When you begin your Human Design journey, you probably don’t know all of the pieces and parts that make up the system. The bodygraph itself is overwhelming to look at and has more than enough information to start with. However, the history of the system and the wisdoms it is built upon may help to deepen your understanding of your design. In this post we will cover how Human Design is a synthesis, how it came to be plus the 5 other ancient wisdom systems it relies upon!
This is important if you are seeking to truly understand your purpose in life. But this is also important to acknowledge that Human Design would not exist without the ancient wisdoms of others. Human Design is not a stand alone system, it is a synthesis of systems.
Whether you’re brand new to your experiment or just looking to more deeply understand how it all comes together, in this post we will cover the beginnings of Human Design, plus the underpinning foundational systems of the hindu chakra system, the Chinese Iching, Western Astrology and the Kabbalah tree of life.
What is the Human Design System?
Human Design is a “downloaded” system.
Human Design is a channelled/downloaded system, received by Ra Uru Hu from what he called “the voice” during an acid trip in the 1980s. The system was then synthesised over the following decades as Ra Uru Hu taught and shared the system. He passed away in March 2011.
Human Design was not a new creation but a new synthesis of existing esoteric and ancient wisdoms. It is a philosophical and archetypal system. One of many that have existed throughout human history.
What is Human Design a Synthesis of?
Human Design has 4 major contributing wisdoms creating the foundation of the system.
ASTROLOGY
From Western Tropical astrology we see the Zodiac wheel and the 12 zodiac archetypes as you would see in a natal chart. We then have 13 planet placements. Human Design also has an Earth placement that you would not find on a natal chart. Read about planets and their meanings here.
The Chinese I’Ching, the Book of Changes.
The I’ching, dating to 3000 BC, is a shamanic divination system that creates the 64 gates from the available 64 hexagrams. It is known as the world’s oldest oracle system and considered one of the Chinese Classics.
The 64 hexagrams are presented as 64 archetypes that each offer guidance and wisdom for life.
You “consult” the I’ching by tossing coins, sticks or drawing marbles from a bag to create a hexagram (6 line structure). This hexagram represents how the energy is showing up and moving through a situation. Similarly to how a tarot card may show which energy is being held and where to go next.
THE HINDU CHAKRA SYSTEM
The 7 chakra system that creates the foundation for the 9 centers in Human Design originated in India in the text called the Vedas between 1500 and 500 BC. The word chakra is said to be a metaphor for the sun, and refers to the disks of energy that run from the base of the spine (the root) to the top of the head (the crown).
There are many different chakra systems available depending on which text you look at and from which lineage but the Human Design system is a synthesis of the 7 chakra Vedic system.
The Kabbalah Tree of Life
The Tree of Life supports the Human Design channels and the flow of energy throughout the centers. The 10 Sephirots explore how God interacts with the world and humanity through different “emanantions”.
Each sephirot connects to the others and carries the theme that we see in Human Design that “a sum is larger than it’s parts”. In this view, as with your bodygraph 1+1 does not equal 2. 1+1 equals so much more. This is the way that we see the pieces that come together in Human Design as so much more unique and complex than 2 parts simply meeting.
Is Human Design a Science or a Religion?
The Human Design system has come to be known as the “science of differentiation” or the science of how we are all different. But is it a science? We can’t be quite sure.
While there are pieces of “white coat” science that live in Human Design, there will never be an empirical study of the system. All studies are anecdotal. It is all an experiment.
There are some out there, like myself, that will share the validity of the system. But as with humanity as a whole it is forever mutating and expanding. This change means it will never be a science.
Science creates a set of rules. But Human Design is just an invitation into yourself, who you are and what you know your purpose to be. It cannot be controlled and therefore no. It is not a science.
So is it a religion?
Again, no. There is no worship (or at least there shouldn’t be). There are no set rules. Human Design is a system of autonomy. How you feel in your body, making decisions that feel right for you which is very anti-organized religion as we see it.
Although Human Design has a very esoteric and spiritual foundation it is not a religion and should not be treated as such.
Human Design should only ever be seen and used as a philosophic, archetypal system. This is something we as humans have done since the beginning of time. Human Design is just an intricate synthesis of these.
You are the power in Human Design. Not the system.
As you can see, Human Design would not exist without thousands of years of wisdom that came before it. It is a channelled synthesis of the hindu chakra system, the Chinese Iching, Western Astrology and the Kabbalah tree of life.
