Ego Fixation: asleep at the helm of your life?
According to the Enneagram, Ego Fixation states are just one of many consciousness-states in which we humans play and exist. In other words, Ego Fixation is not our final destination. The Enneagram offers three templates for how an individual automatically, or instinctively, goes about finding their own fixated form of manifesting on the planet. These three templates are called Centers of Intelligence. This is great knowledge to possess. If you know where you get stuck, you can usually navigate to a place of un-stuckness, or less stuckness.
This Ego Fixation form of manifestation in the physical plane, usually takes precedence earlier in life. Depending on the timing of nurture, life experiences and growth opportunities, the Ego Fixation will stay in the saddle directing a person’s life. This means until some earth-moving presentness becomes available in a person’s consciousness, they remain asleep to their undiscerned or native habits of attention. The form of the earth-moving presentness that allows the shift to happen, will vary from type to type. It will also vary for each template from the Enneagram Centers of Intelligence (Mind, Body, Heart).
Maiden, Mother, Crone: natural, inarguable stages of life
There is no judgement in the statement: “[People] remain asleep to their undiscerned or native habits of attention.” Similarly, there’s no real judgement in the word series: Maiden, Mother, Crone. Those three words are just an age-old method of describing a factual set of three stages of any woman’s life: Maiden, Mother, Crone. All three stages happen as a girl-child matures all the way to old age.
Belonging, shame and identity are a similar series of words out of the Enneagram’s tradition of life stages for a particular Center of Attention (Heart Types). The only difference, in this case, is that belonging, shame and identity are gender neutral. (Fellows, this means you are not off the hook! You too will experience a dance or two with an Ego Fixation around manifesting on this planet.)
The door of awakening cracks open
For all nine Enneatypes it takes some major life event before the door of awakening will crack open. This could be anything for anybody, including just time spent on the planet, observing and living. But usually major life events include a death of a loved one, a lost love relationship, or some ideal or belief system losing its voracity. The permutations of that list goes on and on. This is because each individual defines for themselves what is a major life event. But as we all age and mature, the Ego Fixation is a natural consciousness-state which can create struggle for us humans. Until we wake up!
The Enneagram provides three life road maps for each Center of Intelligence. These are called Enneatypes. There are nine distinct Enneatypes. By using their archetypal templates, individuals may navigate the struggle with their own Ego Fixation with more ease.
By the way, the Enneagram also maps out healthy and upwardly mobile spiritual and detached ways to experience corporeal manifestation. And if you remember your math, along with the nesting Russian dolls concept, you will clearly see:
Three life maps variations
+ Three Centers of Intelligence
Nine Enneatypes
These nine Enneatype paths are quite accessible, but it does require attention, study, observation and discipline.
Exploring Ego Fixation in the Narrative Tradition
The Narrative Tradition uses a panel methodology where many individuals of the same type sit on a panel, and answer questions. On the panel, each self-identified, same-type or same number person is asked the same set of questions. The answers from these different people, quickly reveal the many and diverse ways in which each number type on the Enneagram may manifest. In today’s online world, however, artistic expression may suffice.
Here’s an art dance performance called “Tones of Belonging” (from Enneagram identity, belonging and shame) which in a somatic way paints an Ego Fixation picture. Somatic refers to something of the body, especially without “the mind” being involved. Therefore this somatic video promotes access to your body, or your Body Center of Intelligence. Whereas this article you are reading now definitely accesses the Mind Center of Intelligence with its focus on Enneagram theory.
The “Heart Types yellow brick road of shame” article paints an adequate broad-brush-stroke picture of the Heart Types Identity journey. In that Monday Music selection, Jewel’s piece of poetry put to music (“Goodbye Alice in Wonderland,” ) lands in a Heart Type perspective. That song then, might more easily open your heart, in case the theory or the dance performance were not sufficiently illuminating.
What’s your understanding of your own dance with corporeal manifestation and Ego Fixation? Are you asleep at the helm of your life? The Enneagram maps some interesting paths through Ego Fixation to peace and satiety on the other side of the paper tiger. (Learn more by reading “Universal Enneagram symbol explains life“.)
