INSIDE YOUR HOME : KITCHEN

In many homes, in addition to its primary function, the kitchen forms the social focus for the family, callers and almost everything happens there, especially if it’s combined with a dining area that is used for day-to-day meals. The kitchen needs to be a room that can easily accommodate people going to and fro and yet provide all the necessary facilities for preparation of the food, in a bright and if possible spacious area. The east and southeast area of your home are suitable for kitchen.

Although modern kitchens are built in extension to free up other rooms as living areas, this is unfavorable as it will be unprotected on 3 sides when it should be ‘nurtured’.

The ideal position of being able to see whoever enters the room is not always possible in a kitchen when working at the cooker, sink or a worktop. However, quite often and particularly in modern houses, the back door opens into the kitchen, so there is inevitably some conflict here. It may possible to create a passageway or walkway, which helps to keep the kitchen self-contained. 

It is interesting to consider briefly the influence that the 5 elements might have on the layout of a kitchen such as water (sink and refrigerator) and fire (cooker). As mentioned earlier, there is a conflict between these two elements and the moderating influence is wood. It is considered best to avoid having the cooker placed opposite or next to the sink as this generates sha chi. This is also true of the refrigerator and washing machine, thought the lesser extent. The negative effects are agitation, an argumentative family life or poor financial prospects. 

When the kitchen door faces the front or the back door, the chi may rush in and out without benefiting the room. This room should ideally have 2 doors to ensure the smooth circulation of chi.

Advice for the kitchen:

• Use mirrors to counteract the problem of not being able to see the door while cooking or washing dishes
• The kitchen should not become a through way with constant ‘traffic’
• Chopstick should not be stood upright, nor should the blades of knives be visible in the kitchen
• The cooker should not be placed on an island in the middle of the room
• Avoid having cooker placed opposite or next to the sink and/or refrigerator as water and fire conflict
• Kitchen extensions are inadvisable as they do not give the occupant much-needed ‘support’

INSIDE YOUR HOME : STAIRS

The main situation to avoid is stairs descending into the hall or that face the outer door directly leading to a loss of chi, which suggests a loss of money. It will result in the rooms on the upper floor becoming depleted. In an apartment block, the main entrance facing the staircase will bring bad fortune to everyone in the building. Stairs that curve are good when it comes to the flow of chi and if the stairs curve away from the door towards the foot then this will prevent the loss of chi.

According to the Feng Shui principles, the staircase should not be located in the centre of the house because the movement of chi to the upper floor is a destabilizing force and heart of the house needs to be steady and to accumulate chi. A 24-hour light above the stairwell can help stabilize the chi in this case. A staircase facing a toilet signifies a loss of fortune, especially if the toilet is at the bottom of the stairs, as chi tends to flow downwards. 

A spiral staircase is not necessarily the very good thing that it might at first seem to be. In this instance, the chi is likely to either move too quickly or be lost through the open risers in the stairs. Any staircase which have open risers will allow chi to escape. An additional potential problem with a spiral staircase is that ot can be dangerous and generate sha chi. If you place mirror to deflect negative energy or to slow down fast flowing energy make sure they do not ‘cut the head off’ anyone in your household.

Many Feng Shui practitioners also believe the number of steps – leading either to your front door or to an upper level of the house – can affect your fortune. The simplest way of working out whether you have the lucky number of stairs is to climb them, counting as you go. A landing counts as one step, and you should count continuously to the top. The 4-step formula dictates that every third and fourth step in a 4-step cycle is bad. That means the third, fourth, seventh and eighth steps are bad. The remedy for an unlucky number of steps is equally simple. If you are one step off a lucky number, simply place a mat at the bottom of the staircase and this will act as an extra step. If you are 2 steps off a lucky number, place another mat at the top of the stairs or on a landing. That mats should not slip or wrinkle on the carpet underneath it goes without saying; otherwise they could prove very unlucky indeed!

Advice for entrance hall and stair:

• A mirror should not be placed opposite the outside door
• A very narrow corridor is susceptible to sha chi. To prevent the rapid flow of chi, mirrors, wind chimes or ribbons should be used
• It is not ideal to have front door opening into a small hall from which a staircase ascends, as it leads to a loss of chi, suggesting also a loss of money
• Stairs that curve gently or turn at right angles at 2 landings benefit the flow of chi
• Stairs with open risers lead to a depletion in fortune
• A spiral staircase is inadvisable as it can generate sha chi

THE FIVE ELEMENTS : EARTH

Earth or the diplomat or T’u, is in a way central to everything else as it is the elements that holds all the other elements. In it’s simplest form it is the ground or soil that not only enables life to grow but also takes back the dead organisms and recycles them into new life. It represents a complete balance. The colours that connected with earth are brown, yellows and oranges. The fundamental shape is essentially a planar surface, flat land with broad buildings with square elevations. Earth element sometimes associated with the summer, at the end of the season for fire, around early August. Those born at the time tend to be kind-hearted, caring and helpful towards other.

Typical ailments connected with an imbalance of earth affect primarily the stomach, pancreas and create certain nervous disorders. These include digestive problems, which may involve condition such as anorexia, diabetes, anxiety, insecurity and confusion.

Occupations that match with earth elements include charitable work and health care. The various aspects of construction (foundation, tunneling, building in general) in which there a very close involvement with the ground are banking, investment, etc.  

METHODS USED IN FENG SHUI

One method of analysis commonly used is based upon the octagonal structure the Pah Kwa. There are 2 techniques based upon this basic configuration, one called the8 point method and the other, the 8 enrichment or endowment method. 

The latter consists the laying over the plan of the house in question the octagonal grid and this enables the problem areas to be determined and improvements to be suggested. The 8 point method involves placing a star made up of 8 lines over the plan of house or individual rooms to see where the line impinge upon the walls.

THE ENDOWMENT METHOD

This derives its name from the aspect of a person’s house. The direction in which it faces enriches the house in particular way, thus north represent harmonious relationships and east understanding.

The grid should always be placed facing south even if the main door to the house does not.

THE 8 POINT METHOD

In this case the 8 point-folf grid comprises 8 points or areas covering such aspects as finance, eminence (reputation), wisdom (knowledge), career and so on. Once again the grid is placed over the ground plan of the house in question and the wall that contains the main door should also contain the point of wisdom, career and friends.

The placing of the 8 points is achieved by standing at the door and imagining that you are looking in, thus eminence is furthest away and finance is away in the left-hand corner. Where the outline of a room does not readily fit with the regular arrangement of points and many rooms will fall into this category, there are number of procedures suggested to obtain the best possible placing of points:

 

• The boundary of the room can be projected until a more regular shape is created upon which the points can be placed. However this does not necessarily clarify the placing of points.
• Where spaces, say in 2 adjoining rooms, clearly do not accommodate the 8 points, it is better to treat them as separate rooms, applying the same principles and standing in each doorway, looking in, to place the points. In this case there is no place for finance and wisdom because they are outside the room boundary. However, if the smaller extension is treated as a separate room then all the points can be applied quite easily.  

 

 

• Other room may have an irregular shape, which presents you with more than 1 option for placing the 8 points. In this case the points can either be placed to include as much of the space of the room as possible or the room can be divided as described, to create more manageable shapes. If necessary, walls can temporarily be created by use of partition thus enabling the points to be placed.

 

The 8 points method and the endowment method are just the 2 ways in which the Feng Shui of a building can be analyzed. They are also among the easiest. With some relatively straightforward preparation, you can use 1 of these methods as the starting point for practicing Feng Shui in your own home.

INSIDE YOUR HOME : WINDOW

Windows should be considered in much the same light as doors and we can covering the window with a curtain to prevent the rapid loss of chi. Cross ventilation, where two windows are directly opposite one another, means a room cannot hold chi and this can lead to a corresponding loss of money and health. Too many windows or openings that are too large, meanwhile, result in the benefits of chi being dissipated. It is also believe that too many windows will lead to family conflict. A room with more than 2 walls of windows has too much ventilation and this can lead to excessive energy if the window on the sunny side of the house (stained glass, small panes, crystal or wind chimes can help to slow down the flow of chi).

Windows facing east will bring the chi energy of sunrise into the home, promoting energy and positive thinking. Windows facing west bring the chi energy of sunset into the home, helping you relax and wind down.

As with doors, some window shapes are more favorable than others for different areas of the house. A square or wide rectangular shaped windows represents the earth element and promotes stability, while a round window represents the metal element and promotes focus and determination. A tall, narrow window represents the tree energy, promoting communication and harmony. Whatever the shape or size of the window, it is inadvisable to place a bed or stove beneath it, or to relax/study with your back to the window. Windows are best opening outwards and fully, it is believed brings good fortune and enhanced opportunities to the occupants. In Feng Shui windows that open inwards will have adverse effects on health, finance and career. Sha chi (negative chi) can be diverted or blocked by the use of a vase of flowers at the window, hanging wind chimes or a strategically placed mirror if the configuration of the room permits this.

Advices for doors or windows:

• A main door that is too small can be remedied by the careful use of mirrors.
• A wind chime may be placed by a main door which is too large to prevent chi escaping
• The main door should be hinged at the side of the nearest wall
• Furniture should not hinder the easy opening of doors
• If the back door/window can bee seen from the front, obstacles such as mirrors, screens, plants and curtains must be used to prevent chi flowing straight in one way and out of the other
• Doors and windows should not be sited near the corner of the room or chi will be lost too rapidly
• When windows do not open completely, it is helpful to place flowers at the closed section
• A room situated at the end of a hallway is likely to suffer from sha chi, which can be corrected by placing a long mirror to the side of this door