Feng Shui is the Chinese art of placement that is thousands of years old. According to Feng Shui, your surroundings or environment can be a reflection of your life. You can thus influence your life in positive ways by making appropriate changes in your environment and surroundings. Overall, Feng Shui is the practice of de-cluttering one’s life to bring balance and positive energy (chi) into it.
Using Feng Shui
Below is an outline of several things you can do to start applying Feng Shui principles to your home. These are very basic and even seem logical to do, without knowing anything about Feng Shui.
Clutter
One basic and important principle in Feng Shui is clearing your clutter. Clutter is our home symbolizes clutter in our lives. It can present itself as procrastination, feeling overburdened, or avoiding things or tasks that need to be addressed. It can also drain your energy, and leave your feeling fatigued. By cleaning our clutter, we are making room for new experiences in our lives. For example, by cleaning your desk, getting rid of old papers, organizing the drawers; you are making way for new experiences in your business life.
Energy Enhancers
You may consider using items known as energy (chi) enhancers. Chi enhancers are items to place in your home that will attract energy. Chi is the vital life energy. We want to attract more chi in our homes to provide harmony and balance in our lives.
Crystals
Crystals are beautiful chi enhancers that can be used anywhere in your home. By placing the chi enhancer in a certain bagua (pa kua) area of your home that needs uplifting, it will contribute to bringing harmony and balance to that area of your life and home.
Water
Water features are another type of chi enhancer. Water features include fountains, fish tanks, birdbaths, etc. In Feng Shui, water brings good luck and wealth. Wealth can be financial wealth, or spiritual and emotional wealth or fulfillment. Water features can be placed inside or outside the home and can contribute to a soothing and relaxing environment. One key point, the water features, of course, must be kept clean to promote positive chi.
Plants
Plants are also good chi enhancers for the home. Plants must be kept healthy and in good shape for chi enhancement. Silk or real plants both work well. Avoid dried flowers. Since the plants have already died, they will not attract chi.
Animals
Animals and pets are also good chi enhancers. Their life and presence is a powerful attraction for chi. The animals must be well looked after and their homes or special areas kept clean and cared for.
Other
Anything moving and flowing also contributes to bringing chi into our homes. Wind sculptures, wind chimes, flags, etc are examples of some items that can be used to encourage chi. Placed on the front porch or entrance attracts the chi though the door and into the home.
Other Things To Be Mindful Of
- Be clear that what you are doing is space-clearing and not space-enhancing.
- Think seriously and focus your mind on what you are doing.
- Relax and understand that you are clearing the energies around you and not praying to or invoking any spirits, real or imaginary.
- Undertake all space-clearing activities in the morning, after the sun has come up. Never undertake space-clearing after the sun has set.
- Never do space-clearing on overcast or rainy days. You will always get better results when energized by a dose of natural yang energy supplied by the morning sun.
- Resist the temptation to perform space-clearing rituals for other people. There is an unwritten rule about disturbing the energy of space that does not belong to you unless you are possessed of a protective amulet of sorts. Observing this advice will protect you from being inadvertently hurt by hostile energies/forces that might be present in other peoples’ space.
How Feng Shui Works
In one book about Feng Shui, the author gave a suggested explanation concerning how it works. The explanation give is as follows:
“It is suggested that for a rigorous Feng Shui or geomancy of a place, we take the sonic and magnetic resonance signature of the space. These are established by the (wave) lengths of the structural or topological components of the shape or body whose feeling is being tested. This is very much like an organ master testing the resonance of the church, preparing to shape the frequency response of a cathedral organ to its designed space. The magnetic ELF (extremely low frequency) envelope, the volumetric ratio and angular progression, and the tectonic and gravity grid map as a face upon faces. A specific emotional intention can be identified by the harmonic character of a space.”
Below is a comment from a Chinese individual about what Feng Shui is:
“I am Chinese, I do not practice feng shui to the letter, it is impossible to accommodate every type of bedroom and situation, the feng shui rules are not set in stone, they are more like guidelines. Feng Shui is really about alleviating clutter in your life, you can see how easily you can apply this to your home when organizing furniture, etc, just don’t create clutter, clutter=chaos, can’t you see? keep spaces open, make sure you don’t have to climb over stuff to walk around your bedroom, the more space the better, think clutter-free, that’s all you have to do really. And to apply it to other areas of your life: just keep it simple, no complications. get rid of stuff you do not need in life, think open spaces, lots of room in your life and home, etc.”
