Feng Shui is an art that was developed over 3000 years ago. It is based on strategic beliefs over how a building or space is set up. It was developed because it is believed that wind and water is connected to good health and that land and nature are alive and full of energy. With this in mind, a chart was invented listing all of the major elements and their corresponding colors that represent good health and happiness. It is used around the world and is especially popular for businesses that are setting up their office spaces and for home use.
When people are styling their homes they often have a few methods for doing so. They can arrange furniture and items in a way that they feel looks nice and work for the space or they can hire a decorator who will map out a precise color plan and arrange the room accordingly. And people can use Feng Shui to organize their home and space. In this belief, there are certain colors and items and the placing of furniture that will bring good luck and happiness into the home. Some decorators even base some of their planning based on these methods.
There are two main components of Feng Shui elements; they are the compass and the Ba-Gua. The Ba-Gua is based on an octagonal grid and the compass is used to assess deep meaning inside a room, space or building.
There are five elements to Feng Shui. They are; wood, fire, earth, metal and water. Each of these elements has a corresponding color attached to them. Wood is associated with green and brown. Fire is together with red, yellow, orange, purple and pink. Earth goes with light yellow and sandy tones, light brown. Metal is a part of white and gray, and water is with blue and black tones. It is believed that color can be used to make a space stronger and more balanced. Creating a happy space is something that everyone desires when decorating an office or home space.
There are things to consider before adding Feng Shui elements to a space. The first thing that needs to be done is de-cluttering your space. There is no point in applying the principals and beliefs if your space is cluttered and messy. Feng Shui is all about balance and harmony, something that cannot be achieved with a cluttered kitchen counter or a bathroom with towels all over the floor. Providing good air quality is also important. There needs to be access to fresh air or an air cleaner to ensure that the air flow is good. And the lighting in the room needs to be appropriate, natural light works best for allowing Feng Shui properties to run through them.
There are lots of decorating beliefs with Feng Shui, to name a few, there are colors that have been known to add or take away certain emotions or elements. Dark blue can affect a person`s thinking, white is considered a color of death in Chinese belief, light greens are warm and welcoming, and red is good luck. In the bedroom it is advised that things be put in pairs to aid in marital bliss, it is also recommended that the bed always face the door to keep a good idea on the main entrance way of your room while you are sleeping. And in the office it is imperative that the desk or desks be facing a door to see who is coming and going. In the kitchen it is advised that your stove be in front of a door way or a mirror and that someone shouldn’t cook if he is in a bad mood.
Have you ever noticed that there is a particular spot in town where a business can never flourish, regardless of its seemingly prime location? In your own home, do you sometimes feel uncomfortable, even if your home is very attractive and designed well? Sometimes we just can’t explain why one place feels better than another.
Everyone is sensitive to a variety of energies in different places, and sometimes the reasons we react in a certain way are obvious. It’s often the intangible factors that can create what is felt as discomfort or a lack of harmony in a space. Feng Shui ( pronounced fung schway) is the ancient Chinese art of managing energy or ‘chi.’ The great masters have taught us that our homes, business spaces, the arrangement of our rooms, and even the building’s location can affect every aspect of our lives.
There is a wonderful quotation that comes to mind. “It’s not just that you create your home, it’s that your home also creates you.” This is so true! The environments we live and work in have a profound influence over our every day lives. I’m not just suggesting checking your home for the obvious…. radioactivity, mold, radon, asbestos, etc. All very important! However, the balancing of energy or ‘chi’ in your living and working spaces is just as important for your well being as ridding your home of toxins!
Often the solution to remedy a field of energy can be as simple as adding a plant or a light in a corner, or putting a throw rug on the floor. By using Feng Shui principles, you can change your life experience in significant ways. For instance, gaining more control over your circumstances which can lead to better health, more secure finances, happier relationships and success in business.
Some quick Feng Shui tips for your consideration.
1. Clear out that clutter! Less is more in Feng Shui terms! A hint for de-cluttering. Whenever you buy something new, throw out something old.
2. If your garden flourishes, you health will too. Place healthy green plants in various rooms to move the energy around and absorb negativity. Plants also produce good oxygen..
3. Use mirrors to expand a space, such as a narrow hallway. A mirror at the top of a staircase will attract the downward flow of energy upward. Especially good if you have a staircase near the center of your home.
4. Burn a candle on your desk while working. This will inspire you to work until the task is completed.
5. Be careful of what you put on your walls. The energy of a room can change with it’s artwork so choose it well. The wrong image can create a negative atmosphere. On the other hand, bare walls can make you feel lonely and depressed.
6. Color is very important in creating a movement of energy. Very dark walls should be avoided as they tend to lower energy, unless there is an abundance of sunlight.
7. Children’s rooms should be in shades of green or blue. If your daughter decides she wants her bedroom painted a shocking pink, try talking her out of it. She might resist but she just may do better in school!. Children fare better in rooms painted with softer colors.
Your home is your “second body” and how you treat this second body has a very real impact on your physical body and the events that occur in your life. Just as a person can be considered beautiful or handsome, well dressed and fit, yet still harbor internal illness, so can a home that is lovely and beautifully furnished have hidden energy problems that debilitate and negatively affect the lives of it’s residents.
The mission of Feng Shui is to match the energy of the home to the energy of it’s occupants. When this is achieved, individuals will prosper with better health and more abundance in their lives.
| Elaine Giftos Wright is a nationally known Feng Shui expert, teacher, speaker and author. She is the owner and founder of The Wright Way of Feng Shui, a company dedicated to improving the lives of others. |
Today, there are many definitions of Feng Shui. Feng Shui can be translated into English as Wind Water. Some people see it as the energy around our living environment while others see it as superstition. Feng Shui is considered both an art and a science. It is also metaphysics and it has been practiced for thousands of years in China. Feng Shui originated about 2000 years ago when an emperor was in search of a burial ground. Many in the past believed that if your ancestors are properly buried, you will be protected by them; this continues to be a common practice in Asia.
Feng Shui is based on the principles of Yin and Yang and the Five Phases/Elements Theory. It is the practice of creating a happy living environment (harmony) within your home, workspace and inner self. An understanding of the principles of Yin and Yang and the Five Phases is essential in applying Traditional Feng Shui methods. In addition, a person’s destiny can be enhanced if there is a correct alignment of the environment’s Chi to that of the human Chi of the individual.
Some people consider Feng Shui as superstition and this is probably a result of the figures and gods that people use to decorate their houses with. An experienced practitioner will be able to identify immediately what is superstition and what is reality. The figures and gods can be effective as long as one keeps in mind that it is the type of element contained in the statues and ornaments that matters most. Reorganizing furniture, using magic coins, and placing a few statues in the house is not enough to change the energy in your home and the way you live.
What is Chi?
Chi is an ancient Chinese concept which teaches that there is energy constantly flowing everywhere. This energy symbolizes life, health, prosperity and everything that is positive to us. Whenever chi finds obstacles for circulating, we will notice it since it will directly affect our lives. Our life quality can diminish or be improved depending on the way chi flows in the environments we inhabit. According to feng shui, chi should always be able to flow freely through any space in order to help us be in balance with the elements that surrounds us. Chi also likes to meander and circulate. When looking for properties, it is very important to understand the environment outside and around the property. For example, living near electrical power plants, active main roads, highways, or contaminated streams can affect the livelihood of the inhabitants of nearby properties.
Five Element Theory
The five element theory serves as one of the building blocks in a Feng Shui consultation. It is sometimes considered a cycle, or a phase. The cycle is logical as you will see from the explanation below.
Production Cycle
The best way to remember the five element theory is to use imagery. To begin with, you can picture that wood serves as fuel for fire. The best way to increase the capacity of fire is to throw more wood into it. Turning from fire to earth, visualizing a volcano is one of the best way to remember that fire generates earth. As the fire and lava erupt from a volcano, it creates and generates earth. Earth on the other hand produces metal. Precious metals such as gold, silver and copper are unearthed from the ground, as a result, earth produces metals. From metal to water, in chemistry, water-soluble organics are dissolved metal salts of a combinations of many different compounds. This is how metal is seen as producing water. Last but not least, water is used to grow plants and trees. So there you have it, each element produces another element in a cycle.
Reduction Cycle
As one element produces another element, one element is reduced. For example, trees reduces water utilizing its nutrients. On the other hand, fire reduces wood when the fire wants to continue to burn. Earth reduces fire and serves as a great way to fight forest fires. One of the ways of reducing fighting forest fires is by using earth. Bulldozers and mining trucks made of metal are used to reduce earth. Finally, water corrodes metal by rusting it away. As one element gives birth to another element, another element is subjected to a reduction or a weakening process.
Destruction Cycle
The destruction cycle is where one element seeks to control another element. The simplest example comes from water controlling fire. When there is fire in the kitchen, you would most likely douse it off with water. Moving onto wood, the best way to control the growth of the tree is to use metal as metal chops wood. On the other hand, fire metals metal, therefore, fire controls metal. For earth, wood controls earth since it controls and utilizes the nutrients of the earth. Finally, earth is used to curb and control water and it can be symbolized by a dam.
A proper Feng Shui consultation would include a destiny chart reading, compass measurements, Flying Stars analysis, Eight Mansions Theory, Form Analysis, Annual Stars, and an understanding of the environment and energy (Chi) outside and inside the property. If Feng Shui is improperly practiced, it can cause more problems to the inhabitants than before! Before hiring a Feng Shui consultant, it is imperative that you ensure that the consultant uses a compass and requests for your birth date. Without this information, how can it be possible to determine your best facing direction? Each direction has a specific energy, therefore, without the use of a compass, it is impossible to utilize the energy to its maximum potential.
The Flying Stars are hitting some pretty serious areas in my home this year. You could say they are zipping through and pinging off all over the place. What are the Flying Stars you ask? Well…I’m glad you asked. Flying Stars is one of the schools of thought in Feng Shui (the study of placements). The idea is that the stars move around. There is a 20-year cycle, a yearly cycle, monthly cycle, day cycle, and even an hour cycle. Right now we are in the 20-year #8 cycle of making money. That means that wherever the eight falls in the grid on the other cycles, we want to activate that area.
For now though, let’s take a look at the 5-element pagoda cure. In 2010, the #5 yellow star of Misfortune and the #2 black star of Illness are of particular concern to people born in the Tiger years (of the Chinese zodiac). If you are a female Tiger person/matriarch/elderly and living in a bedroom in the southwest corner of the house, you need to get yourself a 5-element pagoda or 5-element bell immediately, if not sooner.
Because the #5 star resides in the southwest and the #2 star is in the northeast (the Tiger direction), they both carry a double whammy for Tigers. They are on the same axis, which increases the effect of each. The #2 black star of Illness being in the Tiger direction is bad enough, but the #5 yellow star of Misfortune brings “illness, injury, and/or death”. Ok Tigers, all together now: “Eeeeeek!”
The 5-element pagoda is a nifty little device made of brass. It has 5 sections corresponding to the five elements (water, wood, fire, earth, metal) and usually contains some kind of protective mantra or symbol on the outside. The interior is hollow, with a slot-base cover. The idea is to place soil from around your house, protective mantras, and crystals inside to effectively ‘lock up the chi’ and transmute any harmful energies before they can reach you.
If you are laughing as you read this, stop it right now and continue reading-this is strange stuff. I knew absolutely nothing about Flying Star Feng Shui a few years ago. When I read about it I was curious, and compared the previous two years charts to circumstances in my life. To my shock, I found that the afflictive stars had hit me in every area that was not protected…and I didn’t even know about such things!
Having practiced the more general Black Hat sect and LoPan Compass school feng shui for years, I had often wondered why bad things still happened, even when my home had been feng shuied by the experts. Since studying Flying Star sect, the wondering has ceased; it makes perfect sense. If I had any doubt, what happened in the last couple of weeks got rid of that. The experts say the stars are constantly moving and you can start to feel the effects a month or so before they actually take up the yearly position.
When I saw the Metal Tiger would be in a not-so-great position in 2010, I started placing cures around my house in December 2009. The energy changed as soon as I finished the bedroom (southwest of course). Placing my 5-element pagoda in the southwest corner of my southwest bedroom, on top of a plastic bin full of clothes, I went to sleep peacefully that night. Upon awakening the next morning, as I attempted to coax my body out of bed, there was a loud ‘ting-ting’ that came from that corner.
I didn’t even bother to turn over to look; I knew nothing was over there that could make that noise. A day or two later, as I was showing the 5-element pagoda to a friend, I shook it slightly, producing the exact same ‘ting’ sound. Realization of what that meant hit me like the proverbial ton of bricks: it had protected me from a (probably) very serious hit. The ‘ting’ sound came from the protective crystal I had placed inside the pagoda. Whatever energy hit it, hit it hard enough to make that crystal jump twice within the pagoda, creating that sound. The incident happened again, a day after that.
While I am grateful that I have been spared whatever chaos that energy was trying to visit upon me, I have to also try to help others-especially Tiger people. When I visited with another Metal Tiger friend, the litany of disasters that have befallen her – just since January 5th – is enough to curl your hair. She told me she doesn’t believe in feng shui, since a friend of hers had a top expert do her house and then lost it, her business, all her money, and was now homeless.