The Path of Least Resistance Part 5 5

December 10, 2024

​​​​​​​The Path of Least Resistance Part 5

On the Enneagram, when we take the path of least resistance, we are on the road to disintegration. A conscious, healthy life requires effort, consideration of others, and realization of our context on all levels. But the unhealthy ego is dominated by the desire to complete its narrative, fend off its fears, and grant its desires. The unhealthy characteristics at the stress point seem to be the best way to meet that agenda. But they are not. 

Today's Reflection is on the Heart Center and its three ego types' ways of taking the path of least resistance in disintegration. 

Type Two:

Not being acknowledged for the gifts and services they give triggers the unhealthy Two’s disintegration and they take the path of least resistance to the unhealthy characteristics of Type Eight. Twos are natural givers with which the world could not do without. Healthy Two’s are full of empathy and compassion. But when they are in their fixation, they are out of touch with their own needs, and desperately need to feel loved and valued. They confuse being loved with how well they meet others' needs. Unhealthy Two’s rely on being considered very selfless, which provides them with the "status" they need to feel flattered and loved.  But if they feel unloved, they first feel shame; then take the path of least resistance to their unhealthy Eight. Here, they take on the Eight's unhealthy characteristics of intimidation, ripping the carpets from under those they have supported. This is an act of vengeance. "I'll teach you not to minimize my giving and my helpfulness. I show you what happens if I am thought well of. See what life is like without my service." This sets them up to continue the path of disintegration by next going to the unhealthy characteristics of Point Five, in which they further withdraw.

When Twos are healthy, they go against their arrow to the healthy Four. Here they are able to accept their needs. This is a game changer because they see life and others more realistically. They know that they are people in their own right who are to be loved for who they are without regard to the services they provide. They are givers but no longer give compulsively. They align their will with Divine will and then they are Free.

Type Three

The path of least resistance for the Ego Type Three is to go to the unhealthy aspects of Nine and become complacent and lazy with their standards. Healthy Threes are the accomplishers of this word. They envision the possibilities, set the goals, and delegate the responsibilities. They are our winners and stars. But when they are unhealthy, they are asleep to their moral compass and values. Egocentrically they do whatever is most convenient and efficient to achieve the desired result, including compromising their integrity and in extremes, inviting deception into the equation. Sooner or later, the Three's lack of integrity comes back to haunt them, and they lose the praise and adulation they so counted on to feel loved. Then shame consumes them. This sets them up to continue the road to disintegration by following their arrow from Nine to the unhealthy characteristics of Type Six, where fear of rejection and anxiety overtakes them. Then they fear retaliation for the behaviors of their false self.

Threes who are healthy go to the healthy characteristics of type Six where kinship, family, community, and the good of all are vital to them. This is the essence of the Three. At this place, they are no longer concerned with winning favor so that they can feel love. They know they are loved because they have returned home.

Type Four:

Fours are bastions of creativity, depth, and mystery. They have the gift of approaching things in unique ways and bringing creativity into all settings and in problem-solving. The path of least resistance for the Four is to go to the unhealthy aspects of Type Two. Here, they foster dependencies and symbiotic relationships that reinforce their being special and unique. Such dependencies are tasked with flattering the Four, believing that others should notice how special they are. They are also in charge of helping the Four figure out their tragic past, which can never be accomplished because the Four don’t want to lose this sadness that composes much of their lives and makes them distinctive. The arrow from Two takes them to Point Eight, where they pick up the unhealthy characteristics of intimidation and pulling power plays to get what they want. These are to compensate for their shame. Fours who are healthy go to Point One where they automatically know the right course to take. This lifts them out of their hopelessness and despair. They now move in the world with confidence, no longer searching for their true identity but knowing their Divine origin.  

Spiritual practice: Journal about how you identify with any of the above paths of least resistance. 

Self-inquiry: What lets you know when you have reached your stress point? What enables you to know when you have gone to your point of integration, your soul point?  

Dear God, 

I pray to you for awareness. Amen