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[Traditional Enneagram] How did you 'study' the Enneagram?

Schrödinger's Name

Blessed With A Curse
Joined
Jul 20, 2019
Messages
1,693
The thread title kinda speaks for itself.

But just in case people would like a bit more 'structure'. The Enneagram contains a lot of information, nine different types, different combinations/wings/health/(des)integrations and different stackings... How did you get through all of this? I find that I have some 'difficulties' getting through all the information (especially if the information is not about my own type, lmao). There's just so much information out there. You can read the basic description of each type on the internet but that's of course not enough. It's also difficult to find 'unique' information. Every website can describe a type, but that's just basic stuff. The books I have found in the library are all too often like this too.

So, did you read any books to understand things better? Which book(s) did you read? Do you read the whole book or do you search for specific things? Do you read it 'in order' (page by page)? Do you first make sure to know each type 'in detail' before learning about the stackings and how each stacking is different in each and every type? Or did you maybe learn things 'type by type', first making sure you understand X type and its stackings completely before moving on to the next one? How did you learn about the links/connections between the types (and stackings)?

Or maybe you just used the internet for information... It's just; how. And how long did it take you until you felt as if you have 'enough' knowledge about the Enneagram to confidentially type others (and/or yourself)? To be able to type someone else without having Google stuff?



I probably forgot some questions I had in mind. Feel free to add questions, I'd like to hear about everyone's experiences (in detail, of course).
 

Luminous

༻✧✧༺
Joined
Oct 25, 2017
Messages
10,235
MBTI Type
Iᑎᖴᑭ
Enneagram
952
Instinctual Variant
sx/sp
I've largely read online, read books, reread the good sources, read things trustworthy sources say, thought about it, reread, etc. It's a lot of information and some types really need to be talked about at a level deeper than many talk about them (like 4s and 9s) to really understand them. I'm still learning. Sometimes I'll have a-ha moments where I connect something enneagram related with the people around me and they'll make a bit more sense.
 

highlander

Administrator
Staff member
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Dec 23, 2009
Messages
26,562
MBTI Type
INTJ
Enneagram
6w5
Instinctual Variant
sx/sp
I read Helen Palmer, listened to Riso Hudson type descriptions on audio CD, read Character and Neurosis, some of Bestrice Chestnut's book and read some publications from Enneagram Explorations. I also listened to a bunch of YouTube videos. There was one series in particular- awareness to action - that I thought was excellent but they took them down. In researching videos to post on the site. I found some other good ones that are in the video library.
 

Saturnal Snowqueen

Solastalgia 𓍊𓋼𓍊𓋼𓍊
Joined
Jan 9, 2019
Messages
6,125
MBTI Type
FELV
Enneagram
974
Instinctual Variant
so/sp
Been reading Wagner's Introduction to the Enneagram, which helped me confirm my typing more, looking more into how I grew up influenced my outlook and the different defense mechanisms and "areas of avoidance". It all fit beautifully. This site helped me too, as well as some other forums and just random trustworthy sources online. Also joined some Discord servers and I found this interesting group on Facebook where the dude(who's licensed in Enneagram now) who runs it made his own enneagram test and you had to answer a set of questions everyday for a month.
 

Chad of the OttomanEmpire

Give me a fourth dot.
Joined
Jun 9, 2013
Messages
1,053
MBTI Type
NeTi
Enneagram
478
Instinctual Variant
sx/so
See, I had traumatic experiences on another forum. Prior to this enneagram was a little thing from Riso and Hudson's Wisdom of the Enneagram that I sometimes wondered about and tried to figure out.

But after those experiences on the other forum, I read every book I could get my hands on, sometimes travelling hundreds of miles to obtain them. I did online workshops and attended other educational forums. I consulted experts. I literally did this to beat the living shit out of anyone who tried to do what they did to me again.

I don't have the memory to list them all here, but the books were pretty much every publication up till 2013. It's now a burgeoning field and there are hundreds of books you can find online. Some of them have quality information and research, some of them are just about as good as an internet description. I'd recommend starting with classical authors though, and just wading through it. You start to build a more 3D understanding the more you read, even if it seems like similar information at the time. Ones off the top of my head:

  • Wisdom of the Enneagram by Riso and Hudson
  • Character and Neurosis by Naranjo (easily found online)
  • The Nine Lenses by Jerome Wagner
  • Nine Faces of the Soul and The Ennegarm of Vices and Virtues by Sandra Mairri
  • The Enneagram by Helen Palmer
  • A concise book by David Daniels whose title I now forget
  • The Complete Enneagram by Beatrice Chestnut (the astute reader will realize she basically ripped off everyone else on the list)
There are many others, and some newer ones with unique perspectives too. I currently forget their titles but may be able to search this if you remind me. Scribd has many of these titles for 8.99 a month.

Of course, there's also the value of introspection. It can be very illuminating to simply see how things function in yourself and be able to apply that understanding to parallel situations with other types. I took a few years and kept a journal about this, and it was probably the more important part. You can gain a deeper understanding of the types through examining yourself and a few others in your life. This is in a lot of ways better than just reading--you get a sense of what it actually means to be the type, rather than just spouting cut-and-pasted phrases at people and thinking you understand enneagram. I see a lot of this on the internet, but very little true understanding (definitely less bad on TypoC, which is why I stay).

As to typing others. The main purpose of enneagram is for inner work. Typing others is a reality all of us live in, but it shouldn't be the main focus. Sometimes I sense people's types right away and they only prove me right. Sometimes an impression builds over time; I speculate and modify my ideas as time goes on. Sometimes I have no damn clue and never figure it out. If you want to do it skilfully, you'd really need to examine how the types function, not just look at characteristics. Consulting a wide variety of sources helps you recognize subtle variations in these functions. It's interpreting someone's psychological background and they sometimes keep that hidden, or hide it behind opposing behaviours.

Best of luck.
 
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Pionart

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Sep 17, 2014
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NiFe
I looked into the different triads, so I could find a way of "decomposing" the enneagram types effectively (sort of like how INFJ = Ni-Fe-etc.).

I tried it years ago, and span around in circles a bit, and then left it alone.

I revisited it recently, and found an article explaining how the types are internalising/externalising/repressing combined with anger/shame/fear, so now I feel I have a good foundation.
 

Pionart

Well-known member
Joined
Sep 17, 2014
Messages
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NiFe
The wrong way and now I'm trying to fix that.

Well I hope your previous knowledge retains its merits, and the fix is as a completion, rather than an overhaul.

Of course, what shall be in the name of truth, shall be.
 

Morpeko

Noble Wolf
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Sep 20, 2017
Messages
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LEFV
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461
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sx/sp
Like many people, I started out a few years ago by scavenging through the shitty online websites that provide stereotypical descriptions of each type without much emphasis on core fears and desires. I was eventually introduced to the "big names" and their books, like Chestnut, Naranjo, etc. The books helped me to learn a bit more, but I still did not find them to be that insightful.

Most helpful by far has been actually talking to people who have also read as much about the enneagram as they could, and have formed their own understanding of the types. That's how I became acquainted with core fears/desires, and the triads, which I think has been the most beneficial piece in me understanding enneagram.

Honestly, I think I've just mentally synthesized all the information I've accumulated regarding enneagram over the years to form my own understanding. I didn't feel confident in attempting to type others until last year. The best thing to do to gain confidence in typing is to actually do it, I started with fictional characters and tried working my way up to actual people. However, I still don't even feel confident in typing myself (type 6 problems, I guess).

It's been a long process, but it didn't feel long since I've taken a lot of breaks. And whenever I did get absorbed into reading for hours on end, it didn't feel like a hassle at all.
 
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