Authority
Authority in human design describes a healthy and reliable way that we each uniquely make decisions, independent from the anxieties or chatter of a noisy and conditioned mind. When looking through the lens of Human Design, personal authority is determined by one’s definition (what is colored in the chart).
Once there is an understanding of type and strategy, the authority is the body’s discernment tool, signaling a directive about what is correct and healthy for the body and the life, or not. The authority always relates with a particular center of the bodygraph, depending on what is defined in the chart (unless you are looking at a Reflector, whose centers are all undefined, or a mental projector whose authority is process-oriented). You can learn more about the different Authorities below.
Emotional
When the Emotional, or Solar Plexus Center is defined, it is automatically the authority, regardless of Type. (Approximately half of the population has this authority.) The emotional authority operates in a wavelike experience, biochemically moving through its ups and downs, capturing nuance and a depth of perspective over time.
For the Emotional Authority, there is never 100% certainty, but one can come to clarity when they allow themselves time to process and let the wave settle. Because the wave colors one’s experience based on their mood, there is NO TRUTH IN THE NOW for someone with emotional definition. If this is you, you may have noticed that when you’ve made major decisions clinging to the excitement of your highs, thinking you are certain, or when you’ve responded to the depth of your low, feeling sad or disinterested, you come to regret those decisions later on. You end up having said yes to something you no longer have energy for, or having said no to something that you later realize might have been a good thing.
The longer you can wait for the wave to settle out, the more time and distance you have from the inciting event, and the more clarity will be available to you. Sleep on it, at minimum. Those things that are right for you will wait for you. When you are calm, and clear, therein lies the truth for the emotional center.
Sacral
When the Sacral Center is defined, you’re looking at some kind of Generator. When the Sacral is colored in, but the emotional center is white, the Sacral Center is the authority.
The Sacral Center operates in response to life. It often responds by makes guttural sounds, “uh huh, uhn uhn, mmmhhmm, hmmmm…” While Generators are often trained as children to “use their words,” the truth of a Generators response lies not in explanation, but in the sounds it makes, and the body sensation of feeling energized or attracted to something, sometimes even physically leaning in or away from things based on what is healthy for it. The Sacral Center is a pure life force energy that can sustain and regenerate, when it is operating correctly in response, which will honestly communicate what it is available for, or not.
Can you practice listening to and honoring your Sacral Sounds? The Sacral Center is magnetic. When you allow yourself to wait for life to come to you (Strategy), you have the opportunity to pay attention to what you respond to and follow-through with (Authority), that brings you great satisfaction and steers you away from burnout and frustration.
Splenic
If the Splenic Center is defined, without definition in the Emotional Center or the Solar Plexus, it is the authority. (Only Projectors and Manifestors can have Splenic Authority.)
The Splenic Center SPEAKS ONCE, in the moment, and doesn’t repeat itself. It has a keen awareness of its environment through acoustics, smell, taste, and vibration, existentially communicating safety or danger in the NOW. There is no planning for the Splenic Center. It thrives on spontaneity, as it adapts to life real-time, and communicates through instinct and intuition. Like little receptors throughout the body, it may show up as a “spidey sense” goosebumps, a “flash” of awareness, pivoting at the last moment without knowing why, or getting an instinctive hit about something.
The Splenic Center is the oldest awareness center of the body, and operates as a defensive survival response, sensing what to be afraid of to ensure the health of the physical body. Because it speaks so quietly relative to the mind, the emotions, or powerful energy dynamics (and it doesn’t tell you why!!), it can be difficult for the splenic being to really pay attention to, trust, and rely on in their decision-making. When someone with splenic authority doesn’t listen, they may pay for it in ill health, accidents and injuries, or that nagging feeling that says “I knew it!”
For the Splenic awareness, there is ONLY TRUTH IN THE NOW. (It can be likened to the momentary particle, where the emotional system is the wave over time.) If this is your authority, perhaps you’d like to pay more attention, and experiment with where it leads you.
Ego
When the Ego/Will Center is defined, without the Sacral, Emotional, or Splenic centers defined, you have an Ego Authority. (A rare authority that is only possible in Manifestors and Projectors.)
The defined Ego Center is willful, assertive, competitive, and works in spurts when it has the energy. It operates based on what it wants. It likes to come first, drive something ahead, take control, or raise its hand for the job when something is correct for its energy. Commitments and follow-through are important for people with a defined Will Center, so it’s significant what you commit to. It’s also important to have ample time for rest between periods of exertion.
You might find that that you enjoy competition, or that others get competitive with you, or experience you as pushy, without you really knowing why. There’s an inherent sense of self-worth that can be consistent for the defined Ego that knows how to make the right promises and keep them.
If the Ego Center is your authority, it can be helpful to ask yourself - What’s in it for me? Do I have the will for this? Do I want to do this? Can I follow through on this promise? These are prime indications to help you navigate your decision-making process.
G
The G Center is only present as an authority in the Projector type, and when there are no centers below it defined in the bodygraph. As the center for love, direction, and identity, the G Center guides one’s decision-making process based on what would make that person happy, and if it “feels like them.”
Here we find an authority of self-reflected consciousness. Defined to the throat, it will speak spontaneously in real time, coming from the essence of the person. It is extraordinarily important that these beings be true to themselves.
Because this authority pairs with a Projector aura, this person needs to wait to be recognized and formally invited for who they are, then to hear themselves speak - hearing what they spontaneously say, and the resonance of their voice as they say it. They can often change plans unexpectedly, as the internal driver takes them in a new direction.
If you have this authority, you can ask yourself - “Does this feel like me? Would this make me happy?” Do you sound like yourself when you talk about the opportunity? The very pull of your identity will lead you in the right direction through resonance.
Mental/
None
A rare authority, we only see the Mental Authority in the Projector type. When there is mental definition, with nothing defined below the throat, this is your authority.
Not to be confused with the mind, someone with Mental Authority has a lot of openness, and hence flexibility and receptivity in their design, so they take in their environment very deeply. It is imperative to be in the right place with the right people for their body to function well, and to optimally experience the gift of their protector awareness.
Having no defined center in the body that would provide unique sensation as a reliable indicator for decision-making, the Mental Projector, once invited, listens to what they have to say about the decision in question over time, in the company of different people - who may draw out different perspectives from them. In this sense, their authority is not considered to be and “inner authority,” but a sounding board that gathers information and processes over time.
If this is your authority, have the space to speak freely to trusted friends or advisors can be deeply beneficial for you, as it helps you nourish and clarify your awareness. This is not to gain advice or opinions about what to do, but rather to hear the truth crystallizing as a consistent insight. What remains true for you as you talk it out in multiple contexts, regardless of the conditioning forces of the other, is a strong indication of your authority speaking. Take your time, talk it out, and you will know.
Lunar
A bodygraph with no centers defined lets you know you’re looking at the chart of a Reflector. Also rare, only about 1.4% of the population, the Reflector is similar to to the Mental Projector, in that it’s considered to have no “inner authority.” Right place and people are also key in the Reflector’s life. How the Reflector differs is that, whereas all other types are Solar beings, the Reflector is a Lunar being. They are our cosmic weather readers.
Deeply connected to the Moon, the monthly cycles of this gravitational body become an ally throughout the Reflector’s life. As the moon moves through each of the gates of the bodygraph in one-month’s time, the Reflector gathers an experiential picture of the landscape, and the nature of the decisions unfolding.
While the Reflector can be initiated by the other types, they have extraordinarily unique gift of tuning to life, sampling their environment, talking through things, and coming to clarity by waiting it out.
If you are a Reflector, it can be helpful to share your experience in conversation with others, or simply notice what shows up in your life in the waiting period of your Lunar cycle (29.5 days). Things may either endure in your life, or simply fall away if they are not correct for you, or have served their purpose.
You’re here to sample the world around you, and to be malleable in the way you experience yourself, as you allow the ever-changing tides to move through your life. You you may be surprised and delighted by what you discover with surprise, or you may be disappointed with what you encounter. At the heart of your decision-making is giving yourself ample time, waiting at least a full Lunar cycle for significant decisions, in order to fully evaluate what is at hand.
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