Like it or not we are sensitive to our surroundings. Our surroundings make us feel and respond to the world in a certain way. These responses affect our health, our career choices, and our marriages as well as our ability to learn and develop rewarding relationships.

According to Feng Shui experts, there are solutions or "cures" for difficulties in these areas, difficulties made worse by our over-stressed, sleep deprived society. Making a table top Feng Shui fountain is one way to harmonize and balance a living or working space.

Feng Shui is the Chinese art of placement for harmony and balance in the environment. The placement refers to arranging furnishings in the home or office, the use of property or lot, the planting of trees and plants, as well as the use of water and nature, to add energy to our lives. "Feng Shui in today's terms means using our environment in a positive way to create a healthy, prosperous life and avoid the damaging effects of modern technology," says Olga Cook, Feng Shui master.

By reconnecting with natural elements such as water, stones and plants, we can be revitalized by the subtle currents of life force and beauty that flow through the landscape. In this way we nourish our human spirit and cherish the natural wonders around us. So let us examine the history and concepts of this ancient

Chinese art of placement. The origins of Feng Shui date back several millennia. By the fourth century BC, the Chinese elite consulted shamans and diviners to determine the proper placement of homes, pathways and temples. They sought areas where the elements, especially wind (Feng) and water (Shui), were in harmony.

A home, for instance, would offer its occupants a beneficial connection with the environment if it were near a source of fresh water and protected from harsh winds. This common sense approach to building occurs in most cultures in the general sense of relating with the Earth as sacred space. The specific rules and practices currently identifiable as Feng Shui seem to date to the fourteenth century when garden principles were formulated into rules of placement.

Feng Shui contains the basic elements of Chinese thought:

• the Tao
• the theory of yin-yang
• Chinese astrology.

As a result, the Feng Shui practitioner wore many hats: architect, diviner, stargazer, physician and philosopher. Fifth century BC Chinese philosopher Lao Tsu observes:

"The supreme good is like water, which nourishes all things without trying to ... it is like the Tao." Nothing in the world is as soft and yielding as water, Yet for dissolving the hard and inflexible, nothing can surpass it."

Read more in Lao Tsu's Tao Te Ching, (ed. S. Mitchell, Harper Perennial, NY 1991). As a result of these overlapping currents, the Feng Shui practitioner wore many hats: architect, diviner, stargazer, physician and philosopher.

Feng, Chinese for "wind", refers to moving air. This motion is associated with the cosmic breath or "ch'i" that animates all of nature. Ch'i is the force that links man and his surroundings and is also known as the human spirit and universal energy.

In Chinese philosophy, "the universe came into being when the primordial One split itself into the two complementary principles of yin and yang, which in turn manifested themselves through the five elements [wind, water, metal, earth, and fire]. It was the role of human beings to maintain the harmony (Tao) of yin and yang in human affairs through the regulation of qi [ch'i]" ("A Sense of Place," Intuition, January, February 1996, p. 19). The watercourse way represented in a fountain garden is an invitation to blend and not struggle, to flow with life, to endure continual change.

Another philosophical ingredient in Feng Shui is the I Ching. This ancient Chinese book of divination contains sixty-four hexagrams which map the energy patterns between heaven, earth, and mankind. The hexagrams are made up of eight trigrams. A trigram is a group of three lines, either solid or broken.

When the eight trigrams are arranged in a circle, they form the Bagua or template. This template represents the eight directions as well as eight areas in a person's life. These are: career, knowledge, family and health, wealth, fame, marriage and creativity, and benefactors or helpful people. This eight-sided template can be imposed on a house, a room, a desk or conference table, or even on top of city plans. In the Black Hat sect of Feng Shui, the position of the Bagua is determined by the location of the door (or front of desk). The "career" position aligns with the wall from which the main door opens. The Ba-Gua illustrates how the eight sides represent eight aspects of one's life.

To encourage business, place your fountain garden on either side of the door entrance (door to a room or to the house). This will enhance the career area and draw energy enhancing ch'i into the room. Or place the fountain in the Gua or area you wish to develop, such as wealth, creativity/children, fame or helpful people/benefactors.

A student, for instance, might place a fountain garden in the knowledge area to enhance his or her learning. You might also place the fountain in an area of architectural imbalance in order to fill out a missing Bagua area. In this illustration, the wealth area is missing! But there is a water fountain solution in colors of blue, purple or red.

The Feng Shui practitioner may diagnose an over-abundance, an under-abundance, or a stale condition of ch'i in one or more of these eight areas. He or she can then offer cures that correct that condition. For example, the practitioner might find threatening concentrations of ch'i, such as harsh sunlight, in a room and recommend placing a crystal near the window to disperse the ch'i more evenly.

Feng Shui harnesses and enhances environmental ch'i, say the experts. This channeling improves the flow of energy in our living and working spaces as well as in our bodies, thus improving our life and destiny. To harmonize the energy flow in landscape and buildings, Feng Shui practitioners work with three types of ch'i:

• in the earth
• in the atmosphere
• in our bodies

This promotes the health and good fortune of the inhabitants. Feng Shui can be thought of as "environmental acupuncture" because it regulates atmospheric and earthly ch'i the way acupuncture regulates the flow of ch'i in the human body.

Over the centuries, several distinct schools of Chinese Feng Shui (as well as Korean and Tibetan schools) have evolved. Each has its lineage of teachers and a distinctive approach to the art. In the last ten years or so, an American style has developed. Its practitioners generally draw on :

• diverse Asian sources
• a sensitivity to the client's needs
• their own intuition.

I have followed the Black Sect Tantric Buddhism tradition in describing the nine cures and in the suggestions for where to place your indoor fountain garden.

The Nine Cures

There are nine basic Feng Shui cures for achieving the flow of positive energy through a space. The fountain garden can embody all nine cures.

1. Electrically powered objects

Fountain pumps, TV sets, microwaves, and even computers can encourage positive ch'i to flow, according to Feng Shui experts. If you place your computer so that you face a door while you work, you will operate from a position of strength and control.

An electrically powered fountain is said to promote wealth, a belief born in times when water was essential to the Chinese economy for its role in the growth of rice. In America we have many associations between water and money. Consider these terms:

A Feng Shui suggestion is to fix leaks immediately or you may experience money flushed away. Standing water in the bathroom or kitchen can mean a stagnant cash flow. Feng Shui practitioners suggest keeping the toilet seat lids down and covering the kitchen drain to conceal the standing water.

2. Moving objects

Interior fountains are also macrocosms of chi''activating and money producing water. Flowing water can be protective because it disperses the killing ch'i of design imbalances. Design imbalances include:

• acute room angles
• corners that jut into rooms
• unused storage space
• a missing Gua or area

Wind and water, the creative forces of nature that give Feng Shui its name, are brought indoors to encourage profits. Moving air produced by moving water in an indoor fountain captures the essence of Feng Shui.

3. Living objects Plants and flowers, either real or artificial, are symbols of life and growth. They breathe a new energy into any interior and help circulate what is already there. Plants can boost performance and morale when placed on either side of an entrance because they attract good ch'i and bring in money. Fish bowls and aquariums are also microcosms of the life-giving ocean and evoke nourishing and money-making ch'i. A plant placed under an open staircase at home will draw positive energy to the upstairs area. The plants and flowers that accent your fountain garden are a reminder of life and growth.

4. Sound. Wind chimes and bells can lure ch'i (and customers) in because they produce noise and arouse curiosity. Feng Shui experts suggest placing a chime or bell in a dark corner or over your bed or desk to attract energy. To keep ch'i from leaving a room with many doors or windows, add a wind chime or bell. The bubbling sound of a small indoor fountain attracts people and introduces a natural background noise. A wind chime fountain is a lovely way to add tinkling sounds to the water murmur.

5. Heavy Objects Stones, statues, and other weighty items are used to restrain positive ch'i and keep it from leaving a space. Strategically placed in the area of your choice, a heavy object can enhance health, wealth and emotional well-being. A heavy statue and stones in the fountain bowl represent this steadfastness and solidity.

6. Bright Objects.

Crystal balls, lights, candles, and mirrors brighten any interior and attract positive energy. Mirrors in a cramped room will make the room seem larger. A mirror placed at right angles to the window will bring the view inside.

However, a mirror in front of a bed can disturb your sleep. Lights can soften a sharply jutting corner, and a crystal hung in the middle of a long corridor can slow down quickly moving ch'i. A candle flame, underwater light, or mirror in the fountain garden will cast a brightness symbolizing life and happiness.

7. Colors

Red, symbolizing happiness and strength, is the most auspicious color and is the color most used in Feng Shui cures. Related colors, such as purple, pink and plum, are also very fortunate. Green promotes growth and tranquility; blue can be beneficial or not depending of the shade (warmer and with a hint of green is best). Brown, tan, yellows and orange harmonize a room with the earth. For more on colors, see the Dictionary of Symbols here

A fountain can be color accented with red birds, rose quartz, purple amethyst, blue agate slice or whatever you wish.

9. Ribbons, fringes and other items.

Because Feng Shui cures evolve and change to address new problems, this category is open to additional ways to increase the flow of positive energy. Tie ribbons are tied to doors with knocking knobs; red tassels can hide and resolve the problem of a slanted beam. Use fragrances such as scented candles, essential oils or incense in your home fountain.

Professor Lin Yun, a Black Sect Tantric Buddhist, advises using the Three Secrets Reinforcement Technique to activate the solutions for maximum effectiveness (Sarah Rossbach and Lin Yun, Living Color (1994), 148-149).

• The first technique focuses on the body and uses "mudras" or ritual hand gestures.
• The second involves speech, reciting a mantra or prayer nine times.
• The third technique brings in the mind, with visualization and mystic intent.

Need a grounding connection to nature? Water, the essence of life, finds charming expression in a bubbling fountain. The imaginative play involved in crafting a personal fountain meets other needs, too, for self-expression, relaxation, and creativity. Table top fountains are wonderful stress reducers and room beautifiers.

Meditators and home altar builders like indoor fountains in the special place where they do their spiritual work. Crafters, home decorators, realtors, wedding planners, business people, teachers looking for classroom projects, and interior designers have discovered indoor fountains and, by extension, the benefits of Feng Shui.

To your Feng Shui fountain success!
Paris

Paris Mannion, LCSW and personal coach, studied at the Carl G. Jung Institute in Zurich, Switzerland exploring symbols of alchemy such as the fountain and the garden. Later researching Feng Shui, the ancient Chinese art of placement, she learned that moving water increases harmony, prosperity and the flow of energy. Combining this information with crafting materials, she began teaching fountain building classes in 1995.

In 1998 she launched Design on Tap, the indoor fountain monthly ezine, read 2 years later by over 9,000 subscribers world wide.

Paris authored Create Your Indoor Fountain: Expressions of the Self (1999), with fountain history, more fountain Feng Shui, 10 illustrated fountain projects, and lots of helpful tips. She contributes articles and fountain projects to the New Age ezine SoulfulLiving.com, and is Fountain Expert at the web-based Craft Central Station.

Make Your Own Tabletop Water Fountains, Paris's new book (F & W Publications, North Light Craft, OH, March, 2001) has 15 new projects including the magic fountain (suspended faucet), copper leaf fountain, hanging slate fountain and watering can fountain.

E-mail Paris with questions, comments and fountain stories.