TODAY’S CONSIDERATIONS
Again, in this part of the current series, the nine basis personality types are being discussed in order to provide an opportunity for site visitors to become familiar with each of the nine types and to see if they can relate to certain of the traits of the various types and thereby understand why they are thinking the way they think, talking the way they talk, behaving the way they behave, and feeling the way they feel.
The approach being used here is based in Maharaj's words: he explained that someday science would develop to the point that it will able to verify, factually, the validity of the non-dual teachings and should, at that point, be used to help others understand the message.
So, the invitation today is to understand that there are levels of psychic health, ranging from several levels where humans can show some degrees of mental health and development and growth; several levels which can reveal degrees of only average mental health along with varying degrees of personality disorders; several levels which reveal a lack of psychic health and the presence of various neuroses and psychoses as personality disorders become more serious; and a final level which is marked by psychic disintegration, labeled by the Enneagram Institute as "The Level of Pathological Destructiveness."
They explain: "One of the most profound ways of understanding the levels is as a measure of our capacity to be present" [or in non-duality terminology, to be "awake, aware, and conscious" and to be "in touch with reality"].
They point out that the more identified one is with ego [that is, with assumed personalities, ego-states, false identities, et cetera] and the more persons become increasingly driven by ego's negative and restrictive patterns, the more one will moves down the levels [that is, the more one will deteriorate psychically].
Eventually understanding that to be the case, Maharaj came to see that the Ultimate Sickness is not a too-little-dogma sickness or a sickness caused by a "spiritual malady" but is a mental sickness instead; that is why he stopped using religion and spirituality as forms of the Ultimate Medicine; why he would eventually identify the Ultimate Sickness as a psychic, psychological, ignorance-and-insanty-based mental sickness; and why he eventually recommended that seekers focus on addressing the distorted and bogus nature of the fiction-filled mind (which he came to see is the key source of humankind's problems).
The Institute adds: "By contrast, the movement toward health, up the levels, is simultaneous with being more present and awake in our minds, hearts, and bodies. As we become more present, we become less fixated in the defensive structures of our personality and are more attuned and open to ourselves and our environment. We see our personality objectively in action rather than 'falling asleep' to our automatic personality patterns. There is, therefore, the possibility of 'not doing' our personality and of gaining some real distance from the negative consequences of getting caught in it."
That "possibility of 'not doing' our personality and of gaining some real distance from the negative consequences of getting caught in it" points to the non-dual understanding called "liberation."
The process of "enlightenment" assists with the "movement toward [mental] health" and "with being more present and awake."
The process of "realization" (explained by Maharaj as simply being freed of learned ignorance and insanity) further assists with the movement toward liberation.
If a state of liberation is reached - that is, if one is free of having one's thoughts and words and actions all controlled by the hidden agendas of the various false identities which have been assigned and assumed - then only can freedom and happiness manifest.
The Institute explains what actually happens if the advice of non-dual sages is followed and if personality identification - as well as being controlled by the hidden agendas of assigned and assumed personalities - end:
"As we move 'up' the levels, [that is, toward more psychic healthiness] we discover that we are freer and less driven by compulsive, unconscious drives and therefore able to act more effectively in all areas of our lives. When we are less identified with our personality, we find that we respond as needed to whatever life presents, bringing real peace, creativity, strength, joy, compassion, and other positive qualities [relatively speaking] to whatever we are doing."
So far, while discussing the relative effects of the nine basic personality styles or types, the focus has been on
the Personality Type One Perfectionist / Reformer / Critic / Judge / Executioner and
the Type Two Rescuer / Helper / Love Seeker and
the Type Three Performer / Applause Seeker / Image Make / Image Maintainer and
the Personality Type Four The Romantic / Individualist / Rebel / Seekers of Isolation or Seeker of Authenticity and
the Personality Type Five Knowledge Seeker / Knower / Analyst / Avoider / Secretive One / Cerebral One / Philosophical One / Isolated One and
the Personality Type Six Loyalist / The Dependent One / The Co-Dependent One / The Seeker of Caretakers / The Fear-Based One / The Anxious One.
To continue, the focus today will be on the consequences of being highly influenced by the agenda of the Personality Type Seven. From the book LIBERATION (Attaining Freedom from Personality via Realization):
The Relative Effects of Personality: Fears, Desires and Interrupted Happiness (continued)
“Body,” “mind,” and “personality” are concepts, rooted in ideas dreamed up—typically—by controlling men and passed on today via programming, conditioning, acculturation, etc.
Among the masses on the planet, little progress has been made in eliminating belief in concepts and dogma and myths and magical, supernatural thinking since those early times when an eclipse was perceived to be the result of an action taken by an angry god (the same explanation many modern persons cited as the cause of Hurricane Katrina and the subsequent damage and deaths).
Any discussions of any concepts—including these on personality—are offered, therefore, in the spirit of thorns being provided for use in removing thorns. To see that archetypes, programming, personality traits and conditioning can drive persons subconsciously and / or unconsciously to think and behave in certain ways is a prerequisite for being free of those subconscious and unconscious influences.
Only by being free of those influences can one move into a state of enlightenment and awareness and then live out the remainder of the manifestation in the type of AS IF living that happens after the consciousness has been re-purified.
This discussion will focus on the basic fear and the basic desire of Personality Type Seven—“The Adventurer / Enthusiast.”
Russ Hudson pointed out the following about Personality Type Sevens:
BASIC FEAR AND BASIC DESIRE
The Type Seven has a BASIC FEAR of being trapped, deprived or in pain
(be it mental, emotional, or physical)
The Type Seven has a BASIC DESIRE to be free, to have the “need” for exciting or enjoyable activities fulfilled, and to avoid all pain
(be it mental, emotional, or physical)
THE IMPACT OF THAT PERSONALITY TYPE ON THE RELATIVE EXISTENCE
Type Sevens are busy, fun-loving types who enjoy the spontaneous but hate the routine. While they can be free-spirited at some point, they can eventually deteriorate into excessiveness and becomes escapists. In the extreme, they can disintegrate into manic compulsiveness, and their relative existence can become marked by panic attacks and fits of hysteria and histrionics.
Sevens can become the “bliss seekers” of the relative existence or the “bliss seekers” among evangelical extremists or even the “bliss seekers” among those on the Advaitin path. Of course, all such seeking and desiring eventually lead only to more frustration as all perceived (but unreal) “needs” are never fully met.
WHY PERSONALITY TYPE SEVEN INTERRUPTS HAPPINESS
Sevens would rather be excited than happy. They would rather be ecstatic than at peace. They will use activity and “doing” to treat their anxiety and can become “go-ers and do-ers and zoomers” in the style of Type Threes and Sixes and Eights.
Their tendency to “anticipate” leaves them discontented with the present, and even when an anticipated activity eventually happens, Sevens are frustrated. Why? When that which was anticipated eventually comes about, it is never as great as what was anticipated. They are constantly “living in the future” and are, therefore, deprived from living in the moment…similar in that way to many Type Fives.
Living in the illusion of their “mental future,” NOW becomes anathema and further separation from reality results. Sevens want to find “that magnificence that IS,” but they are actually in fear that they’ll never find it; therefore, they can become cynical and can turn to drugs or alcohol to deaden any pain or frustration that they might be feeling.
They can become so determined to avoid all pain and all uncomfortable situations that they can engage in impulsive, insane relative existence conduct to avoid pain and all physical, mental, or emotional discomfort. That leaves them “emotionally unavailable” in their relative existence “relationships.”
They hate commitment and seriousness and confronting and analysis and suffering so much that they, ironically, induce more suffering in their efforts to avoid or to escape.
Eventually, they can become more impulsive, restless, and self-destructive in economic, emotional, or social ways (but their hatred of slowing down and analyzing the things that are driving them and finding authenticity prevents many Sevens from ever reaching a state of "Full Realization"). Who could possibility be happy with those personality traits and the behavior they inspire?
FREEDOM FROM PERSONALITY TYPE SEVEN EFFECTS VIA REALIZATION
If Sevens Realize, their basic fear of being trapped disappears. They are able to ask “WHO feels trapped?” and are able to understand that no “one” exists to feel trapped. The fear of being deprived ends as they are able to ask “WHO feels deprived?” and can then understood that no “one” exists to feel deprived. And the fear of mental or physical or—especially—emotional pain ends. Why?
With realization, feelings are witnessed as they rise and fall, but no ego-states exist that stimulate emotional intoxication.
There is no longer any “one” to “experience” anything. The ego prefers the search, the going, the doing, the zooming. When the “magnificence” which they were searching for is finally found in the "magnificence" of knowing the True Self and then living in an AS IF style, then ego dissolves.
The overwhelming pain of the frustrating search (which in the past had ended so often in futility) comes to an end.
Only the re-purified consciousness can result in the bliss that the Sevens had sought for so long with such vigor.
The desire to be free ends as freedom truly manifests. Exciting or enjoyable activities can happen, but even if they don’t (and even if a state of bliss is never maintained) the Sevens can still be content.
And then, for those who could never find enough of what they had been seeking, merely being content suddenly becomes . . . enough.
[For you to review and consider if interested:
What the nine basic personality types can generate if they are manifesting at a high rate:
AN EXCESSIVELY HIGH 1 score can indicate perfectionism, rigidity, judgmentalism, excessive criticism, and excessive self-criticism. It can inhibit the development of two of the 7’s positive contributions, namely, a sense of lightness and a joy of living.
AN EXCESSIVELY HIGH 2 can indicate an excessive dependency on relationships in an effort to feel worthy and loved; can result in extreme histrionics at times; can cause a sense of entitlement; can inspire excessive focus on self and can drive persons to seek love excessively.
AN EXCESSIVELY HIGH 3 can indicate a concern with image, with being super “successful,” with seeking applause and affirmation in excessive levels; can cause one to become a status-seeker; and can inspire excessive focus on self.
AN EXCESSIVELY HIGH 4 can indicate one an overly-romanticize view of life; can result in one being less in touch with reality; can drive one to rebel constantly and / or to be angry and / or to fight; and can inspire excessive focus on self.
AN EXCESSIVELY HIGH 5 can indicate excessive avoidance and can cause excessive concern with being more knowledgeable than others.
AN EXCESSIVELY HIGH 6: Can cause an excessive sense of hypervigilance; can cause a sense; can cause excessive fear; and can cause excessive anxiety or even paranoia.
AN EXCESSIVELY HIGH 7 can indicate the presence of the Addictive Personality Disorder; can cause people to want to escape and to obsess about having too little freedom; can cause people to avoid responsibilities; can lead to chaos.
AN EXCESSIVELY HIGH 8 can indicate anger, aggressiveness; an excessive desire to control; and an attraction to submissive types.
AN EXCESSIVELY HIGH 9 can indicate passive-aggressive behavior; excessive avoidance; a sense of entitlement; and dissociation.]
To be continued.
Please enter into the silence of contemplation.
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