Chapter 5: The Enneagram: A Spiritual Perspective for Addressing Significant Problems Through Research

This chapter will focus on the process of transformation from a spiritual perspective, primarily based on the work of J. G. Bennett, a student of G. I. Gurdjieff, concerning a cosmic symbol, the Enneagram (Figure 5.1, discussed later in detail). The enneagram process will be explored primarily in the context of solving or resolving a significant problem (defined as a problem that requires a change in being to be solved or resolved) through research, especially in contexts relevant to education. This chapter will explore the workings of three interdependent processes that allow a transformative resolution of a significant problem. The three processes are distinct yet interdependent and are a combination of what is happening (functional or temporal process), to whom it is happening (the process of transformation or change of being), and how it is happening (the role of spirit). The process involving spirit represents the nonlinear, unconditioned sequence versus the linear, temporal sequence (the functional cycle); the two processes are reconciled by the third process involving being (or soul). The enneagram process is particularly useful in clarifying the need for the entrance of spirit at particular points in the process of transformation, and the dynamics of how our inner work (soul work) creates the conditions that “allow” for the entrance of spirit into the process. This chapter does not take a position on whether the enneagram is a cosmic symbol introduced into the process of evolution by higher intelligence, as hypothesized by some of the sources for this chapter (e.g., Gurdjieff, 1973), given that there is not empirical data to support that claim and given that it is the position of this chapter that the validity of the process needs to be judged by each individual based on their experience, etc.