The twelve archetypes
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Four temperaments, twelve animals
Everyone carries all four temperaments. Usually one leads and another walks close behind. The pure four and their eight neighbouring blends give us twelve archetypes, each one a gift.
A lens, not a label
- Every person has all four. The mix changes with age, mood and situation.
- No temperament is better than another. Each is a gift, and each, overdone, becomes a difficulty.
- For children, this game is for the adults. Never tell a child “you are a melancholic”. Children should simply feel understood.
Where the idea comes from
The four temperaments go back to Hippocrates and Galen. Rudolf Steiner made them a practical tool for Waldorf teachers in 1919: meet a child’s temperament first, then lead gently towards balance. Indian tradition has its own picture of human nature in the doshas and gunas, with the same insight: people are made differently, and wise care meets each one differently.
Bring temperament work to your school
Sarvam Ekam trains kindergarten and primary teachers to observe children and meet each one, through Waldorf, Montessori and Reggio Emilia practice.