Feng Shui Principles and Uses: Rational, Irrational or Both?
...word Feng means “wind” and Shui means “water.” “Wind and water are the two natural elements that flow, move, and circulate everywhere on Earth,” writes David Daniel Kennedy. “They are also the most basic of elements required for human survival” (13). Most living creatures need both air (wind) and water to survive. Without these, death is eminent. “These two fundamental and flowing elements have always profoundly yet subtly influenced human individuals and societies” (13). Wind and water carry chi, or “life force”, which is the primary nature of wind and water. “Thus, Feng Shui is the art of designing environments in harmony with the flow of chi through one’s living space, and this flow supports and enhances one’s personal chi or life force” (13). In the home, Feng Shui can be used to boost the energy of an entrance or entryway, the layout of the house, and each individual room. Doors, windows, angled walls, and fireplaces can benefit using Feng Shui. “Each area or direction on a compass,” write Fareri and Stocker-McLane, “concerns a life aspiration: wealth and prosperity, recognition and fame, marriage and romance, […] career, [and] knowledge and education […].” Therefore, the direction the home faces or the way furniture is arranged can affect the chi in an environment. The use of plants, flowers, and colors is also encouraged. Colors are associated with the different life areas and should be considered when painting a room or deciding one’s wardrobe. “The color clothes you choose is based on your Chi and where you will be going. The color you pick will affect your mood throughout the day” (Alvarez 51). An example of color and life area is using blue colors in an area where knowledge is needed. Green affects family relations and pink can influence marriage and relationships. Some simple things can be done to one’s home before calling in a Feng Shui master, according to Fareri and Stocker-McLane, such as: “throw away everything that is broken or no longer used. Always fix leaking faucets and keep the lid down on the toilet to avoid having your health and wealth drain away. Mirrors and crystals […] can lure in positive chi to places that are ailing. Wind chimes, mobiles, [and] musical instruments […] attract positive chi.” Having a yard sale may be a good idea before going Feng Shui. Most people may consider this to be regular home maintenance rather than anything mystical. The art of Feng Shui is also being used in the workplace, particularly in office arrangement. For example, according to Feng Shui, one should never have their back to the office doorway. If that cannot be done, a mirror can be used to allow the person to see the doorway. Office placement in the building is also important. Feng Shui practitioners believe power is stored in the back of a building, so the further away the office is from the front, the more chi one can gather. Kennedy writes, “[…] the people near the front [of the building] take the brunt of the incoming traffic and noise. The energy of the space in the front influences people to serve, whereas the people near the rear of the building tend to rule” (281). Private offices are preferred in Feng Shui, but cubicles can be equipped to attract chi. Many professionals consider Feng Shui to be a legitimate business advantage to the workplace. Ronald Chin is the owner of Space Alignment, an architectural and design firm in New York. He uses Feng Shui in his practice. He says, “In Feng Shui, a person’s destiny is determined by the environment in which we can live, but the environment can be altered, and therefore so can our destiny” (qtd. in Wolf). This may sound peculiar to people, but consider that in some tall buildings, the thirteenth floor is not listed. A thirteenth floor literally exists, but the number is skipped due to superstition. In the article, “Home Shui Home,” author Stacie Stukin writes about David Raney, a Feng Shui master, w...