NICKNAMES: Peacemaker, Mediator, Naturalist, Accommodator, Abdicator

ENERGETICS: Avoidant and Adaptive - Adapt boundaries to seek harmony and avoid anger

HIDDEN ESSENCE: Divine Harmony

Subjective

People with the Nine pattern fixate on being comfortable and avoiding anger.

The urge to be comfortable is so deep they often don’t even know when they are uncomfortable. They self negate to avoid discomfort.

They neutralize - if you are too down they bring you up, too up they bring you down. They tend to be in denial around negative issues - may not perceive the problem at all. They can minimize, or reject a problem if it feels unpleasant.

They lack a sense of self, of separate identity, due avoiding intensity. They believe they have a limited capacity to handle intensity so they numb out.

They feel inferior - “it doesn’t matter” really means "I don’t matter". This makes it difficult to initiate or go against the flow. They disappear if they really don’t want to do something - not respond to phone calls, or become sick.

They dissociate in a daze or day dream and not hear when people are talking to them. They will often not be aware of what they may have been thinking.

Avoiding anger leaves them lacking energy. They are afraid their anger is homicidal. They often use the expressions “that would be too much for me” or “I couldn’t handle that” when it comes to feeling emotional pain or anger.

Objective

They have rock like, solid, and dense bodies. Their pace is slow and methodical, lacking spontaneity. They want to please and go with the flow, but are immovable in ways.

Their avoidance of anger, confrontation, and intensity makes them passive and passive-aggressive. There is a glazed look in their eyes, at times vacant. This happens more when they feel threatened, judged, or anger.

They pleasantly sink into the background. People feel accepted. When they judge it is often of people who are judgmental, demanding, critical or too dramatic intense.

Childhood

Children with the Nine pattern feel overwhelmed by their families. They try to disappear and/or make peace. They dissociate from drama by becoming invisible or mediating.

They are very low maintenance. They learn that having needs, getting angry, or having difficulties is not acceptable. They lose energy and become listless.

Subtypes

SELF-PRESERVATION, THE CONSUMER

They merge with and get sense of self from the material world - I consume therefore I am. They consume many forms of stimuli at the same time. They are very loving people with no sense of being loved. They avoid social interaction and would rather be at home watching TV.

SOCIAL, THE NETWORKERS

They merge with and get sense of self from groups. They are peacemakers and bring people together. They are emotionally disengaged. They need to join groups because they feel like they don’t belong anywhere. They are generous and mindful of satisfying the needs of others.

SEXUAL/ATTRACTION, THE MERGER

They merge with and get sense of self from a partner. They take on the characteristics of their partner - likes, dislikes, passions. They lack their own passion and needs.

Wings

8 WING, THE JOLLY GOOD FELLOW

More out going and social, sensual, energetic, and expressive, can be explosive but quickly become calm, extroverted

9 WING, THE SECRET CRITIC

Create external order to simulate internal order, get caught in nonessential details, less energy, detached, proper, introverted

Continuum

LOWER - Unresponsive to life, dissociated, depressed, and listless

MIDDLE - Ignore problems, get lost in routines and habits, and agree to things they don’t want to do

HIGH - Maintain peace and harmony, easy going, kind, truly peaceful and dynamic, spontaneous, still ego based.

Essence

ALL INCLUSIVE INTRINSIC HARMONY & DIVINE AWARENESS

The essence of each type is the quality of character - a particular expression - that remains when the fixation softens and releases. While these qualities are human they are not personal and cannot be developed.

The essence is revealed when fixation is recognized and freed through awareness and compassion. We all have the potential to realize the essence of our type - our more subtle authentic nature. This authenticity means living from open, free, wholeness.

The essence of the type Nine is true harmony. When liberated from fixation/conditioning, people with this type embody all inclusive, intrinsic harmony and divine awareness.

Each type has a blind spot that creates a unique experience of separation. Each blind spot is directly related to the essential nature of each type. People with the Nine pattern have a blind spot for all inclusive harmony.

This blind spot prevents them from perceiving and experiencing authentic beauty and love. All nurturing environments are inadequate to some extent. This inadequacy is experienced personally and interpreted through the enneagram pattern. When this is experienced by the child with the type Nine, they fixate on avoiding intensity and confrontation.

Enneagram Type 9