Feng Shui is an ancient Chinese art and science that believes in trying out simple tips to maneuver your environment and energy around you to gain the most of your life including health, wealth, happy domestic life and eliminate stress of daily life. It deals mostly with placement of a house in relation to its landscape, of a room in the house, of doors, windows, furniture and accessories. Here are some tips to invite and promote all the good things in life and eliminate the worst of life or at least minimize it by following these few suggestions:
n Feng Shui has controlling 'chi' or life force energy as its ultimate aim. Chi is of two types - Yang, which is dynamic and expanding; and Yang, which is receptive and contracting. A balance of these two types of energies is essential to a harmonious and prosperous home.
n The five basic elements - Metal (as represented by metal base lamps), Water (as represented by tabletop fountains and aquariums), Wood (as represented by wooden furniture and flooring), Fire (as represented by candles, fireplaces and gas-stoves) and Earth (as represented by pottery and indoor plants and flower arrangements - should also be in balance.
n Rearranging furniture and furnishings and remodeling space can improve your household such as hanging a tapestry on the door to make a certain corner of the room feel calmer and peaceful.
n According to Feng Shui, area of home or room is divided into nine parts in an octagon or square shape - eight equal wedges and a center. The central position is for health while eight aspects correspond to marital relations, kids, help from others, success in career, education, love within the family, money and fame respectively. Thus, problem in any one of the aspects may indicate a need to change the arrangement of the room in that particular area.
n Feng Shui cures may be extensive including moving furniture and remodeling or simple as placing a pyramid, hanging a mirror or re-arranging the corner table.
n Mirrors and smooth reflective finishes are meant to increase good 'chi' but do not hang them in front of a door, so that it doesn't bounce off the home.
n Wind chimes or moving objects represent wind element and their pleasing sound is therapeutic too.
n Green plants signify life and energize the area but dead flower arrangements are not recommended.
n Let the money flow in with water element represented by fountains, fish tanks, images of water, a sailing ship model in fake or real gold pointing inward in the wealth aspect of the home.
n Bachelors and girls looking forward to early marriage should display photos and paintings of couple while those who want children can put up pictures of kids.
n In the bedroom, position the bed to enable you to see the door easily but not opposite to it and the headboard should have a solid wall instead of window for support. Beds should not have beams or canopies above them and mirrors should not reflect the bed in it.
n Bathrooms should be clean, airy, efficient and not opposite the entrance of the house. Its door should open inside and kept closed.
n Sofa in the living room should be place to allow you to see everybody entering the room. Keep minimal furniture here with clear pathways. You can also place mirror to reflect the door so that you can see it while sitting on the sofa.
n Round coffee tables and ottomans and furniture with rounded corner are preferable.
n In kitchen, cook more often to invite wealth in the house. Place cooking appliances in such a manner that cook can see everybody entering the kitchen or place mirrors on the walls to reflect the person walking in.
We will now tackle the most important feature in Yang Feng Shui — placement of the main door. The main door is being considered as the 'mouth' of the house. The type of chi that is brought into the house is distributed throughout and this will have an effect on the health and fortune of the family.
It is of utmost importance to know what type of chi or 'nutrients' the door is taking into the house. The chi that is being brought into the house should be yang chi and not yin chi.
When an external storage room is opposite the main door, the storage room has stagnant chi which is not considered to be healthy. This is one of the causes of sickness and loss of opportunity to the household. The remedy is to move the door of the storage room to a position not facing the main door.
One of the most frequent violation to the accumulation of family resources is having a mirror in line with the front door. The mirror reflects fortune chi from entering the house. The cure is to relocate the mirror.
Another arrangement that drains the family resources is when the front door opens to a window, where the chi entering the house does not have a chance to circulate and be distributed around the house. It is immediately passed out through the window. This means fortune in and fortune out. Worse if there is an outside sha emitted by the neighbor's gable. The cure is to install Venetian blinds on the window and have the slats closed.
