Feng shui for love, luck, wealth & harmony

VINCENT SOH investigates how the millennium-old art of feng shui can help you improve your luck at home or the workplace and refresh your relationships.

In Chinese they call it qi, in Korean gi and in Japanese ki. Three thousand years old in understanding, qi is the energy that flows through the environment and forms part of the vitality of every living thing - and is inextricable from the Oriental worldview. Like a lattice of potential, qi connects us all. And people who are "in luck" are said to receive positive qi or energy.
          By observing the sky above and studying the geography beneath, people in Asia have long thought qi is transmitted through a force, such as the wind, and retained when encountering water. A system was slowly moulded to control and harmonise qi, the practice of which we now call feng shui - which means "wind and water" in Chinese.
          Through feng shui, sometimes as arcane as measuring yin and yang energies and at other times rooted in common sense, you can expect better luck or life results. Many successful professionals and executives in Asia are big believers, which is why you see feng shui related artefacts or arrangements in their homes and offices.

Flying stars
Jo Ching is an English-speaking master of classical feng shui who consults for home and business owners and has trained feng shui experts in the USA. When expats here need him to assess feng shui in their environment, he takes care to clarify the orthodox Flying Stars System to novices of this Chinese art. He explains, "Flying stars are sets of qi with different qualities. Feng shui observes qi is cyclical and so every solar year, a flying star lands on a different sector in the home or office. This impacts our lives for the year, especially if a particular flying star is not supportive of activities we normally do within a space."
          Flying stars can also explain good luck. "This solar year, if your office space or door is located in the East sector you could soon take on new challenges and assume greater responsibilities", he confirms. "You could even be promoted, because this year the flying star in the East sector governs career advancement."

To see is to believe
To fully understand and utilise feng shui for the home or office, including the first step of plotting the sectors and assessing their luck, you should consult a master who has your full confidence. Flying stars is commonly used for this purpose and a good place to start. It was empirically developed by ancient Chinese who noted the correlation of astronomical movements with yin and yang energies in the home and other effects. It is also rooted in ancient mnemonic devices, such as the Five Elements and trigrams.
          Each period in Flying Stars is 20 years and as we are in period 8, the star "White Earth" is considered most auspicious and this year it flies to the central sector of your home. Meanwhile, the northwest could be a magnet for happy news if your door is located in that sector.

Friend or foe
Other lucky sectors this year include the north sector, which is good for love. Put a small aquarium or burn a scented candle in this corner and if your bedroom is located in this sector of your home, a special someone could soon make an appearance. Clarice Chan, a feng shui master and author of Your Fortune in 2010, a primer on luck and influences in the current Year of the Yang Metal Tiger, believes this year may be tough on relationships. "Be more conscious of your approach to life as this year's element carries aggression and the potential for a power struggle. This can affect anyone if they allow it," she explains.
          But don't worry. For every effect, there is a cause and, as feng shui masters believe, a solution. After a feng shui consultation you'll never see luck the same way again! 

Property rules
If you're looking to rent or buy a new home, other than considering the current year's stars, remember a house can also be permanently unlucky, affecting your health, wealth and relationships on an ongoing basis. For good qi, Master Clarice Chan recommends avoiding a home which is:

• Situated at the end of a road.
• Facing a cross, T-Junction, Y junction or no entry sign.
• Facing a building or structure with sharp edges.
• Facing a u-shaped road.
• Has a main door positioned in a straight line with the back door.
• Has a main door facing an uphill slope.
• Has a pool in the centre.
• Has a main door facing a temple or other religious buildings.
• Faces an overpass.
• Surrounded by drains.
• Surrounded by tall buildings.
• Has the kitchen or toilets in the centre.

Feng shui masters

 
Jo Ching
DestinyAsia Global Consultancy
Tel: 9798 2675, jo-ching.blogspot.com
Email: jo.fengshui@gmail.com

Clarice Chan
CGVC Living Inspirations
Tel: 8111 9748, www.claricegvchan.com
Email: clarice@claricegvchan.com