Understanding Feng Shui

Feng Shui is an ancient art, science and philosophy from Asia that observes and evaluates environments minimizing negative energies while enhancing and optimizing positive energies.

The Chinese symbols for Feng Shui is WindWater. The words Feng Shui refer to Wind (Feng) and Water (Shui) respectively. We need wind to provide circulation, cooling our buildings during the hot months and distributing the seeds from plants to grow in more areas. We also need air to breath. We need water to drink, irrigate our food-baring plants, grow vegetation for shade and to be able to cleanse ourselves. These are probably the two most essential elements we need to live on this planet.

The Chinese symbols for Feng Shui is WindWater. The words Feng Shui refer to Wind (Feng) and Water (Shui) respectively. We need wind to provide circulation, cooling our buildings during the hot months and distributing the seeds from plants to grow in more areas. We also need air to breath. We need water to drink, irrigate our food-baring plants, grow vegetation for shade and to be able to cleanse ourselves. These are probably the two most essential elements we need to live on this planet.

It creates buildings that are healthy, happy and harmonious for the occupants.

Confusion arises when a person discovers potential challenges and remedies from conflicting schools. There are about a dozen different schools with only a few common qualities between them, yet the ultimate goal is to create balance, good energy, prosperity, loving relationships, interesting careers and vitality.

Here is a quick guide to some of the schools:

Landform School – The original form of Feng Shui where the land formation was most important. Generally, we want the tallest mountain behind us, two shorter mountains on either side of us and a clear view over the valley toward water like an ocean or lake. We want protection from the elements with those mountains. We also want to have a view of commerce – the train station, airport or cargo ships.

Compass Direction – Based on the geographic region, the front door should face the best direction for view, climate protection and usage. In much of China it would be a house with the front door facing South.

Flying Stars – This school looks at the date when a house was completed. That will be the “birth date” of the house. This school also breaks the years into 20-year cycles. We are currently in Period 8, which started in February 2004 and ends the day before Chinese New Year in 2024.

Four Pillars – A person’s birthdate is used in this school to determine the best colors, elements, directions and shapes to have in their bedroom and office.

Chinese Zodiac Animal – There are twelve animals in the Chinese Zodiac cycle. Most of 2015 was the Year of the Sheep/Goat/Ram. On February 8, 2016, we start the Chinese New Year – the Year of the Monkey. The characteristics of the animal play a large role in the type of year we’ll have. Some monkey qualities are: agile, mischievous, playful and easily distracted.

I’ll share more details about each of these schools and the Year of the Monkey in future posts.

Prepare Your Home For The New Year With A Home Blessing

Last New Year’s Eve I started a tradition by doing a Home Blessing in my own home.

Create a Sacred Space on a table or counter about 3'x5' in size using a special cloth or placemat.

Create a Sacred Space on a table or counter about 3’x5′ in size using a special cloth or placemat.

I’m always so busy helping others clean the negative energy from their homes and set the correct energetics for their desired life outcomes, I sometimes find myself too tired to do my own home.

It’s like “the cobbler’s children have no shoes” in that the Feng Shui Home Blessing Master has a less-than-desireable-energy house. Not any more! I stay on top of the situation now!

Clear the Home of Negative Energy

Hence, this week you would find me cleaning the house by dusting and vacuuming (even under the beds and behind the heavy pieces of furniture), sorting through things, ridding my house of all things broken or no longer used, rearranging and organizing each room, using up leftovers and cleaning the refrigerator and clearing the home of unwanted, old and negative energy. (For more on this, check the previous post and future posts for the Chinese New Year.)

I’m lucky I have specific tools to use to clear the unwanted, old and negative energies. I call them Land Clearing Tools. I’ve gathered them from around the world during my training to be Masters of Feng Shui and Space Clearing. These are powerful tools used to shake loose, move and disperse energy. Even with these tools it takes several hours to move and change the energy.

Home Blessing Tips

Use colorful cloths, bells, chimes, water and salt as part of the sacred setting.

Use colorful cloths, bells, chimes, water and salt as part of the sacred setting.

If you want to do a Home Blessing yourself, here are some guidelines:

  1. Go through your home and office with a discerning eye. Remove ALL objects you don’t love.  Remove everything that is broken or in need of repair.
  2. Locate and create a “Sacred Space” on a table or counter. Place a special cloth, placemat or table cloth on table or counter large enough to create an altar about three feet wide by four or five feet long. This will depend on how much space you can on the counter and how large your home is. Typically I need about five feet for a 10-14  room home.

    Prepare plates with flowers and candles on them in order to place them in rooms within the home.

    Prepare plates with flowers and candles on them in order to place them in rooms within the home.

  3. Place on this cloth or around it any bells or chimes you might have. Add any essential oils in spray bottles you would like to use to freshen and infuse the air. Have about 4-6 small dishes of salt you can place throughout the home for a few days. Gather small plates – one for each room in the home. Place a tea candle in a metal shell in the center. Place flower heads around the candle, but not touching it since it could catch fire and burn.
  4. Find any sacred objects you would like to decorate or add to the altar.
  5. When everything is on the altar, light the candles.
  6. Methodically go through your home with each item one-at-a-time. For instance, go through the house with just a bell. Then go through the house with just an essential oil. Then go through the home with the chime. Then place one of the plates with the lit candle in each room. If the candle goes out when you are transporting it, just relight it.
  7. Continue this process until you either feel the energy shift or you feel you want to end the ceremony. If you can, leave the plates with the candles in place until the candles burn themselves out.
  8. Be sure to give thanks and think loving thoughts the whole time you are doing this process.

If you’d like me to help you, contact me.

Please share your personal experiences in Home Blessings in the comment section below.

 

Tips to Prepare for Your Best Year Ever

This time of year I’m busy preparing energetically for the New Year. The traditional “goals” have been set.

Window paper-cut is one of the most popular folk arts in China. Most of the contents represent the life of the Chinese farmers. They would include textile work, fishing, shepherding,, livestock feeding , tillage, etc. The people display these int heir windows during the festivals as symbols of their desired outcomes in life. It is a wish for a "wonderful life!"

Window paper-cut is one of the most popular folk arts in China. Most of the contents represent the life of the Chinese farmers. They would include textile work, fishing, shepherding, livestock feeding, tillage, etc. The people display these in their windows during the festivals as symbols of their desired outcomes in life. It is a wish for a “wonderful life!”

Now is the time to “Set the Stage for Success” throughout your office and your home.
A couple of quick tips to remove or rid your environment and energetic connections to the last year are:
  • Pay off any and all debts you can before the New Year. This will clear any old energy from last year allowing you to enter the New Year unencumbered by financial indebtedness.
  • Clean (vacuum, dust and organize) as much as you can BEFORE New Year’s Day. This will allow you a fresh start – again, unencumbered by this current year’s energy allowing for a clean slate on which to create a strong foundation for next year.
  • Clean your bedroom by dusting everything and putting clean, fresh sheets on your bed. Be sure to clean under your bed as well to delete stagnant energy hiding beneath it.
  • Clear out all leftovers from your refrigerator BEFORE the New Year. We don’t want to ingest the energies from the past year.
  • Get rid of the old staples and purchase new ones for a fresh start. The four staples are flour, rice, sugar and salt. Give old unopened staples to a food bank. Any open items you can give to a friend, neighbor or relative since it will be “new-to them.”
I’ve put in CAPS the word “BEFORE” on a couple of these. The reason for this is two-fold.
  1. We want to have the energy be new, clean and fresh before the New Year begins.
  2. We also don’t want to be doing the work on New Year’s Day for it is said that whatever you do on New Year’s Day you will be DOING ALL YEAR LONG! Do you want to be cleaning all year long? I know I don’t.
I like to spend time with family, play in my garden, travel to both old favorites and new places as well as spend time on introspection through mediation and writing. I plan my New Year’s Day to accommodate these.
What kind of things do you want to be doing all year long? Please share your comments.