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Home » FAQs » What is Feng Shui |
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ABOUT FENG SHUI
A. Feng shui (say "fung shway"), often called the art of placement, could just as accurately be called "the art of flow." This ancient Chinese practice, literally translated as "wind" and "water," aims to maximize the beneficial movement of chi-the universal life force present in all things-through an environment. Just as fresh air and clean water nourish our bodies, so does fresh, clean chi nourish our homes and our lives. When the flow of chi through our space is blocked, weak, or misdirected, our relationships, cash flow, creativity, health, and career can suffer. Chi wants to meander gracefully through a space, like a gentle breeze or a winding stream. When it flows too strongly, it becomes like a hurricane or flood. We are likely to feel tossed about by winds of change, unstable, prone to crises, struggling to "keep our heads above water." Where chi is blocked it becomes stale and stagnant, like a pond choked with algae and fallen leaves. We may feel tired, run down, depressed, unable to focus, hampered in our efforts to move forward in our lives. In a corporate environment, poor feng shui can result in miscommunication between managers and employees, conflicts among team members, and lack of support for key initiatives. Individuals may be overlooked for promotions or deserved raises, suffer damage to their reputation in the company, or even lose their job. The company may have difficulty attracting or keeping key customers. In a retail store, feng shui problems can block the flow of customers into and through the store, contribute to theft and staffing problems, and have a negative effect on the amount and size of sales. Feng shui provides tools and guidelines for analyzing and correcting the flow of energy into and through our space. It uses the arrangement of rooms and the placement of furniture to create a smooth pathway for chi through a home, office, or retail location. Blockages and other forms of negative chi are removed or counteracted in order to welcome in opportunities and encourage progress. Colors and shapes associated with the five elements-wood, fire, earth, metal, and water-are used to create movement, balance, or protection, depending on the needs of the client. Imagery and objects such as paintings, photographs, statuary and other accessories are chosen and placed to enhance and reinforce the client's intention. Feng Shui reminds us that everything is connected, and that our physical surroundings have a significant impact on our mind, body, and spirit. It teaches us to be mindful caretakers of our environments, so that we may be mindful caretakers of our lives.
A. Feng shui is an ancient practice that originated in China several thousand years ago. The basic "form school" principles are still in use today. For example, the ideal location according to traditional feng shui has an "armchair" configuration: a hill or mountain behind the home on the northern side to provide protection from cold winter winds, with lower hills along either side, the house facing south to catch the sun, and a lake or stream in front to provide water for crops and livestock. This type of landscape configuration is still considered auspicious today. In an urban environment, a larger building to the rear provides a similar kind of protection. Streets and highways act like rivers to provide pathways for chi. Consider also the effects of your local climate. In central China, for example, feng shui dictated that the kitchen should be located on the southern side of the house. This was because the prevailing winds came from the north, and might extinguish the cooking fire if the kitchen were on that side of the house. Today, some feng shui practitioners have learned this rule that kitchen should be in the south, and will follow it regardless of local conditions. If you live in the southwestern United States, however, where the climate is very hot and dry, your kitchen might be better located on the shadier north side of the home. Another traditional approach to feng shui is the "eight directions" method. The eight directions are the four cardinal compass points-east, west, north, south-and the points in between-NE, NW, SE, SW. Based on your gender and year of birth, four of these directions will be auspicious for you, and four will be inauspicious and thought to bring illness or bad luck. According to this method of feng shui, the front door of your home should face one of your lucky directions. You should sleep in an auspicious sector of the house, and face one of your lucky directions while you work, and so on. This approach to feng shui is very popular in Europe and is becoming more widely known in the U.S. You are likely to encounter books and magazines that follow this method. If you are shopping for a new home or apartment, it's worth finding out what your lucky directions are (and those of other family members) and factoring that into your decision. However, just because the front door of a house faces your luckiest direction doesn't mean it's the best choice for you, as it is no guarantee that the house has good feng shui in other aspects. There could be all kinds of feng shui problems on the property that far outweigh the benefits of a "lucky" front door. If you know your lucky directions, there's no reason not to consider them in your own home, so long as you look at all the factors involved when making decisions about to use and arrange your space. For example, moving your bed so you sleep in a lucky direction won't do you much good if you are now sleeping under an overhead beam or directly in line with the bedroom door, both of which are considered poor feng shui. Feng shui will work best for you if you use it as a basis for making informed decisions, rather than rigidly following guidelines out of context or ignoring the broader implications of your changes. And just in case you aren't confused enough already, there is also the "compass school" approach to feng shui. This is a complex practice that calculates a detailed "star" chart for the home, based on the year of construction and the precise compass direction the building faces. You can think of this approach as being like having an astrology reading for your home: in addition to the basic chart, there are influences that change every day, month, and year. Some homes will have poor star combinations that will bring bad luck and misfortune to their occupants unless those influences are corrected through specific feng shui "cures," such as placing metal or water in certain areas of the house. Other homes might have a good star chart, only to come under unlucky influences during a particular month or year. The compass method of feng shui requires that you know the year your house was built, as well as whether and when any significant renovations involving the roof, foundation, or major additions have been made. You also must be able to get an accurate (within a couple of degrees) compass reading on the "facing direction" of your home. Another complication is that the facing direction is not necessarily the same as the front door, depending on the layout and position of your home. It is sometimes difficult or impossible to get an accurate compass reading, especially in an urban environment. A car parked at the curb in front of your house, a cast iron fence around the front garden of a townhouse, or buried utility lines under your front yard may be enough to throw off your compass reading. When I lived in an apartment in New York City, I took quite a few compass readings over a period of several months; the readings were so varied and inconsistent that I was never able to do an accurate compass analysis of that apartment. In summary, all of the traditional methods of feng shui offer valuable principles and guidelines-which you may or may not be able to follow or apply to your specific home. Fortunately, there is another approach, introduced in the United States by Master Lin Yun. Called "Black Sect" or "Black Tibetan Buddhist" feng shui. This and other similar approaches focus on creating a healthy flow of chi through a space.This contemporary Western style of feng shui addresses the need for a method that can be used where compass-oriented rules of placement are difficult or impossible to follow. It can also be used in combination with the other methods to provide a deeper understanding of the energetic qualities and influences of your space. In this contemporary approach to feng shui, the association of specific areas of the home with specific aspects of your life is based on position relative to the front door-the "mouth of chi." Furniture is arranged to create a safe and comfortable environment, and colors, artwork, and other imagery are chosen to reinforce desired changes. One of the most appealing aspects of this style of feng shui is the emphasis it places on the power of your intention to influence the energy of your home. This makes the practice of feng shui much more personal and unique to each individual, and creates the opportunity to use feng shui as a tool for increased self-awareness and personal growth. "Fast Feng Shui" is my approach to teaching the principles of contemporary western feng shui in a way that is easy to learn and apply. And the best part of this type of feng shui is that anyone can use it for increased prosperity, success and happiness-starting right now, without special equipment or years of training.
A. You do not need any kind of compass to practice contemporary Western feng shui or to apply the principles taught in "Fast Feng Shui" to your home. This is one of the great advantages of this style of feng shui. The compass school method of feng shui does use a compass, and special feng shui compasses are available for those who wish to use them although a standard compass from your local sporting goods store will work as well. Analyzing the lucky and unlucky sectors of your home according to the Eight Directions method requires knowing with some degree of accuracy which direction your home faces, but a few degrees of variation one way or the other will not matter quite as much as it does for the compass method.
A. Feng shui is not a religion. It is a philosophy of interior and landscape design that originated in ancient China, and which is based on the Taoist belief in the interconnectedness of all things. It teaches us to be thoughtful about how we arrange and use the spaces we inhabit and work in, and reminds us to be attentive to and appreciative of the relationships and possessions that bless our lives. Many "BTB" (Black Tibetan Buddhist) feng shui practices incorporate Buddhist meditation or chanting. None of these are required to do feng shui. You can do feng shui using Jewish or Christian (or other) prayers, or without using any prayers at all. Contemporary Western feng shui is very flexible, and very personal. If you have a religious practice, you can incorporate as much or as little of that practice as you'd like into your feng shui rituals.
A. If you truly believe that, then perhaps you would be happier not doing feng shui. On the other hand, feng shui can remove obstacles to communication, eliminate unnecessary arguments, reduce your stress, and improve your ability to take advantage of the opportunities and abundance that God is sending your way. Did God tell you to accumulate so much clutter that you feel completely stuck in your life? Did God tell you to place your couch so it is difficult for you to relax and unwind at home-so you are more likely to lose your temper with your children or spouse? Or has God has led you to feng shui because it is a useful tool that will help you to live your life in accordance with his plan? Your religious beliefs and practices are your own business; I cannot answer those questions for you or say whether or not feng shui is appropriate for you. I can reassure you that feng shui is not a religion, and that it can be practiced by people of any faith. I also would advise you to listen to your heart, and not to proceed with feng shui if you do not feel comfortable with it for any reason, religious or otherwise.
A. You don't. All you can do is try it and find out. It is impossible to predict exactly what results you will see from feng shui, or how long they will take to manifest. Sometimes results are seen within days-or even hours!-other times it can takes weeks or months for the energy to shift. Bear in mind that feng shui is a tool, not a magic wand. There are many other factors determining what happens in your life, including your karma and astrology, and - very important! - your own attitudes and actions. If your attitude and expectations are rigid and inflexible, even making powerful changes to the feng shui of your home may not result in a noticeable improvement in the situation. This is because you are the critical factor in the equation, and your mental and/or emotional rigidity is interfering with the manifestation of a desired change. Another thing that can happen is that there is a very obvious shift in the situation, but the results of feng shui are not exactly what you had in mind. This doesn't mean feng shui is not working. It may mean that what you think you want is not what you need, or that your transition will evolve through a series of shifts over a longer period of time. Your issues and priorities can and should change over time, which means that you can come back to feng shui again and again to help make your progress easier. If you approach feng shui with an attitude of flexibility, an open mind, and a sense of adventure, you are well on your way to a successful and rewarding feng shui experience. Rigid expectations, fear of the unknown, or resistance to change can all stop feng shui from working no matter how much time, effort, and money you put into it. (See Principle 9 in Fast Feng Shui for more on evaluating your feng shui experience.)
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