What is Feng Shui ?
FENG SHUI
Feng shui, also known as Chinese geomancy, is an ancient Chinese practice that involves arranging buildings, objects, and space to achieve balance and harmony. The term "feng shui" literally translates to "wind-water", and is associated with good health and fortune. Feng shui aims to balance the energy flow in an environment, which may positively impact overall well-being and reduce health-related issues.
The five elements are involved in Feng Shui: fire, wood, water, earth, and metal.
All 5 of these elements are vital for good Feng shui but wind and water have long been considered the most important of the elements because of their necessity to human existence, wind is connected to the air that we breathe and water is an essential substance for life.
There has long been a fascination with feng shui; it has mystical elements that appeal to many but there is a strong practical application also and the effects are far-reaching because it can be used throughout your home and at work. When you start to use feng shui you must do so with good intent, eliminating negativity and ensuring that your desire for change is sincere.
It considers everything as being part of a larger environment and one which is perpetually changing and fluctuating.
The origins are deeply rooted within the ancient shamanic practices and the nature-based religious factions in China and it was so important that even burial sites were carefully chosen according to the Feng Shui principles.
Yin and Yang are an important part of the basic Feng Shui concepts and in ancient times, the Chinese determined that these two energy principles made up the universe.
Yin symbolizes the passive side of nature and Yang symbolizes the active side of nature, but these two forces do not exist independently but as two parts of a whole. All things contain equal amounts of Yin and Yang energy. It can be said that anything with the characteristics of passiveness, silence, darkness, and receptiveness represents the Yin energy. By contrast, anything that has the characteristics of loud, bright, and active will represent Yang's energy. Yin and Yang are equal but both are essential.
In Feng Shui, Yin and Yang are important. You may have subconsciously experienced the imbalance of these components if you have ever walked into a room and felt uneasy, unsettled, or felt something was wrong.
The concept of Yin and Yang are the opposite forces of energy that have to exist in a finely balanced state, and, the ethos within feng shui is that we humans need balance too if we seek out harmony and well-being. This is almost impossible to achieve if your home or work environments are out of balance and when you are surrounded by stagnant or negative energy. By creating supportive spaces at home and work, life becomes easier and you start to feel whole.
The two classical schools of Feng shui
There are two commonly known schools of classical Feng Shui: the Form school (Chiangsi school) and the Compass school (Fujian school).
The Form school: The first record of this traditional Feng Shui concept appeared as early as in the Zhou Dynasty (B.C. 1122-770). The knowledge and theory continued to develop, reaching a high degree of maturity in the Tang Dynasty (A.D. 618-907).Form School has a clearly recorded lineage that began in the Tang Dynasty and lasted until the 17th century. Yang Jun Song, Zhen Wen Chuan, Lai Da You, and Xie Zi Yi are the four known masters during the Tang Dynasty.
The form school involves the shape of the environment, such as mountains, rivers, plateaus, buildings, and general surroundings. It considers the five celestial animals (vermillion phoenix, azure dragon, white tiger, black turtle, and the yellow snake), the yin yang concept and the traditional five elements (wood, fire, earth, metal, and water).
The Compass branch is a collection of more recent Feng Shui techniques based on the Eight Directions, each of which is said to have unique qi. It uses the Luopan, a disc marked with formulas in concentric rings around a magnetic compass.
More recent forms of feng shui simplify principles that come from the traditional branches, and focus mainly on the use of the bagua ( The bagua or pakua are a set of eight symbols that originated in China. Used inTaoist cosmology it represents the fundamental principles of reality, seen as a range of eight interrelated concepts and it is an essential tool in the majority of Feng Shui schools. Bagua literally means eight symbols or eight areas. Ba meaning 8 and gua meaning ‘area’.)
How old is Feng Shui ?
There is some debate when it comes to the origins and history of feng shui. However, what is clear is that its history spans at least 3,000 years. In fact, this concept may even have been utilized as long as 6,000 years ago. Feng Shui appears in The Book of Burial, attributed to poet Guo Pu (276–324 CE), which asserts that qi can be dispersed by wind and stopped by water.
A few basic Feng Shui tips (These are all quick tips to get you started):
-Eradicate clutter: It’s so easy to hoard items, filling cupboard space up until there is no room left and when you look around, you may feel tense or oppressed by the amount of surface clutter. Your starting point has to be to eliminate some of it. Clearing out unwanted items can be empowering and a great relief. It’s important to strip back to the essentials from time to time, discard those items that are damaged or broken, and redesign your living space with a freshness.
-Natural light throughout the house is encouraged and light received by the sun and themoon will also add balance to your life as well as being energising.
-Think about the position of your furniture.
-Personalise your space. Surround yourself with those items that you care about andremove those items that you keep only through obligation.
-Wooden beams: The reason exposed beams are so problematic is because they dissect the energy of a space. The sharper, lower and more prominent the beams, the stronger the effect will be.