type 9

 
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key traits

  • Defence mechanism: dissociation, narcotization, forgetting

  • Over-adjustment and Over-empathizing: 9's unconsciously/accidentally take in the ideas, positions, feelings of others as if they were their own so they lose access to their own agenda, merging, natural therapists (they will even merge with the types in their own trifix and wing, becoming a foggy less committed version of those types, can often mistype as one of their fixes or wing so as to identify with a more solid aspect of themselves), this is not necessarily intentional and 9's will do all kinds of things to avoid this accidental empathy with their surroundings

  • Resignation: go along to get along, anger can bubble and fade, "why bother?", go with the flow, take things as they come, don't force it; can also be resigned by over-activity, distraction

  • Passivity/Easygoing: not demanding, might preemptively say "no" to avoid having to go up against someone; stable, congenial; aggression comes in a series of passive avoidances; anger can unleash itself and the 9 blames external circumstances; won't react "big" enough to things

  • Indecision: procrastination, disconnected from internal guidance system, get stuck moving through unimportant details and can fail to see the big picture of what needs to be done, most 9's keep themselves busy as a distraction

  • Being stuck: will get stuck in a peripheral task or thought process as a means of avoiding the need to assert head-on

  • Confusion: can see the multiple landscapes of their lives that surround them and walk through each comfortably, can find a little piece of themselves in each scene, hard to type themselves solidly; separateness of existence is blurred and so are thoughts, they become entangled

  • Deflecting attention away from self: can find it difficult to have too much spotlight on themselves, sometimes hard to articulate their own thoughts and feelings, will turn the attention back to you

  • Connectedness: feeling that somehow everyone and everything is connected due to the blurred body boundary, everything is water

  • Shadow/Lost self: unaware of their anger and aggression, afraid that if they release it they will become disconnected from people, prefer to keep the peace

  • Core fears: Conflict, being overlooked and ignored, being loveless, complication, discord, being shut out, inharmonious

  • Wants Harmony

character

Being part of the body/gut triad in the enneagram, the 9’s type structure is based around body boundaries and asserting one’s own existence, and the 9 boundary is fluid. Deep down, 9’s are stuck in the undifferentiated state of infant-hood, a time when there was no psychological boundary between self and other. As adults, this yields the 9’s philosophy that everyone and everything is somehow connected in a deep way. They are natural listeners and can find it easy to sympathize with others. They know what it feels like to be overlooked, and have a genuine way of accepting others for their faults. They don’t impose themselves and their needs/preferences on others, and they might not realize in the moment that they are allowing the needs/preferences of another to fill the space. They are probably the most universally likeable type, though they might not realize when they’ve made a positive impact on someone due to their amorphous internal landscape.

9 being the most common type, there are many different shades of them out there. They can look like almost any other type depending on who they are, which is also part of their chameleonic quality. Some 9’s are gentle and kind, others are dark and broody. Some are outwardly indolent, others are the president of the United States. Some are simple and basic, others are highly intellectual and introspective. Some admit to avoiding anger, others admit to getting very angry at times. Part of being a malleable type means that 9's can see themselves as many things, which makes it difficult for them often to correctly type as 9.

Part of the gut centre is “gut knowing,” or a sense of innate knowledge that comes from the body and the earth. However with 9’s, part of their type structure is not forcing action, so they can end up being stubborn about seeing what they want to see.

9’s have a way of staying calm and composed even in a crisis or great emotional turmoil. They will often experience emotions and thoughts somatically and won’t outwardly show them as much as others, but that doesn't mean they don't have intense emotions.  Some 9's can sublimate anger and reactivity into sadness and be a "silent-sufferer," whereas others can attempt to find a boundary and a link to the gut centre. This idea of the silent sufferer has sometimes been misattributed to 4. Whereas 4 is the active amplification of reactions and stewing within internal states for the sake of authenticity, 9's can easily be flooded with emotions but have an internal message that says, "it's not okay for you to express this and bother anyone." 4's will not experience that internal message.

 Their thought process can be meandering, and they like to allow their ideas to wander. Their stories can sometimes be rambling as they traipse around ideas without a very strict focus. They might have brilliant ideas, but those ideas also have fluid boundaries between each other. 

Unlike the aggressive types (3, 7, 8), the type 9 structure is not built around actively getting what they want from the world, as they prefer to let things happen as they may, or wait for things to happen at the right time. The animal that parallels type 9 has been described as the elephant. It takes a while for it to get moving, but once it does, it is slow and steady and unflappable. As it moves, everything is in a comfortable flow state, like the low buzzing hum of a fan. Some 9’s may admit to feeling “lazy,” whereas others get a lot done. Either way, 9’s can feel like they often lack a certain “life force.” Unlike their gut neighbours 8 and 1, 9’s gut energy stays trapped inside them and more in its comfort zone. They need to feel balanced, and will avoid things that don’t quite sit comfortably with them. They generally like to avoid the complications of life that could possibly threaten their autonomy. They like things to go smoothly and harmoniously.

Some 9's might not relate to the idea of "complacency" and argue that they work very hard and have a lot of goals. However 9's can "fall asleep" to their daily life no matter what the activities, and 9's often don't realize when their hyperactivity is actually accomplishing very little or still a way to stay not fully present. Part of 9 is a constant registering of how peaceful and calm things are, but they can never be peaceful and calm enough to suit the 9. So some 9's can be persistently anxious about the constant energy disturbance that comes from being in the world. They might retreat at times into periods of calm inaction to regroup.

Not all 9's will actively invite this kind of "merge" or harmony. 9's with 2 in the trifix might have a self-image of being helpful and empathetic. Whereas other 9's (ex. 954/963) might actively avoid this "merge" by avoiding others or preemptively saying "no" to people. 9's have trouble accessing their own gut impulses and anger, and they instinctively know that this muddling will happen unless they preemptively give a "no" to maintain their position. 9w8 in general can also have an easier time being tough or saying no, whereas 9w1 has more of a 1ish philosophy around the 9 connectedness.

9’s are sensitive to being ignored, and would rather feel invited than have to assert their inclusion. They don’t have a strong enough boundary to send people away, but they fear getting too involved and having unwanted obligations. They want to connect with others, but still want to be able to slip away when needed. This bodily inertia can make 9’s unable to fully grasp a solid sense of self, like trying to find solid mass in a fog. There’s a low rumbling of anger at being pulled around by the world, and their best defence is stubbornness and passiveness. They get angry at themselves for saying yes when they didn’t want to. This leads to inner irritation and frustration at unwanted obligation. This can further lead to 9’s being “not there” enough for others who wonder how they disappeared into the fog. At the core, 9’s believe that saying no or asserting themselves is not worth it.

9’s often dislike conflict, and can view debates and arguments, or just yelling, as a big red alert on their flow radar. They feel like no one gives them the chance to speak anyway. They naturally try to see the good in people as a way of avoiding their anger, but anger can explode from them at times. People’s shocked reactions will just reinforce that anger is bad, and they will return to a more numbed state. 9's can often find an outlet for rage in online communities or indirect actions.

Part of that numbed state is not having high expectations of others. 9’s might not realize that they had such a profound effect on others in a relationship, and might stay somewhat emotionally disconnected on the outside. They might feel a lot internally and be confused that others haven’t read their minds. When others don’t notice, they make themselves more unavailable to play out the core belief that they are invisible anyway. This is also a way of protecting themselves from getting so attached that they can no longer slip in and out. At the core, the 9 ego feels that it has no self-importance or doesn’t matter. This will cause them to not fully show up to their instinctual drives via passive love triangles, doing busy work, or being half-themselves in their social interactions.

9’s will often deflect the spotlight off themselves onto you. When people notice them, they’re not always entirely sure why, and can find it hard to become solid flesh from fog all of the sudden. If they can’t see themselves, how can they accept others seeing them? They feel more comfortable directing the conversation to others. They can sometimes avoid commitment if the outcome is too complicated or they don’t have good gut feeling about it. 9’s need to take responsibly for their own will.

9's are probably the most likely to perform spiritual bypass, to think that because they are naturally calm and un-reactive that they have achieved spiritual goals. They can fail to realize how this calmness is actually an inner deadness to true reactions. They can take pride in how everyone else is reacting and they are the ones who are grounded and calm. 

lines of movement

9 moves to 3

  • Positive: gain energy and productivity, become more focused, gain confidence, live more for themselves rather than through others

  • Negative: take on too much, seek validation from others for accomplishments rather than doing things for themselves

9 moves to 6

  • Positive: become more outspoken and direct about their thoughts, become more realistic

  • Negative: increased anxiety, self-doubting, anxiety, and rigidity; become even more passive and inactive in this paralysis

comparisons with other types

9 vs 1: 1's have a boundary that is more fluid with 9's, 1's are more aggressive

9 vs 2: 2's are controlling and assertive, 9's are open and receptive

9 vs 3: 3's overestimate themselves or bolster their abilities, 9's forget they exist

9 vs 4: Both withdrawn, both have capacity to be emotional, 4's like to be separate, 9's innately feel like there's no identity boundary between them and others, 4's are constantly cultivating who they are and presenting it to others, 9's feel like who they are can shift to different landscapes that are all "them" depending on who they're with, 4's are reactive and present their darkness, 9's feel some need to be a positive face for others and suffer on the inside, 4's are out of touch with their bodies and 9's are stuck in their bodies, 4's are more prone to hate, 9's are more prone to anger; 9's can get flooded with emotion whereas 4's will actively amplify emotions in a way that is actually less "real" than the honest reaction

9 vs 5: Both have the capacity for introspection and great intellect, 5's are out of touch with their bodies, 9's are over-identified with their body, yet also numb to it, 5's are attracted to sometimes "unseemly" or grotesque topics, 9's can be with 4 or 5 in trifix or with SX, but they still prefer a sense of emotional calm, 5's will explore what makes them uncomfortable, 5's do not lash out latent anger, but experience anxiety, 9's have trouble moving out into the world or "caring" about anything, 5's have trouble allowing the world to take their energy, 5's have a boundary up with people, 9's unconsciously merge with others, 5's are not naturally accommodating, 9's are, 5's like to make things complex, 9's like to make things simple, 5's can enjoy debating and arguing and 9's avoid conflict/anger, 5's are particular about their ideas and not easily convinced, 9's cognition is more adaptive

9 vs 6: 6's think 9's are too lax, 6's require more detailed explanations and have a deep search for understanding and truth, 9's can gloss over discrepancies more easily and don't have the same need for precision, 9's more easily give up and resort to apathy

9 vs 7: Both positive types, 7's can be arrogant, 9's have an internal message telling them to not take up too much space, 7's have a strong libido, 9's more easily accept what they can't have

9 vs 8: 8's express anger and are comfortable with conflict, 9's let anger collect and bubble up into volcanic bursts