
Head based types, Fives, Sixes and Sevens, relate to reality through logical and analytical reasoning. They easily read the room for possible issues and creating different scenarios for how to respond.
In an ideal world, we would use the strengths of each center to deal with life challenges. We would use the Body center when we need to take practical action, the Heart center when we need to connect with others and the Head center when we need to analyze information. However, that is not what happens.
Instead, we tend to focus our energy around one center.
When we aren’t aware of this, we try to use the same tools to solve very different problems. Our dominant center tricks us into trying to solve all problems with the same tools, instead of realizing we have access to other tools much better suited to the task at hand.
For Body types, once they are in motion, they can find it very hard to stop—especially if that action has become automatic or programmed. Body types find it easier to act now and analyze later (if at all). And they find it difficult to slow down and get into their feelings.
Heart types can find it challenging to sense their own body, or to disconnect from their feelings and analyze a situation from different angles.
Head types struggle to act on their ideas. They also can find it hard to access their heart and connect with their own feelings as well as the feelings of others.
Each of the Three Centers of Intelligence has a counterpart in the portion of the nervous system that is situated in the skull.The Head Center is linked with the cerebral cortex or the outer “rind” of the brain. The Heart Center is linked to what are known as the limbic areas of the brain. Even though new research tells us that brain functioning is not really this simplified or discrete, it is still useful to think of the limbic system as organizing our emotions, motivations, and high-level automatic behaviors, such as habits. Finally, the Belly Center is linked to the brain stem, the posterior area – or back – of the brain, continuing into the spinal cord. This portion of the brain helps to regulate the central nervous system, the circulatory system including the heart, the respiratory system, and other autonomic (or automatic) functions. The nerve connections of the motor and sensory systems from the main part of the brain to the rest of the body pass through the brain stem.
If you haven’t already known this, begin to observe your dominant center in action. An important part of our development is to create more flexibility in how we approach the world and be able to use more of the tools and perspectives at our disposal. The key to start on this journey is self-observation.
The goal is to be able to identify which of our centers we overexpress, under express, and to intentionally balance all 3 centers in an effective way. That way, we can approach any situation with the appropriate amount of thoughtful planning, objectivity, and analysis (Thinking Center), empathy, compassion, and emotional attunement to our self and to others (Feeling Center), and to properly tune into our body language, gut instinct, and taking intentional action (Action Center).
