By Caroline Patrick

What Can Feng Shui Do For Me?

I ask myself this question a lot. How can the art of placement benefit my work, family life, money situations, health problems, and disagreements with mates and those end-of-the-year blahs? Learning the Bagua or the nine stations of life situations can certainly help when I’m happy, when I’m sad, when I’m angry, frustrated or tired.

When life is good, not so good or I have unanswered questions and need help, I turn to meditation and prayer first. These two actions are completely different. How? Meditation is listening and praying is communication with your God Source. Meditation is Yin receptive and prayer is Yang outward motion. Bringing in the life force into yourself through these pathways and then into the home can change the way your life flows.

All energy is made up of these two life forces. Conception, communication, life, death, color, sound, personalities, weather patterns, climates, shapes of land and the five Elements are needed for existence on the planet Earth. Water, Wood, Fire, Metal and Earth can balance a space.

I look to my home and business second to see what the imbalances are and correct them as described below to relieve stress and pressure. You can also check your environment, your mental, spiritual and physical self through the home structure. Where is the clutter and are the Elements correctly placed through out the floor plan and design? These are some starting points to explore.

The Bagua or eight-sided octagonal grid used by the ancient Chinese houses all of these aspects in an easy-to-understand manner. Starting with the entry to the home, we place the first aspect of yourself and your family. Whether you are living alone or have family members at a distance, you can use each Gua or area to help with current or past family situations. Energy is Energy, invisible but powerful.

There are five necessary Elements for life and they are divided equally between Bagua Sections. The other four Guas take on and share an invisible space as the flow of energy merges and flows between the nine spaces.

Now that you have determined where the Entry or Mouth of Chi is located, this Gua is called Career and is ruled by Water and the color Black. Sometimes the Entry or architectural front door seems hard to determine, since Westerners tend to get very creative when building their homes. Sometimes they are on the right, left or middle of the house and sometimes to the side of the home. I would encourage the homeowner to obtain a Feng Shui consultant and Map the Home as an experienced consultant can determine the Mouth of Chi.

Next, travel directly to the left corner of the house; some main doors are located in this Knowledge Gua and sometimes to the right or left of the entry is a garage. (Remember to include the garage when doing your drawing as Americans normally use this space as a "catchall." Our dis-ease for excess is overwhelming, so when analyzing a structure, this "car room" can’t be erased and it is usually a two- or three-car garage.) Blue is the color for absorbing wisdom. Books and religious figures bring an atmosphere of learning to this space.

The middle left area of a dwelling is named Family and Health or the health of the family. Wood is used in this section to enhance the stability of family life, and the color green symbolizes growth. Add a touch of yellow to ground the security of the Qua. Healthy plants and trees stabilize the family.

Prosperity in the Chinese tradition has given a different quality to money than our puritan ancestors. A certain type of reverence and spiritual energy is valued by the ancient Chinese culture understanding the necessary action of the give and take of abundance. This understanding is new to our culture and I sometimes find this negative blockage introduced by old family beliefs, that money is evil and rich people are bad. Or you must work yourself to death to have anything and gain respect. Welcome abundance so you may help others in need is my motto.

The corner devoted to Wealth is the far back left area of the home, business, office room, any room or property of a place. The color Purple is associated with the spiritual wealth of abundance.

Fame is next. Fire is the Element and the color of course is RED! Action, action, action. Fast cars, animals and birds, candles and flags used this energy to maintain the Chi necessary to make things happen. Red is used as a Chi or energy enhancer. Good luck, fortune, and reputation life in the far back middle Gua of a dwelling. Swimming pools need corrections when they are located in this zone. Fire and Water don’t mix.

More homes than ever are being designed improperly for long relationships. Marriages don’t last long when the adult section of the house is given to the children. This far back right area of the home is designated for the dynasty of the generations to live on successfully in harmony and balance. Pink or shades of this love color should be used as a sensual love nest, romantic and aromatic.

This related Earth section for creating love and conception has been invaded by swing sets, plastic toys, children’s bathrooms, playrooms, teenager’s dens, televisions and playrooms. The symbolism is simple. We never mature, and our life is taken over by juveniles. Let’s grow up and reclaim this Partnership corner, for heaven’s sake.

A quick look to the middle right area of the home is called Children and Creativity. Use as a studio or hobby room area to find joy. Also a great room for a child, as is the Family Sector, as these rooms cuddle and secure the children when growing up. Place college kids near the front door as the energy for leaving home assists them into finding a Career sooner. White is the color and round is the shape for objects in the Metal Element Gua.

Helpful People and Travel rule the front right corner of the house or business. This is the trigger in my opinion. After 2500 plus consultations I have found when this section is "missing" or non-existent, finding the right person for "the job" is an uphill battle. It must be corrected with a board containing business cards, a waiting room with a fountain, silver accents, because gray is the color needed. Outside large round gray and white stones could be used in the landscaping. There are may other things I suggest in this room, office or building to get the money rolling inward!

Last on our journey, we travel to the Center or the Health and Earth Gua. Yellow and earth tones ground the wheel of life. The square shape given to this section is needed for unity or the square within the circle as in a Chinese coin. Pictures of earth images, tile, textiles could be used here. This is not a section to place water, as water erodes earth and the health of the family or a company deteriorates as time passes.

Try some or all of these suggestions in your living spaces, as the New Year is a time of renewal. A time to let go of old possessions, or environmental. Clear out your mind with mediation, and try bringing in a vibrant color to an old space. Yellow will assist your physical health.

Career profile for Caroline Patrick, author of THE POWER OF FENG SHUI ARTWORK IN THE HOME AND BUSINESS

Caroline can be reached at:

Caroline’s Feng Shui Concepts

2511 Commercial Avenue

Anacortes, Washington 98221

(360) 293-2268.

caroline@fengshuiartistry.com

www.fengshuiartistry.com

www.moongateschool.com