Exploring Gate 37 in Human Design: The Gate of Friendship

Human Design
Written By Jahje Ives

Art and Words by Jahje Ives. See this art and more on Instagram @jahjeives.

Exploring Gate 37 in Human Design: The Gate of Friendship

When you give from your heart in friendship, Peace takes flight and we all thrive in equality.

Gate 37, known as the Gate of Friendship, speaks to the power of kindness, of peaceful agreements that benefit all, and of creating a space where everyone feels valued. In Quantum Human Design™, it is called the Gate of Peace and in the I-Ching, it is called The Family. In the Gene Keys, Gate 37 moves from the shadow of Weakness to the gift of Equality, and ultimately to the siddhi of Tenderness.

Gate 37 is located in the Solar Plexus Center and connects to Gate 40 in the Heart Center, forming the Channel of Community. This channel represents the bond between individuals that forms the foundation of family and community life. Friendship which creates an emotional connection that brings support, a sense of belonging and ultimately can lead to peace and equality. 

This is one of the 64 Gates in the landscape of the Human Design system where each Gate in the chart serves a unique role, influencing our traits, behaviors, and interactions with the world. Knowing the full story of Gates can provide powerful guidance for personal growth and self-discovery.

The position of the Planets at the moment of your birth determines whether a Gate is defined (colored in)  or undefined (not colored in) in your Chart. ⁠

If a Planet was in a Gate when you were born, you will have that Gate defined. Having a Gate defined means this is an energy you experience consistently as a theme that is part of your life curriculum.

If a Gate is undefined you will still experience the themes of a Gate but it will often be in relationship with others or when a Planet is transiting this gate (as Planetary transits activate the energy of a Gate within all of our charts). 

Do you have Gate 37 defined in your chart? Get your free chart here and find out.

Now let’s explore Gate 37—its gifts, its challenges, and how it can help us create a better world for all…

Embracing the Gifts

Gate 37 embodies the energy of friendship and the desire to create emotional bonds that bring warmth and support to our lives. It carries an energy that encourages us to be kind, to nurture our relationships, and to create a sense of harmony within our communities.


Community Builder… People with Gate 37 are here to be the heart of their communities, to bring people together, and to create a sense of belonging. This gate is about understanding that friendship is an essential part of human life, a source of connection, and a foundation for stability and peace. They recognize that every relationship is built on agreements and the nature of an agreement must be tit for tat - meaning everyone wins. I give you this and you give something equal in return. 

Peace Maker… When you focus on creating friendship, value people equally and give from your heart, we all thrive and peace naturally arises. Peace lives within us all and when you choose it, then you can share it as you live it and create a world that transforms into a place where every person is supported in the family of humanity.

Equality… Equality recognizes we are all part of the same family of humankind. As Richard Rudd, the source of the Gene Keys wrote “true equality is based upon respect for individual uniqueness.” This respect forms the foundation for friendship and peace. When we are secure in knowing that our individuality is valued we can share our gifts without fear and humanity flourishes.

Authentic Emotional Connection… think of how it feels when you are supported by your friends, it fills you with warmth and even security right? Friendship is about more than just being there for each other; it’s about creating a space where everyone feels safe, valued, and understood. This gate invites us to be open, to reach out to others, and to create bonds that are nurturing and supportive. It’s about letting go of the fear of being vulnerable and instead embracing the power of genuine connection.



Navigating the Shadows

Like every energy, Gate 37 comes with certain challenges, particularly around the themes of friendship, vulnerability and the struggle to balance giving with receiving. Understanding these challenges helps us turn them into opportunities for growth.

Fear of Lack of Support… The shadow of Gate 37 is Weakness, which can manifest as a sense of needing others to feel whole or as a fear of standing on our own. It’s the feeling of being overly reliant on others for emotional support or of struggling to find strength within ourselves. This shadow can lead to a sense of disempowerment, where we feel unable to function without the presence of others. Gate 37 asks us to recognize when we are falling into the trap of weakness and to cultivate equality, to find strength in our connections without losing our own sense of independence.

Balancing Giving and Receiving… true friendship is about mutual support. This gate invites us to be mindful of our own needs, to ensure that we are not giving to the point of depletion, and to allow ourselves to receive the support that others offer. This imbalance can stem from a fear that we will not be supported if you do not give as much as you can - so you can overgive or it can cause you to actually hold back from giving until you feel you are receiving. By learning to balance giving and receiving, we create relationships that are nurturing for everyone involved, where both giving and receiving are acts of love.

Controlling… When all you want is balance and peace sometimes you can try to achieve it by controlling as much as possible. It can even shift into cruelty (the reactive shadow state in the Gene Keys) when a person hardens their heart and shifts into controlling others to get what they want without consideration of anyone else. But real peace was never found in controlling others or running around trying to fix everything. Real peace comes from cooperation and doing what you can and then letting go of your attachment to the outcome.

Unforgiving… When an agreement is reached and then broken, you can be unforgiving. This is because it has the ability to break your heart as Gate 37 connects from the emotional solar plexus to the heart center in the human design chart. So when agreements are broken it can create emotional turmoil and you learn to hold yourself back in protection.



Finding Balance

If you have Gate 37 defined in your chart, you carry the gifts of friendship, equality and peace—the ability to create emotional bonds, to nurture others, and to use your energy to build a community where everyone feels valued and supported. 

This is the glue that holds us together.

As Richard Rudd shares in the Gene Keys, “From the point of view of the human heart, all humanity is one family.” 



My friend Ali Hurwitz, who is the model for this illustration, is a perfect example of how when we give from the heart the world can transform. Ali is an ER doctor and a passionate activist, who lives life with her whole heart, caring for people with a fierce tenderness that you want when you are navigating emergencies. 

As an ER Doctor she is often in situations where clear agreements and inner peace is necessary because if you get swept away in your emotions, people die. Chaos doesn’t shake her (or at least she doesn’t let it in the moment) and when things are resolved she will stay there to make sure all is well before she retreats to restore herself.

I’ve seen her tap into the same gift to create agreements at home when her kids are tearing into each other. She is the mom who steps up and doesn’t take sides, instead she lays out the facts to help negotiate back to peace. 

She also throws the best parties full of laughter, nurturing food and her wide collection of friends she has gathered together with her open hearted warmth, a hallmark of the 37th Gate.

She is the person who gives with her whole heart without any expectation of return. She treats every person who enters her life as part of her family and when you are in her presence you can feel the fierce fire of love within her.  

And even though she rarely asks for help, she has a devoted network of friends, colleagues and family who will always be there for her in return. 



The journey with Gate 37 is about discovering that friendship isn’t just about being there for others — it is about creating a balanced relationship where everyone feels seen, valued, and loved.

Richard Rudd shares that the activation of this energy will help, “... bring an end to isolated family groupings and communities by networking, both geographically and globally, to create a new model for community that is based upon giving rather than controlling” 

As we have seen in world events unfolding now (I wrote about it here), Equality and Friendship cannot be created through control. 

Equality starts within by valuing your own individuality and what you can contribute to the whole and knowing that when you live and give with your heart you are always supported.

You are always supported because the universe was made to be in balance. 

Reciprocity does not demand a thank you, it does not need it. 

It trusts that with Equality, all things balance. 

When you live in friendship and give from your heart, we all thrive and peace naturally arises. 

Peace lives within us all and when you choose it, then you can share it as you live it and create a world that transforms into a place where every person is supported in the family of humanity.

Because when we deeply understand ourselves—our strengths, our struggles, our shadows—we gain the power to choose differently. 

To respond from wisdom rather than reaction. To lead from our gifts rather than our shadows.

This is exactly why I do what I help my clients with in our realignment sessions, because understanding yourself is the first step to creating peace within and around you.

Are you ready to activate the power of Gate 37 in your life?

Here are a few questions to contemplate as you do…




To Contemplate

Whether Gate 37 is defined or undefined in your chart, I invite you to contemplate the following to deepen your understanding of how this energy shows up in your life and what you might do to further activate it.

  • What happens when you give from the heart without expectation of return? When you have done so in the past, what has the outcome been? How can you ensure that you are giving and receiving in equal measure?

  • Do you communicate clearly and have balance in your relationships? How could you improve? 

  • How do you react when agreements are broken? What might you do differently?

  • Are you able to form deep connections, or do you find yourself hesitating to be vulnerable? Do you know the gifts you bring to your community? 



To Inspire

When I sat in contemplation of Gate 37 these words dropped in, a reminder of the power within this gate.

When you give from your heart in friendship,

Peace takes flight and we all thrive in equality. 

Your ability to clearly communicate 

and form balanced agreements 

creates the foundation of community. 

Even when chaos swarms nearby,

Peace cocoons within and when emerges,

It can calibrate the heart of the collective

To create a world where all feel valued. 

See this art and more on Instagram @jahjeives here.

Keynotes

Traditional Human Design: Friendship

Quantum Human Design™: Peace

Gene Keys: Weakness / Equality / Tenderness

I-Ching: The Family

Circuitry: Tribal - Ego

Center: Solar Plexus (Connects to Gate 40 in the Heart Center)

Astrology: Pisces / Aries

There is so much more where this came from…

If you loved this post and want to dive deeper into understanding the landscape of your Human Design, Book a human design reading to learn more about how this gate specifically activates in your life and more.

Jahje Ives
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