Learn to Manipulate Home Energy for a Harmonious House
The energy in your home is important. Home is the place where you recharge and reboot, and if you don’t have harmony in your home base, it makes it difficult to have it live a harmonious lifestyle. So goes the thought of feng shui, an ancient Eastern practice that seeks to guide your life according to the energies put forth in your house.
A little about feng shui: it originates from China as a philosophical system of harmonizing the human existence with the surrounding environment. The two Chinese words the practice derives from translate to “wind-water.” Feng shui is one of the 5 Arts of Chinese Metaphysics, tapping into the observation of appearances through formulas and calculations. Feng shui isn’t some random bit of vague, mystical practice; it’s a highly-cultivated, [ancient art] that uses numbers and patterns (/series/feng-shui-life) to bind the invisible forces of universe, earth, and man. It is also very specific to you, your Kua number, your Chinese Zodiac animal, and your birth element (consult the chart on this page for your own!).
Ready to begin? There are just a few tenants you need to be aware of:
Make Some Space
Clean out the clutter. If it’s been in your house for years and you haven’t used it (or have thought of throwing it out on more than one occasion), it should go bye-bye. If this sounds like a horrific chore, you may be surprised. Throwing out old junk and space-taking useless items is quite therapeutic. It’s also not a step you can skip. Sorting through the old energies at home is vital to creating harmonious house feng shui.
Let the Light (and Air) In
You can’t have good feng shui energy without these two elements! Of course, we mean introducing natural light and air into your home more often. Open the shades more often, crack a window, or start growing some feng shui air-purifying plants. Essential oils are a good way to clear the air in your home, as well.
The Feng Shui “Trinity”
While you’re in the planning stages, make sure you pay extra attention to three spaces in particular that are deeply connected to your health. They are the bedroom, the bathroom, and your kitchen.
Bagua
Bagua is the feng shui energy map of your house that you will need to figure out for yourself. The two methods are classical school bagua (staying true to the traditional Eastern conventions or the BTB, or Western bagua. All it involves is a floor plan, paper, and pencils, and then drawing out a grid that will help you align with the correct areas you wish to develop, such as personal growth and cultivation, career/path in life, health/family, and children/creativity.
Five Feng Shui Elements
These are Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water, and they each have their own colors. Utilize the power of color to bring these five elements into balance in correspondence to the bagua areas. Each color has its own power, as well, such as green for improving health in the East feng shui bagua area in your house.
Your Feng Shui Birth Element
You were born on a certain day and year, and that specific time corresponds to a particular element. Check the chart on this page for your personal element. Be aware, however, that Chinese calendars are different than Western ones, so align your “birthday” with the Eastern timeline.
Kua Number & Lucky Direction
This affects the best energy you stand to gain. By doing things like facing your bed or desk a certain direction depending on your Kua number, you can seek to gain specific fortunes, like Money and Success, Better Health, Spiritual Growth, Love and Marriage, and so on. Figure out your number, and then figure out what you’re seeking, and align your furniture accordingly.
Energy Mindfulness
Energy, by its very definition, is a force in motion. Practicing feng shui once does not keep your house aligned with the energies permanently, so be mindful of your surroundings and make adjustments as needed. Happy Harmonizing!
About the Author
The Minor Arcana: How Numbers and Elements Give Tarot Meaning
Veiled in mystery and feared by some, the tarot is part card game, divination system, and tool for self exploration. While learning the meaning of each card can be a daunting task, it’s not as complicated as you may think. In fact, by breaking the tarot down by Arcana, numerological meaning and element, the evocative images of the cards quickly reveal their secrets.
The tarot consists of two sets of cards called the Major and Minor Arcana. While the Major Arcana deals with archetypes and larger karmic lessons, the Minor Arcana focuses on the mundane aspects of day to day life. As a part of this world, we are all focused on our physical well being, emotional needs, and relationships. This is the realm of the Minor Arcana.
From here, the Minor Arcana is further divided into four different suits, each with their own court cards and imbued with their own element. These suits are actually related to a deck of playing cards and numbered 1-10 with an additional Page. Each suit tells its own story, and each story is tied to the element of the suit in question.
