Austin Enneagram

Susan Piver, meditation teacher and writer of the nuanced book The Buddhist Enneagram, merges concepts of Buddhism and Enneagram, emphasizing how the Enneagram is a spiritual tool and not a self-help program, personality typer, or life hack. She talks of our 3 centers of intelligence (mental/head triad-delusion, heart/emotional triad-grasping, and body/instinct triad-aggression) as the 3 poisons. And arrows of integration and disintegration as peaceful and wrathful deities. We just grazed the early chapters of her very helpful book, with my dog Wendell repeatedly groaning in her lap. There is much more to dig into.

Also, when I talk about “centering” myself in this podcast, I am talking about the compulsion to see myself as the center of my experience. I am not talking about centering prayer or grounding oneself. I am literally talking about overfocusing on self and individual identity.

End music is by artists Adam Hilton and Henna Chou created in collaboration with my exhibition Treespell (3:35pm, clearing not far from camp on the album Forest Meditation)

Reissuing my conversation with friend, writer, activist Bernadette Noll. We discuss type 8 in Helen Palmer’s book. This was taken down and I am adding it back with no end music.

putting this back out there as this got taken down

reissuing this episode as it got taken down

reissuing episode 3 since it got taken down

reissuing this episode on type 2 since it got taken down

The last chapter in the Helen Palmer book study. Type 9 discussion with fellow Vermonter Erica DeLorenzo. One of my favorite quotes of hers, “I love wanting what other people want.” I also liked talking about how anger “leaks” out of a 9. Hope you enjoy. Let me know what you think. End music is a fair use snippet of Garth Brooks “The Dance” because 9s show us how to do it.

Bernadette Noll is the author of Slow Family Living, the poem I Want to Age Like Sea Glass, and founder of Reduce, Reuse, Remake, an organization which finds ways to build community and cut back on consumption. She and I discuss the type 8 in Helen Palmer’s book The Enneagram, Understanding Yourself and Others in Your Life

Purchase Bernadette’s book for parents of young children in your life here:

https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/311596/slow-family-living-by-bernadette-noll/

I reference the book I am reading: The More Beautiful World Our Hearts Know is Possible by Charles Eisenstein

For information on why I don’t want to use the word “inner city,” these articles are helpful:

https://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2014/10/inner-city-violence-in-the-age-of-mass-incarceration/382154/

https://www.urban.org/2016-analysis/problem-talking-about-inner-cities

End music is “Won’t Back Down” by Tom Petty

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I revisit Helen Palmer’s Chapter on Type 7 with my mom. My favorite comment “You can’t help your feelings, I can’t help my speed!”

end music is “My Cosmos is Mine” by Depeche Mode

Rachel Lomas — friend, political activist, great cook - an epicure for sure - joins me today in a conversation about Helen Palmer’s chapter on type 7

end music is Walking on a Dream by Empire of the Sun