Unveiling the Tripolar Self: A Rohrian Psycho-Spiritual Framework

This essay presents Doug Scott's psychospiritual framework called "The Tripolar Self," which integrates Richard Rohr's teachings on the True Self/False Self with the perennial wisdom of the Law of Three.

The framework consists of three elements:

1. The Significant Self: The agential self that makes meaning of experiences and oscillates between two depths.
2. The Floating Self: Corresponds to Rohr's "false self"—operating from a rigid, fragile perspective focused on validation and control. Its ethos is "transcend and exclude."
3. The Anchored Self: Represents Rohr's "true self"—our deepest identity beneath all roles and personas. Its ethos is "include and transcend."

The Law of Three explains transformation through three phases: contrast (recognizing differences between our Floating and Anchored Selves), tension (experiencing the pull between them), and resolution (integrating both aspects from the perspective of the Anchored Self).

Transformation occurs primarily through "Great Love and Great Suffering," both requiring vulnerability and surrender of control. The essay explains how living primarily from the Floating Self creates constant struggle for validation, while operating from the Anchored Self brings groundedness and the ability to hold paradox.

The goal isn't to eliminate the Floating Self but to redeem it, using it as a vehicle for service from the perspective of the Anchored Self. The essay concludes that life's purpose isn't the pursuit of happiness but the discovery of meaning—learning to "die well and often" by surrendering to the Anchored Self while using the Floating Self to do good in the world.