One of the most annoying feng shui myths is that an address containing the number 4 in it is somehow unlucky. This has everything to do with Chinese culture and language and little to do with feng shui. But because the number 4 is a word in Chinese which sounds like “death,” it has unwarranted negative connotations attached to it.
The real number 4 in feng shui is actually associated with the XUN (pronounced: shoon) Trigram. Xun (also written Sun) is associated with “The Wind” or a “Traveler.” This trigram represents the eldest daughter in the family structure and it governs the lower part of the body, especially the low back and legs. As an example, a man born in 1978 is the XUN trigram and he may be prone to low back or leg problems. Coincidentally, he may be athletic and pursue a sport that strengthens the legs, like running or tennis.
When the 4 energy exists at the entrance to a house (determined by the unseen magnetic field generated from year built and compass alignment), it implies any of the following for the occupants: travel, romance, creativity, artist, musician, actor, writer, academia, public recognition, interest in the metaphysical, and potential for extra-marital affairs.
Of course, every couple who has a “4″ combination at their front door, requests a feng shui remedy that can activate the creative aspects of the 4, but NOT the infidelity part. Unfortunately, you cannot separate the aspects. They go together like one complex personality.
When I tell clients that there are certain house types which are very helpful to people in the entertainment industry, I am thinking about those house types which end up having a 4 energy combination in the bedroom, home office, or front door (areas where we spend most of our time.) People in these houses usually do very well in their respective creative fields.
It is not surprising that a fair number of these houses can be found in West Hollywood. Many of the late 1920’s, 1930’s to early 1940’s houses that face East, West, North, or South will have some combination of 4 energy at the front door and in a back bedroom. When these houses were first built, they were very strong for the most positive aspects of the 4. Now that decades have passed, the negative influences of the 4 are just as strong.
So if the 4 energy in the house doesn’t support the creative juices or inspire those who are talented in design, beauty and fashion, it will incite the scandalous sexual urges instead or cause the heart to get broken over and over again.
Every house has two areas where there is a 4 number/star combination and this is the area of the house where water is added in order to activate the 4, since 4 resonates wood (and wood is strengthened with water). When a client reports that they have no love life or that they are artistically blocked, if they can SPEND TIME in this area of their house, some of it will rub off on them.
Identifying WHERE the 4 energy is in the house is based on the year of construction factored into the compass direction, so it is not in the same area or direction for every house. (That would be the overly simplified version of feng shui, which is rarely accurate.) This is just one example of how precise and individualistic classical feng shui is and how unseen influences can easily and mathematically be located in a house without any guesswork or psychic intervention.
Author: Kartar Diamond
Company: Feng Shui Solutions (R)
From the Myths and Misinformation Blog Series
