The Sub-Circuits & Format Channels
A few weeks ago, we talked about the 3 main circuits in Human Design that describe the routes that the energy flows within the chart.
Each of the 3 main circuits have 2 sub-circuits within it:
Individual
- Knowing: Includes the Channels of Awareness, Assimilation, Inspiration, the Beat, Mutation, Struggle, the Brainwave, Openness, and Emoting
- Centering: Includes the Channels of Initiation and Exploration
Tribal
- Ego: Includes the Channels of Transformation, Surrender, the Money Line, Community and Synthesis
- Defense: Includes the Channels of Mating and Preservation
Collective
- Understanding: Includes the Channels of Logic, Acceptance, the Wavelength, Judgement, Concentration, Rhythm and the Alpha
- Sensing: Includes the Channels of Abstraction, Curiosity, Transitoriness, Recognition, Maturation, Discovery and the Prodigal
There is also a collection of channels known as the Integration Channels, which stands alongside the other 3 main circuits in the body. These channels include the 10-20 Channel of Awakening, 34-20 Channel of Charisma, 34-57 Channel of Power, and the 57-10 Channel of Perfected Form.
Gates 10, 30, 34, and 57 are also a part of the Individual Circuit. This is why the Integration Channels and Individual Circuitry have a lot in common.
The Integration Channels are responsible for differentiating ourselves from others and ensuring our individual survival. They’re designed to thrive when following their own unique path and live in the now.
The sub-circuits each have a unique role within the main circuit. We can also get deeper insight into the energy of a particular circuit through the format channels.
There are 3 format channels in the Bodygraph that format the sub-circuit it belongs to with the energy of that channel:
Knowing Circuit: 60-3 Channel of Mutation
This is the energy that drives you to be different from others and give birth to something new. This is the driving force of evolution. It's through the individual that change is brought to the collective. This channel formats the Knowing Circuit with the energy of mutation, innovation, creativity, individuality and melancholy that operates on an on/off pulse.
Understanding Circuit: 52-9 Channel of Concentration
This is the energy of focus and determination to improve something that will benefit the collective. It prefers to focus on one thing at a time rather than put its energy into several things at once. This channel formats the Understanding Circuit with the energy of concentration, focus, determination, attention to detail and pattern recognition that leads to deeper understanding and logical reasoning.
Sensing Circuit: 53-42 Channel of Abstraction
This is the energy of beginnings & endings & maturing through experiential cycles. It's about starting and finishing things. Maturation is about embodying the wisdom that you gain from your cycles of experience. This channel formats the Sensing Circuit with the energy of development through cycles of experience and the wisdom that comes from learning from the past and detachment from expectations.
All of the gates that are a part of the same circuit will be influenced by the energy of the format channel for that sub-circuit.
These 3 channels run from a pressurized motor center, the Root, to the biggest motor in the body, the Sacral. This is the only place in the body where energy from a pressure center (Head or Root) doesn’t get filtered through an awareness center (Ajna, Spleen, or Emotional Solar Plexus). These mechanics make the format channels very powerful when defined in someone’s chart.
The Tribal Circuit is unique in that it does not have a format channel, because it doesn’t need one.
Unlike the other circuits in the body where the energy is focused on getting to the throat to be expressed, the Tribal Circuit is focused on the ego center. This is because it’s through the heart that the tribe is able to address the demands of the material world that are needed for the community to thrive.
The ego center represents the communal heart 💞
The Tribe isn’t connected to the G center or Mind (Head + Ajna) unlike the Collective and Individual Circuits- it’s not concerned with direction or mental thought.
The Ego Circuit protectively surrounds the Defense Circuit. It's responsible for sustaining and nurturing the process of the Defense Circuit. These gates/ channels are about gathering resources in order to ensure the survival of the tribe.
This circuit is centered around the senses of touch and smell. You need to meet people up close to know if they belong to your community.
The Defense Circuit is about ensuring humanity's survival through the creation and preservation of life on the planet. It's about sexuality and nurturing you create.
The role of this circuit is to establish values that support the continuity of the tribe. Reproduction is what ensures that the tribe survives. It's also about making sure that offspring are cared for so they can become healthy adults that can then help support the tribe.
The Understanding and Sensing Circuits show that both logic and experience are needed to help drive humanity and the collective consciousness into a better future for all.
The Understanding Circuit includes the energies for logical thinking, perceiving and correcting patterns, and testing ideas to see which help bring humanity closer to the perfect expression of ourselves and the enjoyment of life.
The Sensing Circuit includes the energies for abstract and holistic thinking, learning from the stories and experiences of others, and achieving clarity over time. It helps us to learn from past experiences so that we don’t continue to make the same mistakes over and over again.
The Collective Circuit shows us that logic can only take us so far and that experience and letting go of expectations of how something should turn out is what helps us to discover new things that we couldn’t with logic alone.
The Knowing Circuit isn’t about logical understanding. This is a knowingness that goes deeper, to the very truth of things. It often cannot explain logically how it “knows” something. This is an intuitive knowing that comes from living as your true self.
The role of this circuit is to develop a deep sense of self-trust that empowers you to live authentically as your true self and honor your impulses, moods, and intuition.
The Centering Circuit is focused on behavior and empowering yourself and others to follow your own unique life path. To be centered means to respond to life. You've surrendered to a future that cannot be known or planned by developing a deep trust in your Sacral response. Your life is about self-empowerment and having the courage to follow your own convictions in life.
These two channels are deeply spiritual and connected to trusting that your desires and convictions are an expression of the Divine.
Do you have any of the format channels defined in your chart? What circuit is most prominent in your design?
If you’re looking to be held and supported through your journey, here are ways we can create magic together right now:
- Liberate the Mind: FREE masterclass series to support you in exploring the nuances of your Inner Authority and developing Outer Authority so you can make a differentiated impact in the world by being your authentic self
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