When people first start reading about feng shui, it is a common reaction for them to go into a panic about everything they perceive to be wrong with their house.  Often people focus on details, when unknowingly, the big picture may be the problem.  As an example, someone may worry excessively about where their bathroom is located in their house, not knowing that the most important area of the house is their bedroom. Below are some key areas to evaluate in order to grade the house:

  •  The bedrooms are the most important since we spend the most time there.
  •  The door that you use the most to enter and exit will have a great influence.
  •  Any other location in the house, such as a home office, where you spend several hours a day.
  •  The whole house type in general, based on when it was built and its compass orientation.
  •  The land level and immediate exterior environment.  This can effect the energy inside.
  •  Personal compatibility with the house-type based on the occupants’ birth dates.

There are some feng shui practitioners who feel that if the energy at the front door is bad, that it will ruin the whole house.  I personally take all of the above into consideration and do not rule out a house just based on one thing–unless it is very extreme.  Many novices get locked into a rigid way of thinking when there is actually a lot of freedom to be very individual and creative with one’s surroundings and decor.

As an example, clients often want to be told what exact colors to use in their re-decoration plans.  Since I am not hired as a designer, I only recommend colors which match or nurture the actual element that should be in the room.  People are surprised when the response might be to avoid any large objects or surfaces that are solidly red or black. (Large amounts of red emanate fire energy and a lot of black resonates the water element.)  These can be very effective when you need them.  They can be equally negative when they are used incorrectly.) Other softer or more neutral colors do not have the power to act strongly as major elements in the room.

Another misleading notion that people can have is they assume the feng shui advisor will insist that all their furniture be re-arranged.  I have found that most people have their furniture arranged in a way that is already most practical or the only choice they have.  I am more interested in WHAT the furniture is made out of: metal, wood, glass, etc.

Because “Folk Remedy”feng shui has been so successfully marketed to include symbolic knick- knacks as cures, people sometimes feel disappointed that their feng shui remedies do not need to be purchased in Chinatown, through special catalogues or installed with magical, mysterious ceremonies.  It is true that you can get the feng shui remedies that you need at garden centers, regular furniture stores, bed and bath chains, fabric stores, even Target!

If you feel a strong desire to meditate or pray for the good energy of your home, there is certainly nothing wrong with that.  But it is not essential to do so for the authentic remedies to work.  In fact, if your mental/spiritual power is so transcendent that you can tangibly and swiftly change your destiny, then you may be part of a tiny percentage of the population that  doesn’t even need to concern yourself so much with feng shui.

ARE YOU FROM THE COMPASS SCHOOL…..OR THE COMPASS SCHOOL?

As if there wasn’t enough confusion and controversy over the various schools of feng shui, there are now practitioners who say they practice “Compass” school, when really they do not.  Showing up for the job with a compass and identifying the directions within a house doesn’t mean the person is practicing “Compass” calculations.  Compass School feng shui should imply that the practitioner is calculating BOTH DIRECTION AND TIME in order to accurately assess the magnetic field created inside the house.

Apparently, some people are calling “compass school” the simple designation of directions within the house, and then arbitrarily advising people to put elements in areas associated with the direction.  As an example: Water is inherently associated with the direction of North.  This does NOT mean that every house should have water in the North sector.  It is true that the Eight basic directions have elements assigned to them, but the elements start to move and combine when the age of the house is factored in.  People who practice an incomplete form of feng shui will only have a 20% chance of using the right element, in spite of themselves.

One feng shui author stated that you can “never go wrong with your feng shui remedies.”  He says that if you do something incorrect there just won’t be any result or negative side effect and to just keeping trying until you get it right.   This is totally illogical.  If a remedy has the power to work, then it can back-fire just as well.  Virtually all my clients who try to feng shui their own home before I get there, only have about a 10% understanding of what to look out for.  Some people innocently make things worse.

HILLSIDE HOMES

Hillside homes are often considered more exclusive and sought after in the world of real  estate, but they are a mixed bag when it comes to feng shui.  With extremely high land level directly behind or in front of the property, this feature can enhance or undermine a home depending on the house type.  It is almost impossible to compensate for a misplaced mountain or simply put: it can intensify the bad as well as the good.

If a house has a spectacular view, but was built on stilts, then you have one positive being cancelled out by a negative.  Slowly curving roads can enhance the flow of chi, but not if they are too narrow and precarious.  I have looked at quite a few houses in the Hollywood Hills where they are built right into the mountain, which is too close and almost as bad as the homes teetering off the cliff.

Because the house’s shape needs to cater to the mountain side, some houses end up having split level or awkward floor plans.

Some of the canyon homes are placed below street level, which is not a good position in relation to chi flow.  Everything goes rolling down the hill towards the property.  It is a bombardment of energy.  In the woodsy areas, houses can become too dark and damp.  The older houses especially have a haunted feel.  Clients often verify the presence of ghost activity.  This does not mean that all hillside homes are bad, not at all.  It just needs to be understood that the outside forces will have a greater impact on the house.

SYMBOLISM

Every culture and society has their share of symbols and rituals.  Because feng shui is so new to this country, it is difficult to distinguish between the universal symbols which we would all react to in the same way, and those symbols which are inherent to the Chinese culture.

If hanging a Bagua Mirror has been suggested to you or you have read that this symbol will deflect away evil spirits from your house, how are you to know whether or not this is an actual feng shui remedy or something symbolic and meaningful only to Taoists?  Hanging a crucifix is meaningful to a Christian and hanging a Mezuza on the door is meaningful to the Jewish home.  If a feng shui remedy feels awkward to you or if it clashes with all your other decor, then that is not good feng shui.   Many feng shui enthusiasts get carried away with too much symbolism.  Sometimes a door is just a door.

A recent client thought that she could improve her love life if she were to put “pairs” of things in her room.  Instead of one night-stand or pillow, she had read that if she put two of everything in the room, then that would set in motion the projection that she expects another person to come into her life.  This is not a bad thing to do.  It is a kind of positive affirmation/ meditation.  But we can’t say that it is feng shui.

Author: Kartar Diamond

Company: Feng Shui Solutions ®

From the Feng Shui Theory Blog Series