Jami's personal thoughts and experienced observations:
When reading these articles, kindly note that
there are many schools of Feng Shui. Between them, there may
appear to be discrepancies. I am well-experienced in all Feng
Shui traditions (compass, eight mansions, flying stars, Black
Sect/three gate, and how to use them in combination to
maximize potential) and apply them ALL in practice. Practical
application through hundreds of consultations, I have
determined that most traditional techniques are valid when
appropriately applied to individualized circumstance.
"Text book Feng Shui," whatever school, is only as
good as the practitioner's experience and ability to properly
apply the theory. I invite those serious students to continue
study, experience, and explore the depth of this
transformational work.
Universal
Feng Shui: The Roots of our Nature
(excerpted from The
Feng Shui Anthology written by the top 40 world-wide
experts)
With
so much media attention, you have probably heard of Feng Shui.
However, with your predominately English-speaking ears, it is
likely that the Chinese concepts are as hard for you to grasp,
as they are to pronounce.
Do
you want greater Health, Wealth & Happiness, along with a
more beautiful home or functional office?
When we align our environments according to the natural laws,
we also benefit from their perfection. Our homes and offices
either support our full potential, create limiting blocks, or
keep us from moving either way.
As
long ago as the need for shelter, man has been at the positive
or negative effect of his surrounding space. Ancient man was
sensitive to his surroundings and his connection to the earth.
Having the same natural instincts as our animal brothers, he
could feel when a space was magnetically hot which was, and
still is, over stimulating to the body and the senses, or when
a site was so special that it was honored and shared with all
clan/tribe members for ceremony or the hunt. Defined by
Chinese mythology, the just right conditions are
wrapped in the natural protection of the nurturing arms of the
tiger and dragon mountains.
Using
childhood mythology, did the Chinese influence Goldilocks when
she chose her chair that was just right or Dorothy’s
magical capabilities when she realized, “There is no place
like home?” The Chinese could not have had the exclusive on
Earth Design.
Observing
nature and applying her design secrets for personal benefit is
not new. History has proven that when logic and
symbolic representations of the natural cycles are included in
planning our structures, placing furniture and selecting
accessories, abundance and well-being are enhanced. Greek
Temples, Egyptian Pyramids, sacred structures throughout
Europe, South America, and all over the world were constructed
according to universal Earth Design.
In
addition to locating structures and sites according to the
relationship of man and earth, the ancient Earth Designers
constructed buildings to honor their spiritual expression.
Throughout design history, mythological reference was
typically the reason for construction, as confirmed further by
building details. For example, the Egyptian pyramids were
constructed to house the spirit of Osiris for all eternity,
and the Greek temples were the gods’ earthly homes when they
ventured from Mount Olympus. When the gods were appeased,
visionaries advised that man would be blessed with good
fortune.
It
is coincidental that mythology is the intuitive explanation of
the workings of nature and the cycles. Joseph Campbell, who
spent his life defining universal myth, could suggest that
Earth Design is a tool for planning your environments so they
support our personal mythology: our own success stories. When
we design according to the same laws and our own personal
mythology, we too will be blessed with good fortune.
Understanding
personal mythology through intuition is the foundation of
Earth Design.
The natural law that blends the mind-body-spirit triad,
physically represented by a pyramid, is the key to enjoying
life while working to attain our goals. The triad cycle is
what gives man his humanness and reason for being. Just like
every natural cycle, our happiness triad works in the very
same way, as does the water or any other cycle. Simply stated,
water falls to earth through precipitation; it is absorbed by
the earth, plants, and animals; it evaporates into the air,
and continues to cycle because of the earth’s force.
“The
force,” through Hollywood’s science-fiction mythology, has
been defined and explored at great length in the “Star
Wars” movies. The force or Chi (the Chinese word for energy)
is the momentum of life. Scientifically, energy is the
attraction of molecular structure. It is glue that holds the
cycles of nature together. Like the blood that circulates
through and nourishes our bodies, Chi/energy is the life force
that circulates through everything including our homes and
offices.
As
man is part of nature’s wholeness, the same energy that
holds the earth cycles together also creates the momentum of
our personal mythology momentum. The mind-body-spirit triad is
our personal energetic cycle. A focused mind has the power to
direct the body to do remarkable tasks, and the body increases
strength, further supporting the mind and spirit. The mind
grows in confidence, and human kind desires to extend to
higher goals. A purposeful empty mind has the ability to
receive expanded knowledge in order to grow in spirit. Through
spiritual awareness, our mental and physical sensibilities
become more finely developed. Intuition is the added dimension
that exponentially evolves the personal triad.
While
this discussion has everything to do with becoming a more
evolved being, what does it have to do with Earth Design? When
you are sensitive to your surroundings, you will recognize how
space affects you. Then you can intuitively make energetic
adjustments based upon your intuitive interpretation of the
lessons learned from having observed nature. Thus, Earth
Design is a bridge connecting intuition (mind) to the physical
environment (body) and ultimately to the spirit. The added
dimension takes you to your spiritual roots through its
connection to substance and form; an animal designs its den
so it can view the opening for advanced warning against
predators. If you want the same sense of comfort to support
your triad, shouldn’t you also place your furniture to view
the door?
Through
design history, Earth Design is the physical manifestation of
man’s spiritual evolution. Through intuitive observation and
spiritual awareness, Plato and Pythagoras validated Earth
Design as nature’s universal structure through mathematics
and science. The spirit of more recent Earth Designers also
applied their intuition to interpreting the laws. Frank Lloyd
Wright explored the cantilever by noticing how a tree branch
extended off its deeply rooted trunk, and Buckminster Fuller
designed the Geodesic Dome according to the magnetic grid
lines of the earth.
You
don’t have to be a masterful designer to start developing
your own intuitive sensitivity. One day I was hiking in the
Canadian Rockies. I recognized that Johnson Canyon was
constructed by Fire (igneous) and Earth (rock), magnificently
chiseled by Water (glacial runoff) and Air (winds). Because I
had working knowledge of Feng Shui, I was so excited when I
realized that if the natural elements had the power to create
such wonder, it is easy to understand how their
representations make a significant impact on our lives.
Use
nature’s perfection as a model; she is rich and abundant.
Even with man’s ecological disrespect, given the proper
conditions, more trees will grow. As part of the natural
order, you are also perfect and have the opportunity, combined
with motivation and hard work, to grow many riches not just
limited to economic wealth. Riches refer to the humanness of
being, which IS the joy of life: rich in respect, love,
health, and generous to give to each other and back to the
earth.
Now
that you have accepted nature’s perfect gift of greater
Health Wealth & Happiness, let’s begin at the entry, the
most important area of any home or office. To allow Chi,
clients, guests, or family primary access, the entrance needs
to be open, unobstructed and inviting. It should be cheerful,
attractive and look prosperous. Welcome to your first
impression!
Use
your intuition, what are some ideas? You cannot simply take a
traditional Feng Shui concept such as painting a door red,
without intuitive processing. If your house were painted dusty
rose or peach, how harmonious or attractive would it be with a
red door?
Once
you enter, Chi should be allowed to flow through your home or
office. When you walk into a “brick wall” obstructing Chi,
the entire space is hindered. Opportunity is choked. You can
almost feel as if something were caught in your throat, or as
if you are beating your head against a brick wall.
As
a business owner, your office environment has you defeated
before getting started. Why should employees bother when there
is no room for advancement because of all the obstacles?
Clients meet resistance, and the brick wall blocks them from
signing your contract. Hesitantly, clients waver.
They are not convinced you can deliver their expected
quality of product or service.
Your
home is the sanctuary where you regenerate from the stress of
the outside world. A brick wall could cause headaches. You may
be professionally stuck by not knowing how to pursue financial
opportunities. There may be marital problems, or the children
may be difficult to discipline.
Anything
that catches your eye will direct Chi. When construction is
not architecturally or financially feasible; hanging a mirror
is a good solution to help nurturing energy pass through the
block. The mirror greets you with your reflection, and who
better should you think is beautiful and full of potential?
In
the corporate arena, another solution is to install the
company logo out of highly polished metal, which is reflective
like a mirror. Good Earth Design requires that all energetic
solutions be functional and aesthetic at the same time. Your
logo commands presence: professionalism and stability. Using
your intuition, energetically, why use metal? What does metal
represent? The kings ransom! Clients will make money by
trusting you.
Notice
how Earth Design solutions are logical. Everything in nature
is intertwined, so when you are designing a space, consider
all the practical requirements. What if your entry is dark? In
addition to not being able to see, how does it feel
when you walk into a small dark space? Uneasy? Restricted? How
can this manifest itself on professional, social or emotional
levels?
You
already know the answer and the practical solution; add a
light fixture. In the office, focus recessed hi-hat fixtures
in the ceiling toward the logo. Avoid glare, and allow your
company name to shine brightly.” We are proud of who we are.
We will work hard to earn your confidence.”
In
your home, ceiling height permitting, hang a crystal
chandelier. What happens when light passes through a prism?
Allow light and energy to dance throughout the entry.
“Welcome home, I love my family, and I feel loved and
supported.” Whatever your budget or style preferences, go to
a home builder’s warehouse first. There are many different
and affordable fixtures available.
Using
nature as a guide, the traditional Chinese elements: Metal
(logo), Water (mirror), Wood, Fire, and Earth are represented
by the materials, shape, and color of the finishes and
furniture selected. Through historic reference, they all
enhance various life situations or conditions. As in nature,
when all of the elements are used in balanced proportion, Chi
is harmonized, life experience is balanced and coincidently,
the decoration is more interesting. A client had a house full
of rattan furniture. Knowing the answer, I asked if she had
bought everything from the same store. We do not live in
furniture showrooms. Look at any photograph in a decorating
magazine, and just like nature, there is beauty because of the
perfect blend of textures, form, and color.
Leaving
ample area to navigate, perhaps there is enough room in the
entry for a console under the mirror or the logo. To balance
the elements, consider a Wood (growth & creativity)
console with a curvilinear Bombay front (Water shape:
transmittion of ideas). A stone or ceramic floor is not only
elegant and practical to maintain for an entry, but it has the
stability of the Earth element. Fire (motivation &
intellect) can be added with a wool (animal product/blood)
entry rug for warmth.
Now
that your decoration is beautiful and energetically balanced,
what would you like to enhance? Clients most often would like
more money. Without clutter, which leaves no room for new
opportunity, how can we accessorize the console? In your
office, consider a Metal (wealth) brochure holder (good
marketing/promotion) that is kept over full (abundance). Space
permitted, a live Chi-generating plant will help you to grow
your business by adding fresh life and vitality. The console
in your house could be accented by a black (wealth) marble
(Earth: stability) pedestal with a metal sculpture. The
sculpture should be representative of wealth or the process by
which you earn your livelihood. There could be fresh flowers
on the console for the previously mentioned reasons.
Now
that you have Earth Designed one room, what about the rest of
the space? There are practical design applications to generate
creativity, concentration, higher profitability, greater
marketability, new clients, internal productivity, and
employee comradery in the office. You can design your home to
support such personal life aspects as finding a potential
life-love mate, having your children become less rebellious
and more studious, and sometimes, almost miraculously, making
positive changes in health or attitude.
While
some of the concepts are what many may consider mystical, most
have a foundation in common sense and practicality. Whatever
your decorating style, the concepts are easy to learn and
really do make a difference in all aspects of your life.
Here
are some more
suggestions to help you to get started.
Always
position your bed, desk, and stove to have a clear view of the
door.
The
principal and upper executives’ offices should be located in
the command areas of the office, while giving employees and
clients accessibility. Everyone will benefit because the
entire office will feel as if it is one body, the sum of all
the functions harmoniously working toward the main objective.
Bathroom
doors should be kept shut, with toilet seats down, to prevent
Chi, opportunity, wealth, and happiness from being flushed.
Never
sleep with a beam over your bed or put a shelf over it or your
desk. Your world could fall down on you at any moment.
Throw
out dead flowers or plants.
Avoid
sharp pointed buildings, wall corners, furniture or
accessories pointed directly at your house, bed or desk. It is
reminiscent of a cutting knife-edge or a disapproving finger.
To
me, the spiritual aspects of Earth Design are the most
exciting. Referring to the humanistic qualities of the triad,
the more your physical environment provides conscious or
subconscious comfort, the more you grow the mind and spirit.
For the whole world to experience, the physical manifestation
of this concept is represented by the entrance of the Louvre
museum that houses the art of humanity masterfully expresses
global spiritual evolution.
The
entry, again the most important of any space is a crystal
pyramid. Looking at the sacred shape of Pythagorean
Mathematics and Plato’s Solids, you are reminded of all the
pyramids throughout time. How is this sacred pyramid any
different from the Egyptian, Mayan, or church/mosque steeple
that is the physical representation of man’s quest for
ascension? Mr. Pei used today’s technology and building
materials to design a pyramid of light. What does that mean to
you?
Standing
under the street level in the belly of the pyramid, you can
look up through the glass at three different building
elevations. The spirit of today’s architectural contribution
connects each building that was an addition to the growth of
the Louvre. Constructed over the centuries, each has a unique
facade designed according to the architectural style of the
time. In the womb, you look up at design history. Though the
light, you experience evolution through Earth Design.
I
experienced more magic. While spiritually moved beyond words
in the womb, all of a sudden the stainless steel cylinder
started to move. It became a spiral. The universal
mathematical proportion of pi ascended three to four stories
to the street level above. While fully extended, I saw the
double helix of DNA in the wonder of the handicap elevator.
Evolution.
One
more? Like traditional pyramids, there are underground
passages that connect the buildings. One passage has a series
of shops that terminates at the subway. At the entry on the
floor there is a marble pyramid about four feet square at the
base. Right above its apex is an inverted glass pyramid at the
same proportion: apex-to-apex. Above the double pyramid, as
part of the building structure, is one of the three
pyramid-shaped skylights that surround the larger main entry
pyramid. (Aren’t there also three smaller pyramids at Giza?)
As
soon as I saw it, I was greeted with Hermetic age-old wisdom:
As above, so below. Through the funnel of the glass pyramid,
we are being given light to fill our solid and stable earth
plane for universal balance. When the pyramids merge together
as if generated by a computer, a three-dimensional Star of
David is created, connecting heaven and earth.
Understandably,
some may feel negative energy from the top glass element
because when a pyramid is inverted, this most stable of
architectural forms defies the law of gravity. However, light
and spirit have no weight. Do the natural laws of earth still
apply? Perhaps people who are uncomfortable with the sculpture
have mind, body or spiritual blocks that prevent them from
receiving. Using your intuition, play with the controversy.
How does the energy feel to you?
From
Stone Age to New Age, Earth Design is about vision.
As you begin to reap the rewards of nature’s balance
supported by your environments and hard work, you lighten up.
You are gentler with yourself and the people around you. You
become more at ease with life. With your new sensitivity,
perceptions increase enabling you to make better decisions,
and people enter your life with a willingness to support your
goals, knowing too that in turn you help them reach theirs.
You work smarter, not harder, leaving more time for the other
joys of life.
Now,
isn’t Earth Design easier to grasp and pronounce?
When
life is full, all riches come with greater grace. When you are
rich in your complete humanness, you set an example by
inspiring others to live to their full and balanced potential.
As an old Chinese proverb says, “When there is order in the
house, there is order in the nation, when there is order in
the nation, there is peace in the world.”
Monthly
Tips
Most recent first
November
2000
When making good Feng Shui decisions base them
on need, logical architecture and function, as well as making
best use of the earth directional energies. Depending on which
direction of the house that you guest room is located consider
setting up the space:
N: as a small work area to support your Career
NE: for study to expand your knowledge or meditation/yoga room
E: where the family hangs and has family meetings
SE: to work/study on your investments and make/develop
financial strategies
S: for what you'd like to be recognized for (one client had
all his Corvette trophies in his Southern guest room!)
SW: to have a special romantic feel
W: as your craft room for special creative projects
NW: as an area to have a class or have mutually-beneficial,
"support each other" groups
Bottom line: you get a functional space, the room is full of
life, and your good chi will also support your loved ones that
are coming to visit!
October
2000
Now that the kids are back in school and you
are back in the flow, remember that the wild ride of the
holidays are approaching. Since it is a reasonably quite time
of year, it is a great time to priorities a major de-clutter.
When you think about the cycles of nature, the leaves are
falling to make way for the new growth coming in the spring.
Get rid of what know longer serves you to welcome all the new
opportunities coming in several months.
September 2000
With all the kids going back to school,
maximize your children's potential by preparing their room
with good Feng Shui. Is their bed and study chair facing their
best directions? Donate all their stuff that has accumulated
as clutter and they have grown out to make room for new
energy.
Remember to tidy up the West corner of your home to support
them as well as helping YOUR creativity and spontaneity!
Check out your personal monthly horoscope too (based upon your
birth energies)!
General
Decorating and Design Tips
Jami Lin is an interior
designer with over 25 years experience
PLEASE do not do ugly Feng Shui
read "Conventional Interior Design" Chapter in
Jami's Feng
Shui Today
When I go into
people’s homes I see the same design and decorating mistakes
over and over again. One that specifically comes to mind had
three of the biggest no no's. Every room was too jammed full
of furniture, most of which was way too big (#1) that it
forced you to squeeze through just to navigate. It looked like
a furniture catalog (#2). And (3#) none of the furniture
coordinated with the color of the walls, even though it would
have been so easy!
So,
let's do it right the first time with these easy tips:
(#1)Plan
ahead to scale furniture properly and you don’t purchase too
many items. Get yourself an accurate floor plan so that the
size of the furniture is appropriate to the size of the room!
It is better to be too small than too big. Either take your
time to measure and draw a plan accurately, call the architect
or builder, or call a deign/architecture student at the local
college. (Be careful: the plans that developers use to sell
their homes or condos are not always accurate.) Then before
you make the purchase, with the exact dimensions of each piece
of furniture, you can draw it on your floor plan along with
all your existing and projected new pieces to make sure that
everything fits. With a little practice, even without your
floor plan, you can learn to measure the actual floor space,
according to the dimensions of the furniture, to confirm it is
the right scale as well. Remember, to allow for a minimum of
36 inches for walkways and for doors to open fully without
banging into furniture.
(#2)
Mix & Match: Be creative! When you make furniture design
magazine. Mix furnishings and materials within your design
taste. If you select a wood end table, select a metal coffee
table with glass (to show of your beautiful area rug), or even
stone. Be creative with the different metal finishes too:
brushed brass, stainless steel, green or rusty-textured
patina. If club chairs are leather, consider a yummy-nubby
textured sofa with patterned throw pillows.
(#3)
Select/Buy the big, and usually the more expensive pieces
before you spend all that effort and time painting the walls.
There are hundreds of thousands of paint colors, which are
much easier and available to select and coordinate with than
the not as many furniture, carpet, or area rug options. Even
if you can't find the perfect paint color, most paint
retailers can do a computerized match of your color swatch to
formulate your special coordinated color
Outdoor
Feng Shui
It
does not matter how big your property is or how much money you
choose to invest.
All you need to practice Feng
Shui is intuition combined with
creativity and ingenuity. Remember
your exterior is an aesthetic extension of
your living space and the entire lot should be a balanced
entity with all the features
making a cohesive usable whole. Pay close attention to the
proportion and scale of your
features. View your site as a 3D canvas. Create
your painting with considerations to the volumes, voids, textures,
colors, elevation changes, height
relationships, materials and movement. Are
they all in balance? Can you visualize the movement of energy
in an invisible flow
diagram?
A
good rule for balance is the asymmetric triangle rule. Locate
two major features
and fill the missing triangular point with the proper highlight.
If you have a gazebo make sure it
connects to the house with a walkway or hedges.
If you have a water feature (pool or fountain) in the yard, have
the illusion or feeling of water
flowing toward the house. A birdbath
or self-circulating
fountain can bring the water element to your yard
inexpensively. To illuminate areas
of the property for security at night, use
a light with a solar panel and sensor.
When
you buy plants, ask yourself these questions:
How
big or wide do they get, and how long before they reach their mature
size?
Do
they need full or moderate sun?
How
much maintenance is required?
Does
the plant go through yearly cycles, changing its aesthetic
appearance?
Do
the plants drink a lot of water?
Will
the color and texture of the new plants be aesthetically
balanced with the
existing ones?
Think
about the different kinds of energies that are coming into
your home through
the doors and windows. In your mind's eye, draw flow diagrams
indicating Chi movement. Visualize
your floor plan sketch in 3D. Are the energies
positive?
Ask
yourself how the energy feels in your body. Your body knows
when you are
vulnerable or safe, or if it feels at ease or uncomfortable.
Learn to feel the effects
and the cause. What kind of energies are there? Are they
moving with the light, air, flow of
water? Is the Chi moving in harmonious perfection
by filling the space and gently flowing out?
Bagua
Areas, The Chakras, and Essential Oils
For more information on the Chakra/Bagua
relationships, their associated Essential Oils
and how to apply them together read Jami's book: The
Essence of Feng Shui
Three
Systems, One Answer
The Bagua is a pattern of understanding how chi
manifests and moves through our homes. The chakra system shows
how it moves and manifests in our bodies, and the tree of life
reveals chi's workings in the cosmos. Each of these systems
contains the essence of how to cultivate chi flow in our lives
and homes. All three use sacred geometric layouts to help
reveal the mysteries of being human. When we combine these
transcendental patterns, we see that they are similar in the
path they take us on.
If you overlay the three diagrams, you see that the middle
pillar or trunk of the tree aligns with the center of the
Bagua as well as with the chakras. The career Gua coincides
with the foundation of the tree and the root chakra, your
grounding mechanism. All three refer to the same concept, that
you have to have a solid base on which to build. The center of
the Bagua, the center of the home is called the tai chi. With
its central support system of family/health on one side and
children/creativity on the other, this corresponds to beauty
at the heart center of the tree. And this
is aligned with the heart chakra. Isn't that how it operates
in your home as well? When health and love radiate out from
here, it nourishes the rest of your life. Each of these three
heart centers speak of the transformative power of love.
Your material existence is necessary for you to survive and
learn all you need to as a human. But if you do not progress
through the experience of love and transform the more material
aspects of yourself into more
spiritual ones, you will never be able to attune to your
higher self. These are the energy centers of transformation.
As the plug into universal energy, you have seen that the
crown sephiroth and crown chakra perform similar functions.
This is the center through which you are able to connect to
your own divine essence. In the Bagua, the
fame Gua is the center through which you reach the highest
expression of who you are. Following your divine bliss, you
will be easily recognized in sharing your higher expressive
self.
When you discover all these energy or power centers that make
up you, your space, and your cosmos, you can use them to
become a creator to receive the kind of life you were meant to
live.
Root/Career
As
we start the new year, give some thought to two areas of the
energy map that are frequently related: career and wealth.
Career is represented by the wall of the main door of entry to
your home or office. It is symbolized by the colors black and
blue and the element water.
Essential
oils for this area: black pepper, cinnamon, ginger, patchouli,
and vetiver. You spend about half your waking hours doing it,
so consider these questions. Does it jibe with your goals for
the kind of life you would like to live?
Do
you spend your work and free time engaged in similar pursuits?
Does your career truly reflect the kind of person you are on
the inside? Do you really like your work and truly enjoy going
to work? Does your work bring joy to you, your family, those
who are in your industry, and those who use your products,
services or talents? Is your workplace environmentally
friendly? We know that the root chakra corresponds with the
career gua. Both speak of your life path and being rooted in
Mother Earth.
If
you are not stable in your finances and your sense of self in
the world as the root chakra teaches, how can you know what
your life path is? Your life path may mean finding a job you
love instead of just one that pays well. The wealth area is in
the far left hand corner when you enter your home or office.
It is symbolized by purple and the element wood. Essential
oils: bergamot, atlas cedarwood, cypress, frankincense, and
ginger.
Wealth
is a lot more than material riches. Wealth is also about
wealth of spirit, friendship, and relationships. It is about
giving and receiving in equal proportions. Consider these
questions. Do you have enough money so that you are
financially fit? Are you generous with your wealth - whether
that is time, money, love or talents? Do you give as much as
you receive? Do you judge people by how much money they have
or by the good works that they do? Are you quick to share?
These are all the domain of the third chakra, the seat of
will.
With
the power of will, you can draw to you all the abundance the
earth has to offer. For a better job or a better relationship
you need will. By using your will to accomplish these things,
you can gain abundance in wealth and love.
Sex/Relationship
The Bagua
is a pattern of understanding how chi manifests and moves throughout
homes. The chakra system
shows how it moves and manifests in our bodies,
and the kabalistic tree of life reveals chi's workings in the
cosmos. Each of these three energy
systems contains the essence of how to cultivate
chi flow in our lives and homes. All use sacred geometry to help
reveal the mysteries of being
human.
Partnership
has become a focal point in our society. Pop psychology books
abound with advice on how to find
the perfect mate, but marriage and relationships
are much more than that. First we need to have a good
relationship with ourselves (linked
to the self cultivation area) before we can
look to share it with others. Equally important is how to
nurture a relationship
through the down cycles or hard times as well as the up
cycles.
Before you
try to find a partner or fix the one you have, ask if you have
done the groundwork on yourself
first. Do you put your partner before yourself?
Do you expect more from your partner than you are willing to
give? Are there equal parts
romance, fun, talking, listening, loving and alone
time in your relationship? Are you in a relationship or do you
find yourself in a continual
string of relationships that does not let you fully
express who you are? Are you in a
solid, loving relationship? This, too, must
be watered and fertilized in order to keep it growing.
The
correspondence between this area of the Bagua
and the sex chakra looks straightforward,
but life is never so
simple, is it? Relationships are much
more complex than just sex. They include business
partnerships, family relationships,
and friendships. Each of these relationships must also find
its power in the second chakra.
Every relationship must also move up to be transformed
by the heart chakra and, if possible, all be brought up into
the realm of oneness through the
crown chakra.
The
marriage/relationship area of your Bagua
(energy map) is located in the far
right hand corner when you enter a room, or the far right hand
corner of your house.
Suggestions
for energizing your sex chakra/relationship area.
If your
partner is volatile, earth is the
right element: a rock or something ceramic.
Wood nurtures relationships. Water adds clarity and emotional
sensitivity. Metal represents full
partnership and abundant love. Fire adds passion.
Oils: geranium, grapefruit, orange, pine, sandalwood, ylang
ylang.
Throat/Helpful
People
This
area of Feng
Shui tends to be the least
understood and probably the most
neglected. This area on your energy map is located in your nearest
right hand corner when you come in
the front door of your home, office or room.
Who are the helpful people in your life? Consider anybody who
enriches your life and makes it run
more smoothly: your doctor, mentor, babysitter,
teacher, and mechanic. The
list is endless, and each person is indispensable.
We need each other!
Are
you aware of the circle of helpful people that you have around
you? Do you
have problems with doctors canceling appointments, babysitters
not showing up, promised
deliveries arriving late and the like? Do you offer
your time and talents to help
others out? To be a mentor, to carpool, to take
your grandmother to the doctor? If your dream is to travel,
have you been able to go to
the places that you have always dreamed of visiting?
For
this area, use the color gray, the element of metal, the
trigram for heaven,
the throat chakra, the essential oils of lavender, lemon,
peppermint, pine and thyme.
Example
from a client: As I entered Judith's home, my throat constricted
and I started to cough. The house
was full of clutter and was must-dusty awful.
They had so much disorganized stuff that I couldn't even get into
some of the rooms. A cluttered home
means a cluttered life. How can you even
begin to work on yourself if you can't move past the old and outdated,
literally and figuratively? Clutter
is one of the biggest Feng Shui
no-nos. It means you are
hanging on to things that you don't really need any more.
If there is a pile somewhere,
chances are 100 to 1 that you do not even know
what is at the bottom. If it is not serving you, get rid of
it. My two favorite Feng
Shui words for clutter: no
mercy!
John
was receiving chemotherapy for cancer, and had refused to deal
with the
aspect of emotional healing. Does it surprise you the room
where he shook off the
poison from his chemotherapy was in the Helpful People area?
Or that he wasn't letting anyone
help him with the real issue? While sitting
in his favorite chair, which faced an industrial sized hospital
clock, John made his choice as he
watched his time tick away.
Third
Eye/Self-Cultivation
The
area of the Bagua
(energy map) of your home or office related to
knowledge or self cultivation is
the left hand corner closest to you when you
enter a room, or the left hand room closest to the front door
of your residence. Color: blue
green. Element: earth. Oils: basil,
eucalyptus, juniper, lemon,
peppermint, rosemary. Trigram: mountain.
This
is the Gua
that speaks to you of who you are on the inside. It is
becoming mandatory that we start
living as we are meant to. We need to follow
our bliss. This area deals with your personal spiritual path
as well as any studies or
educational work. Do you
have a personal spiritual component to your life? Is there something
you have always wanted to study or
learn, but never gotten around to it? Do you
have a room in your home that is dedicated to your spiritual
side? A small altar?
Feng
Shui
is a catalyst for healing because it calls people on their stuff.
It is a mirror that makes you take
a deeper look into the issues in your life.
It reveals subconscious information that can help you make changes.
Where you have subconsciously
placed an accessory and what that symbolizes may
be an indication of something you need to look at concerning your
personal issues.
Example.
When Lisette called me, her fiancée
had just moved out, the latest in
a string of severed relationships. At 41, what she wanted most
was to be married and have a
child. Intuitively, she had gone out and purchased kissing
couple sculpture. While dusting, it fell and the man's head broke
off. She became fearful and
promptly glued the head back on. You might think
this relates to the marriage Gua.
Not entirely.
It's
about self-cultivation.
The accessory was telling her that she wasn’t really
ready to find a new relationship because it would just break again.
She had never stopped to question
what she might have been
doing to sabotage her
relationships. It was clear to me because there was a
separation in the sculpture
that the timing was not right. Some other solution was necessary
first. The universe and her
subconscious were suggesting that she need to know
herself and stand in her own power first. By doing this, she would
know what would make her happy in a
relationship, instead of settling for something
out of desperation.
Crown/Fame
The
fame/recognition area of your home or office is about being recognized
for who you are and what you do.
There is no one else in the world who was born
into the same time and conditions as you were, so you are in a
unique position to give the
world something that no one else can. When you tap into
this essence, you are able to blossom in a unique way. How do
you want to be seen in the
world? Are you wise, funny, intelligent, warm, serious?
Fame is truly about expressing who
you are.
The
fame/recognition area is the wall directly opposite your front
door. The color red, the
element of fire, sun, heat, and birds, represents it. Oils
for fame and the crown chakra: clary sage, frankincense, jasmine,
Roman chamomile, sandalwood.
Do
you cultivate your special talents, or are you still hiding
them under a bushel?
Are you afraid to speak about yourself in front of a crowd? Do
you take credit where credit
is due? Is the image you project to the world the
person you feel you are on the
inside? Are you able to stand up for yourself?
Your
unique place in the world - being seen for who you really is
about connecting to your higher
self, your true self. Which chakra plugs you
into this divine source? The crown chakra is your electrical
outlet to the cosmos. It
allows you to tap into your essence and then show it to the
world.
Case
study. Fran, a gifted psychic and healer with a very open
crown chakra,
asked me to Feng Shui
her home. She wanted to make shifts for more
professional recognition. When I
walked in, the living room had a distorted mirror
on the fame wall. When
clients came in, they had to pass through the living
room and were greeted with a distorted vision of themselves.
In the fame area of her
home, where she did all her readings, all the chi of
recognition was going right out
through the sliding glass doors and out into
the pool. While clients received true and clear information
from her, it may have been
distorted by the client's own misinterpretation, having
experienced the distortion of the
mirror. Once in the reading room, facing the
pool, memories of the experience may have been diluted. All these
negatives greeted both Fran and her
clients.
Look
around your home. What is there that may be influencing you?
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