Enneagram by Leela

[Guest guest]

 

 

               

The Soul of the Six

An essay by Eli Jaxon-Bear

 

This essay is in response to an earlier

essay about the Six fixation presented

at the International Enneagram

Conference.

 

In the first essay the author used a

metaphor of all the different fixations

approaching the crossing of a log

over a rushing stream. The author

referred to the Six fear and doubt

and working with that through

different techniques to "get the Six

to cross the bridge." The author also referred to the Six having a lack of=

 

a centerpost or cornerstone for

constructing a self.

 

Techniques can be very useful for ego-strengthening. Using visualization,

mantra, anchoring, role-modeling,

hypnosis and other exercises, the

Six fixation can learn to "cross

the bridge," to move through the fear

and doubt. But does this lead to true

fulfillment? Certainly counter-phobic

Sixes could cross the bridge with

ease and daring-do. Does this make

them any happier, any closer to

essence?

 

None of them has ever reported it so.

What if, instead of crossing a log

over a stream, the challenge was to

cross the ocean of suffering called

Samsara and realize the true Self

which is Immortal Being, Pure

Consciousness and Love-Bliss? In the

face of this challenge, mental

activity, such as mantra or

visualization, or body-based activity

like Aikido, or emotional activity

like breath-work, must be left behind.

 

Self cannot be built. You cannot use

a cornerstone or center post to

discover Self. True Self can only

be directly discovered and realized.

It cannot be made, built, or

transformed into. You cannot transform

the fixation into Self or essence.

This would be like trying to transform

the shadow into Peter Pan. It cannot

be done and need not be done, for

the Self that casts the shadow is

already present and complete. It

needs no work, nor any

ego-strengthening.

 

It only needs to be realized in order

to wake up from the trance of being

a fixation, or a shadow.

 

All Sixes are longing for union with

the Father. This gets projected into

family life as the supreme Father

is projected on to the blood father,

or the meat father. Inevitably there

is a sense of being let down,

interpreted as betrayal, or a deep

denial of that let-down, through a

continued sense of loyalty.

 

This perceived betrayal of the father

is then projected on to all authority

figures. This leads to first

self-betrayal, then betrayal of

the authority and then denial. The

avoidance of the unbearableness of

the betrayal is a powerful motivation

for the continuation of endless mind-activity.

 

Self betrayal can also appear as

compliance with the authority figure

out of an idea of loyalty and a

perceived need for security.

 

So what is needed to leave the trap

of identification behind to discover

true essence? It is the ending of

identification as a mental,

emotional and physical body. There

are certain time-tested requirements

that have presented themselves

through the ages. The first is the

burning desire to end the suffering

of living life as a fixation.

 

This is the function of the Holy

Ideas. Holy Ideas are not essence as

some have claimed, but rather the

catalyzing force for a mature soul

to galvanize the intention to

transcend ego. Any of the Holy Ideas

can be used to fixate complete

attention on what is larger and more

important then a personal life.

 

Truth, Love, Freedom are all still

in the realm of mind and ego as

Holy Ideas that can catapult

consciousness beyond the boundaries

of egoic life if there is a

willingness to surrender all of egoic

life to the Holy Idea.

 

The Buddha said that life was

suffering. He also said that there

are three root evils that must be

overcome in order to live a life of

essence, Peace, fulfillment. The

three root evils are Ignorance,

Aversion and Desire. These are the

qualities which give rise to

fixation and veil the true Self.

The true Self is called Sat Chit

Ananda which is translated as Immortal

Being, Consciousness and Love.

If these qualities are put on the

inner triangle of the Enneagram

it becomes obvious that Aversion

which is the root of fear is veiling

the essence of Consciousness,

which appears as Silent Emptiness.

Its fruit is wisdom. It shines when

the mind stops.

 

This is the essence that the Six

fixation is veiling. The Six fixation

can never transform itself into

Silence. It cannot be found in any

body-based practice. It does not

need cultivating or work. Silent Consciousness is already fully present,

untouched by the waves of fixation

that arise from Silence and return

to Silence.

 

Signs that a soul has left the fixation

behind may include a naturally quiet

mind, an end to identification as a

body having any weight or personal

meaning. A person living as essence

naturally attracts others who long

to bask in Silence. There is nothing

to shun and nothing to desire. Life

is fulfilled and in this a life of

true service begins.

 

To the outside world it may seem that

the person is now acting heroically,

by living with natural disregard for

one's own safety in service to the

whole. This is not necessarily saving

damsels from runaway trains, but

rather the willingness to live a

completely authentic life without

fear, doubt, ignorance or selfishness

running the show.

 

The path for the Six is called courage.

Courage is the willingness to leave

everything known behind in the plunge

into the unknown in the discovery of

truth. The Holy Idea of Faith alludes

to the leap of faith required to

leave the island of the known, called

ego or me, and plunge into the ocean

of the unknown.

 

But really faith can only take you

so far. Faith may even take you as

far as the leap, but once you have

leapt, where is faith, or the need

or usefulness of faith any longer?

Faith is merely the trick that the

mind uses to give up its control

and surrender completely to something unknown.

 

In this is the absorption back into

the Father. This is the fulfillment

of Jesus's proclamation that "I

and my Father are One." This cry

is the call of Consciousness that

has given up its trance

identification as a Six and a body

and a mind.

 

In the past this has been the rarest

phenomena that Mother Earth has

ever produced. Much rarer then the

rarest minerals or gases. Now, as

Mother Earth is dying, you are being

called directly. You have everything

required to make the leap from the

shore of suffering and samsara to

the Ocean of Reality called Love

and Bliss.

 

It is a good day to die.

 

http://www.leela.org/Text/enneagram/Enneagram.html

 

karta