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Many of you may
not be familiar with feng shui (pronounced: fung shway) or perhaps
you are familiar with it, but would like a better understanding
of what it is. Feng shui is the Chinese art of creating a positive
energy flow within your surroundings. It is not so much a philosophy
as it is a tool with guidelines to help create such an environment.
One fascinating point about
feng shui is that even though, it is an exact skill, it is also
subject to the individual’s interpretation or influence. To really
understand all the aspects and applications of feng shui you need
to study it for years, but there is also the simple rule that what
may work for you may not for someone else, just because you are
you. It is about becoming aware of what is around you and how it
affects you. It is favorable to seek the advice of a feng shui consultant
especially depending on which school or techniques you want to follow,
but you certainly can become more aware and experiment on your own
to create more positive flow.
In the next few paragraphs
we will take a look at the different approaches and try to give
you a better understanding as to what is involve in feng shui.
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Our physical surroundings
vibrate in a mysterious coded language or energy pattern, which
can effect people in very predictable ways. Chinese practitioners
have documented in detail this natural phenomenon for thousands
of years. According to feng shui practitioners, about 20-30% of
your life’s experiences can be attributed to your physical surroundings.
Westerners are now paying attention to this and using feng shui
knowledge to improve every aspect of life.
We have all
seen certain businesses in our cities fail in spite of being in
great locations and having sleek architecture. We have all known
of homes where whomever lives there are unhappy or struggling in
some way. These structures possibly are not getting the most optimum
energy flow. The energy field can be calculated, based on when they
were built and what their precise compass alignment is. This is
the basis for the ancient natural earth science of feng shui. Some
feng shui practitioners refer to the services they provide as “metaphysical
home inspection.” Among the services is the evaluation of the existing
residential or business property or very often of the potential
property to be bought. The advice is then given to help the client
manipulate their interiors in such as way that it can influence
their health, their ability to make more money, to have more satisfying
relationships, and create feeling of peace and relaxation in their
home or work space.
A comprehensive
Feng Shui evaluation will include 6 major categories to consider:
1. Ying/Yang Theory: Usually,
you do not want anything around you to be extreme because that is
considered out of balance. A lot of this is common sense. For instance,
if someone were to live in a chronically dark house with poor ventilation,
they would get depressed and sick more often. A house that is facing
a very busy, noisy street would be considered overly stimulated
and make people inside irritable. A house that was completely isolated
with no neighbors, or tucked into a canyon or mountainous area could
encourage loneliness and detachment.
2. 5-Element Theory: The
five elements are: water, wood, fire, earth, and metal. These elements
can be used in a home, represented in rooms that need to be balanced.
Water is best represented with real water. Wood is represented by
a live plant or large green surface. A large object that is red
in color (like a couch or drape) best represents fire. Real earthen
objects made of clay, brick, or stone represent Earth. And metal
is anything which is made from copper, brass, or bronze. The placement
of these items can easily vary from home to home depending on location
and position.
3. 8-House Type Theory:
There are eight basic house types, characterized by the direction
in which they are oriented. The eight basic directions are North,
South, East, West, Northwest, Southwest, Northeast, and Southeast.
Even with identical floor plans, there will be major differences
between a house that faces east verses one which faces West.
4. Time/Space Theory:
Combining compass alignment with the age of the building will yield
even more personal information about the personality of the house.
As an example, a house which faces South and built in 1970 will
be dramatically different from the same south-facing house built
in 1990. Time is a key factor in advanced feng shui.
5. Form School: This branch
of feng shui refers to the aspect of our exterior, natural environment
and how it may influence the house in question. You could have a
good house ruined by its placement on a street, a hill, or proximity
to other negative influences, like a cemetery or a pollution-generating
commercial building. The “Form” also refers to the interior design
of a space and how well or how poorly the air currents (ch’i) move
through the space. As an example: slanted ceilings in a bedroom
contribute to an uneven flow of ch’i in the room, which could result
in sleep problems for the occupants.
6. Personal Compatibility:
There are some subjective or personal components to feng shui. And
Chinese astrology is practiced in conjunction with it. Classical
practitioners may be referring to both a solar and a lunar calendar
in order to figure out just how compatible a person is with their
living space. Details include how to position a bed for the best
sleep, a desk for highest productivity, an entrance direction for
luck and creativity.
Over recent years, there has been a great increase in the popularity
of feng shui. The New Age community has eaten it up with so much
enthusiasm, that the mass-marketing of it has clearly gone wild--
with the appearance of “feng shui” candles, cookbooks, make-up,
travel-kits, jewelry, pillows, even a board game! While none of
these items are actual remedies for the home, entrepreneurs are
capitalizing on the concept of balance and positive reinforcement.
Strictly speaking, the practice of feng shui is about how the environment,
structures, and interiors effect us and the methods we can use to
improve any given situation and ultimately, the quality of life.
For more information on feng shui,
visit Kartar Diamond’s website here.
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