The Mental Self - Head Triad
If the Body Triad aims to maintain a sense of self, and the Heart Triad seeks to maintain personal identity, then the Head Triad is about finding a sense of inner guidance and support. The dominant feelings for Types Five, Six, and Seven are anxiety and unease. In other words, the Body Triad resists various aspects of the present; the Heart Triad is oriented towards the past, as their self-image is built on memories and interpretations of past experiences; the Head Triad focuses on the future, as if asking: “What will happen to me next? How will I survive? How should I prepare to avoid bad things? How do I move forward? How should I respond?”
Types Five, Six, and Seven find it difficult to calm their minds because inner stillness allows us to fundamentally feel a great deal of support; inner knowledge and guidance arise from a calm mind, giving us confidence to take action in life. When these qualities are obstructed, fear arises, and the reactions to this fear distinguish between the three types in the Head Triad.
Type Five
Type Fives respond by withdrawing from life and reducing their personal needs. They see themselves as very fragile and powerless, struggling to survive in the world; the only safe place is their inner world. Therefore, they gradually accumulate resources (which they believe will help them survive) and wait until everything is ready before returning to the world. Type Fives feel they have nothing to “bring to the table” in terms of practical daily life needs, so they choose to withdraw until they have acquired certain skills and gained enough sense of security to emerge from their hiding place.
Type Seven
In contrast, Type Sevens know how to take control of life and appear fearless. At first glance, it might seem strange to place Type Seven in the Head Triad, which is associated with fear, given that people of this type are quite extroverted and adventurous. Although Type Sevens’ external behavior gives this impression, they are actually full of fear internally. However, they are not afraid of the outside world, but of their inner world - afraid of falling into emotional pain, sadness, and anxiety. Therefore, they look forward to activities, using them as a method of escape. Type Sevens subconsciously try to fill their inner world, so that potential anxiety and pain lurking in their hearts will not surface.
Type Six
Type Six is the central type of the Head Triad (located at the top of the equilateral triangle), with their attention and energy directed both inward and outward. Type Sixes feel anxious internally, so like Type Sevens, they channel their unease into external actions and anticipation of the future. Despite this, they still worry about making mistakes, being punished, or being overwhelmed by demands placed upon them, so like Type Fives, they choose to “escape back to their inner world.” They again become afraid of their own emotions, and this situation continues in a cycle, coupled with anxiety, causing their attention to bounce back and forth like a ping-pong ball.
The Head Triad types tend towards what psychologists call the “separation phase” in self-development. During this period (roughly from two to four years old), toddlers begin to think: “How can I break away from mommy’s protection? What is safe? What is dangerous?” Ideally, the father becomes a source of support and guidance, helping the child develop skills and independence.
The three types in the Head Triad represent three ways children try to navigate the separation phase and overcome dependency.
- Type Six seeks a father figure, someone strong, trustworthy, and authoritative. Thus, Type Sixes compensate for the lack of inner guidance by seeking direction from others. They seek support to become independent, which is somewhat ironic, as they gain a sense of independence by relying on someone or some system.
- Type Five deeply believes that support either doesn’t exist or is unreliable, so they compensate for the lack of inner guidance by figuring things out on their own. However, because they “rely on themselves,” they believe that to separate and gain independence, they must reduce their personal needs and dependence on others.
- Type Seven tries to achieve separation by finding alternatives to maternal protection, pursuing things they believe will make them more satisfied and secure. Meanwhile, they cope with the lack of inner guidance by trying various things, as if through a process of elimination, they could discover the secret source of protection they’re seeking.
About the Triads
Regardless of which type we belong to, each personality type contains the three basic elements of instinct, emotion, and thought, and these elements are intertwined; we cannot change one element without affecting the other two. However, most people often get trapped in the world of personality, unable to see the basic elements within themselves, let alone the fact that modern education has never taught us about these concepts.
Each part of the triad represents obstructed or distorted innate abilities or functions. The emergence of personality is meant to fill the gap created by the obstructed nature, and the triad to which our personality type belongs indicates where the obstruction of our nature and the artificial compensatory mechanism of personality play the greatest role. For example, if we are Type Eight, the obstructed essence is power. Therefore, personality traits intervene, attempting to defend the self through tough appearances or even inappropriate ways, imitating true power; trying to replace it with false power from the personality, separating us from real power. Only by seeing this clearly can we recognize or reclaim the true power in our nature.
Similarly, each personality type will, to the maximum extent, imitate in ways that the individual identifies with, attempting to replace true innate qualities. Paradoxically, if someone’s personality type is in the Heart Triad, it doesn’t mean their emotions are richer than others; likewise, if someone’s personality type is in the Head Triad, it doesn’t mean they are smarter than others. In fact, the “self” is formed around the problematic element (instinct, emotion, or thought), and is therefore also the part that is most difficult to operate freely psychologically.
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