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The Seven Roles

BY PHILLIP WITTMEYER

In the fourth vertical column on the Chart is the Aspect called "Role". The Roles are "archetypes". This means that these seven Roles are the most basic divisions of personality types. In contrast to the Feature which can be change, the Role cannot change. Therefore it defines one's most fundamental nature. Second only to Soul Age (which will be discussed at length in following sections), I believe it is the most important ingredient in a person's personality, and the strongest determinant of identity.

Recall that Role is a "Soul" Aspect. Michael explained what this means to some extent. He said that the universal creative force, which he called the "Tao", casts whole "Entities" out of itself, so to speak (although nothing that we know of is truly outside the Creator). This Entity then fragments into approximately one thousand individual human "Souls", which begin the process of evolution through the physical plane by means of reincarnation in a succession of physical bodies. Thus your "Soul" is that part of you which is beyond the space/time framework of the physical universe. Each Soul reenters the physical plane as many times as is necessary to experience all aspects of life and gain a complete understanding of human existence. At the completion of this learning experience, the Entity fragments reunite, thus reconstituting the entire Entity. The Entity then continues its development on higher planes ("Messages From Michael", pages 20 and 63-65).

Michael said that for its physical incarnations, the Soul fragment chooses one of the seven specific Role types at the time it is first born from the Tao, and does not change its Role from lifetime to lifetime. He says the Soul is not limited by this factor between lifetimes, but during incarnation it is. Even though one's Role type colors all of his experiences of life — his attitudes, perceptions, and behavior — Michael says it is nevertheless possible to gain a complete understanding of human existence within any of the Roles. According to Michael, the Roles are not equally divided as to quantity. There are more Servers than any other Role type, then Artisans, Warriors, Scholars, Sages, Priests, and last and fewest Kings. I have found this to be true in my own Charting of individuals. This is an arrangement that works out well from a sociological perspective. There is much more need for Slaves and Artisans than there is for Priests and Kings.

Michael also indicated that these Role types do not necessarily indicate what one's role will be during any given lifetime. Kings can be slaves, and Servers can also be kings. Michael said that in fact most Kings never have an actual throne while on Earth. Similar statements could be made about all the Role types — they do not necessarily fulfill their nature in some corresponding social, political, or economic station during incarnation. Every Role type will try many occupational and cultural situations. No matter what Role a person is, he can still be a farmer, a preacher, an accountant, a criminal, a housewife, a beggar, a prostitute, a draftsman, or a secretary if he or she wants to.

On the other hand, the Role does give some indication of where a person would fit well in the world. It is often related to one's occupation in some way, simply because it is such a fundamental part of one's nature. The names of the Roles are taken from occupations, as you will readily perceive. This does not mean that a person's employment will always fit his Role, but he will usually fit his job to his Role in some way. I believe a person will be most fulfilled in his daily work when it suits his Role. If a person's job is not meaningful to him, it may be because it does not fit his Role. If False Personality is in control, or was at the time he made his career decision, he might want to make a change when he discovers his Role.

The following comments are oversimplified generalizations of how people in the different Roles make a living, but will give some idea of what they are like:

Warrior: runs a business or enterprise;

King: seeks public office, to become a leader;

Server: works at most any job in a service capacity;

Priest: raises consciousness in ministry or psychology;

Artisan: invents or manufactures something to sell;

Sage: sells his ability as entertainer or teacher;

Scholar: sells his knowledge or information.

The tabulation in Appendix #1 gives a fuller explanation of the relationship of Role to occupation.

One interesting thing about the Roles is that there seems to be a flow of money from the Negative to the Positive Roles of the same Dimension. Warriors are the most likely of all the Roles to contribute to Kings for advancing political objectives. Servers are the most likely of all the Roles to feel the desire to contribute to Priests toward humanitarian causes such as psychological or physical health, or material well-being. Artisans are the most likely of all the Roles to contribute time and money to the arts perpetuated by Sages. Scholars seem to be the most likely Role to contribute to science and education, the areas dominated by other Scholars.

On a personal note, I happen to be an Artisan. I feel comfortable being paid for my engineering services (that is my occupation, and one very suitable for an Artisan), but I do not feel as comfortable being paid for psychological services (that is my hobby). If I were a Priest, I would be more at ease in accepting payment for counseling. I feel just fine about writing a book on psychology and selling it because a book is a tangible item, a product of my artistic and engineering skill as an Artisan. I believe this principle applies to the other Roles and their corresponding occupations. A person derives much of his sense of worth from his career, and so it is well for him to be doing something that is inherently suitable for his Role or he may not be comfortable.

In addition to occupational counseling as indicated above, understanding these Roles can be an aid to more effective child-rearing. Warriors and Kings will generally respond well to reward and punishment techniques because they have an action-oriented personality that understands physical force. To them, "might is right" is a true statement. If you command more muscle power than they do, you win. Servers and Priests can be motivated by emotional appeals because they are attuned to inspirational qualities. Withdrawal of affection or love has a strong influence on them. People in these two Roles also respond well to ethical considerations, since this has to do with the quality of life, their major concern. The "guilt trip" is common with them. Artisans and Sages can usually be reasoned with because of their essential mental nature. Everything has to make sense to them in an intellectual or philosophical way. If you just explain it to them in terms of logic and art, they will understand. A Scholar will generally respond favorably if you give him sufficient data to make an informed decision. The other Traits on the Chart also determine a great deal concerning what is the best way to deal with children, but it is not my intention to elaborate on this subject in this book. The ideas presented above show the possibilities here, and one can take it from there if so inclined.

The Roles can be metaphorically related to body parts: if mankind in general, or society as a whole, be regarded as a single body, the Roles are functionally equivalent to the body parts indicated:

Warrior: the legs are on the move, exploring and doing things;

King: the arms lead and direct the actions of life situations;

Server: the back assists in bearing up the burdens of humanity;

Priest: the heart has the inspiration to uplift and encourage;

Artisan: the hands hold the tools to make arts, crafts, machines;

Sage: the face speaks, proclaims, exhibits the dramas of life;

Scholar: the head has the knowledge and information of science.

Each Role is the Personification of the Process of which it is an Aspect. Notice how this manifests in each Process:

Warrior: Terminates action by getting things done, completed;

King: Originates action by getting things started, initiated;

Server: Involutes toward lower, simpler, structured realms;

Priest: Evolves toward higher, nobler, grander consciousness;

Artisan: Analyzes how to invent, design, and build things;

Sage: Synthesizes things together aesthetically and wisely;

Scholar: Assimilates facts and figures as a studious scientist.

There is one particular lesson that each Role finds difficult to learn. A bit of advice for each Role is summed up as follows:

Warrior: don't destroy what you cannot regulate or control;

King: don't force or dictate what you cannot lead or manage;

Server: don't be ashamed of your ordinary station in life;

Priest: temper your mercy with wisdom, justice, and humility;

Artisan: don't neglect yourself as a work of art and beauty;

Sage: you are not the one and only center of the universe;

Scholar: life is to be lived with feeling, not just studied.

Each of the Roles has a particular perspective on life. Following is a brief statement of what that viewpoint is:

Warrior: regards life as a discipline or challenge to conquer;

King: regards life as an enterprise or business to administer;

Server: regards life as a service and a duty to perform;

Priest: regards life as an opportunity to experience evolution;

Artisan: regards life as a construction site or art project;

Sage: regards life as a game or theatrical production to play;

Scholar : regards life as a classroom situation to learn in.

Role is the Positive Personification Aspect because it exists as a presence. Whatever Process his Role is an Aspect of, the person of a particular Role has an abundance of that Process operating in his nature, and his behavior is accordingly revealed. Notice how a person manifests this in each of the Roles:

Warrior: he has salesmanship and discipline to do exploits;

King: he has administrative ability for leading others;

Server: he has concern and caring for serving and helping;

Priest: he has inspiration and enlightenment for uplifting;

Artisan: he has inventiveness and skill for making things;

Sage: he has showmanship and wisdom to display to others;

Scholar: he has facts and figures to know about the world.

Key words for Role are: essence, nature, career, script.

In the following sections, each of the seven Role types is examined in more detail, before we move on to the next Aspect. The descriptions given are deliberately extreme and stereotypical. A pure description of the ultimate abstract archetype is presented so that the reader can easily discern the essence of the Role. Overleaves and other personality factors greatly modify what is here said.

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Phil Wittmeyer is a longtime Michael student and scholar of the teachings. He can be reached at: wittmeyer@hotmail.com