A Thousand Paths

Quotes, thoughts and inspiration from a practical 21st century Taoist mystic on a 10,000-hours-of-self-transformation mission

[melissasandfort]

“The Enneagram is only a map...it is up to us to make the journey.”

The Multi-Dimensional Enneagram, 11

[melissasandfort]

“We are not our personality.”

The Multi-Dimensional Enneagram, 10

[melissasandfort]

“The mechanisms of our personality are invisible to us.… The amazing thing is that as we are able to bring a non- judgmental awareness to the reactivity of our personality, our perceptions become sharper, and we begin to discover a vast part of ourselves that is not conflicted, self – deluding, or fearful. As we become more conscious of the mechanical aspects of our personality (that is, our automatic, reactive, defensive patterns), we are less and less controlled by them. By using the habits of our personality to remind us to be present, and then remaining present while observing and feeling the reactions and habits of the personality, we gradually open to real freedom and inner peace.

Thus, the paradox of the Enneagram is this: we study the Enneagram because it is necessary to become conscious of how our personality operates so that we can become free of it.“

The Multi-Dimensional Enneagram, 9

[melissasandfort]

“In the process of teaching the Enneagram to thousands of people for many years, we have seen over and over that the key to transformation lies in our capacity to be present — to be deeply abiding in the here and now, with our minds, hearts, and bodies fully engaged.

While this seems an obvious and simple thing, there is one huge barrier to our being more conscious and attuned in the present moment. It is that our personality is not at all interested in being here and now.”

[melissasandfort]

“By indicating the chief features and barriers of our psychic landscape, the Enneagram can help us prepare for a more profoundly direct and spiritual relationship with reality.“

The Multi-Dimensional Enneagram, 8

[melissasandfort]

“The development of the personality is as much a defense against our early environment as it is an adaptive reaction to it.”

The Multi-Dimensional Enneagram, 8

[melissasandfort]

“By “cleaving the diamond” of the psyche along its proper internal lines, the Enneagram presents us with the

categories that we actually find in

every day life”

The Multi-Dimensional Enneagram, 7

[melissasandfort]

There are many apparent obstacles to knowledge, but all of them dissolve if we learn to hold our ground.

Tarthang Tulku

[melissasandfort]

What is the point of erecting a superstructure of rules and principles on a reality that already expresses the fullness of time, space, and knowledge?

Tarthang Tulku

[melissasandfort]

No matter what form they take, questions evoke knowledge. We can foster this knowledge dynamic by expanding the inquiry. Feeding questions and questions, asking with the heart, the senses and the body as well as the mind.

Tarthang Tulku

[melissasandfort]

"The Centrifugal Force of Arguments": The farther you move from the core of the problem, the faster the situation spins out of control.

The Bonesetter's Daughter, 22

[melissasandfort]

If ego is the voice that tells us we are better than we really are, we can say ego inhibits true success by preventing a direct and honest connection to the world around us. One of the early members of Alcoholics Anonymous defined ego as "a conscious separation from." From what? Everything.

Ego is the Enemy, 3

[melissasandfort]

The pioneering CEO Harold Geneen compared egoism to alcoholism: "The egotist does not stumble about, knocking things off his desk. He does not stammer or drool. No, instead, he becomes more and more arrogant, and some people, not knowing what is underneath such an attitude, mistake his arrogance for a sense of power and self – confidence."

Ego is the Enemy, 3

[melissasandfort]

If you start believing in your greatness, it is the death of your creativity

Marina Abramovic

[melissasandfort]

Humble in our aspirations Gracious in our success Resilient in our failures

Ego is the enemy, 6

[melissasandfort]

Grounded… and unflinchingly real

Ego is the enemy, 7

[melissasandfort]

When we remove ego, we’re left with what is real. What replaces ego is humility, yes – but rock-hard humility and confidence. Whereas ego is artificial, this type of confidence can hold weight. Ego is stolen. Confidence is earned. Ego is self-anointed, its swagger is artifice. One is girding your self, the other is gaslighting. It’s the difference between potent and poisonous.

Ego is the enemy, 8