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West Meets East© By Caroline Patrick BorNei Investigating the Inner Spirit on Many Levels
I look forward to seeing you soon in Benicia. April 27th through May 11th I will be speaking, teaching and giving consultations. Combining work and play is very gratifying. Since Feng Shui is at the heart of my passion, rarely do I feel any burden from teaching, consulting, writing or painting. It is a happy marriage of creations. Feng Shui is not only for the home but is especially relative to what is happening inside our bodies. If you are not happy with what life has given you, there is knowledge, especially with the Feng Shui, to change yourself. Each year I learn new ways to promote the flow of energy in my home, my body, the community. As this positive Chi moves outward, it changes not only us and how we act and react, but it changes the world! What powerful beings we are; just through actions and words which can help or destroy our bodies as what you put “out there” comes back ten-fold. It is the law of nature.
Black Sect Feng Shui was born of ancient practices used in Tibetan Buddhism. This is why the media will sometimes confuse Feng Shui with religion. Any ancient practice has roots in religion, because the relationship of man with the earth, water, sky and surroundings is considered a vital part of the wheel of life force. Ancient practices needed a religious base to be legitimate. Death was the option for those who “went outside of the box.” Hopefully we have made some progress, but as wars continue today as in centuries past, using religion and racism as the right to take over other countries is beyond primitive. Having said that, the modern version of Feng Shui, or the flow of wind and water, needs only a basis of balance and harmony and not a religion. Many schools of thought about Feng Shui have sprung up, some good and some not so good, but at least they offer the public some education about their living and working spaces and basic formulas to do “quick fixes.” I have been blessed by finding a great Master Teacher who combined his teaching with modern and ancient knowledge. Students of His Holiness are trained to use simple methods to shift the Chi, but we also are given ancient techniques when simple methods fail to bring results.
Other schools of thought are great, and work for smaller things such as getting a new Career, finding more Helpful People by enhancing the immediate right side of the house when entering the front door, or using color to change the Chi of any space. But what happens after you have de-cluttered and “corrected” all 9 areas of the Bagua and you are still experiencing problems? It is time to go “outside the box” and look at your inner self. You are the motor running the ship. Is your rudder in mud, are the sails tattered from what life has dumped in your lap? And why do you keep getting into the same muck? I suspect the problem could be you. How do I know? The answer is … Muck is my middle name!
Yes, it seems my out-of-balance Wood Chi, in the past, was not as flexible as it is now. (If you don’t bend in the wind, you break!) Using Professor Lin’s Meditations has brought me to a new level of understanding and given me tools to let go of past grievances. One such tool is ancient mantras, or sing-song-like, repetitive prayers. These prayers give your brain a rest while their tones align your mind-body connection. The brain waves feel and hear the tones deep inside your inner soul on a level that is beyond analyzing. The first of the six sacred tones is “Ommmm.” Speak this tone and visualize the pure color of white for help with generosity. Next is “Maaaad,” seeing red in the minds eye and remembering the merits of discipline, followed by “Niiiiiii,” yellow for healing and tolerance. “Paddddd,” the sound vibration of green, helps to negate laziness; “Meeeee” is the feeling for blue; and last is the energy of meditation, “Hummm,” black in color to open up wisdom. This combined chant is a universal prayer that can be used by all nations for peace and harmony, but can also be used to open the inner self for evaluation and healing. Just as the Lord’s Prayer is very powerful, add this one to your list, which can be sung out loud to clear a space, heal a heart or heal a home, or sooth a baby. You can find it in CD’s to play in your home while you are away or in meditation. Sometimes this prayer is said in nine cycles to close a meditation or to open your energy centers of the body called Chakras. It is also the prayer of Kuan Yin or Quan Yin, a Virgin-Mary energy, to carry the wishes and cries of Women and Children in many traditions. You can learn more about this prayer and Kuan Yin from internet research.
Just as we learn ways to open the inner cause of our problems, a lightness occurs and daily issues become less binding to our bodies and spirit. I speak from over seven years of experiencing these wondrous changes in myself.
Caroline will be coming to the Benicia area April 27th to May 11th; call (360) 420-5096 for more details. If you want an early bird price for our September 14th Trip to the Middle Kingdom of Tibet, please contact me before March 31st. We will start in China and cross over into Tibet mid-trip. This is a lifetime wish and it has manifested! Caroline Patrick BorNei is a certified Feng Shui Practitioner and a Red Ribbon Professional of The International Feng Shui Guild. Her abilities as a consultant and artist are widely known in the US and abroad. Caroline has completed over 5000 consultations for individuals, large and small businesses. Return clients appreciate the value of her suggestions both mundane and transcendental, providing support on multiple levels. As a college art instructor for many years, Caroline understands the power of color; its symbolism and the visual effect images have on individuals in their surroundings. Her home base is Portland, OR where she continues to write, teach, paint, do illustrations and give herbal medicine making classes. She is available for Feng Shui consultations; Feng Shui art consultant, advises builders, architects and mentors a few serious students. Call (503) 208-2960 or email caroline@fengshuiartistry.com. Any suggestions given in this column are only for entertainment. Please contact your physician for any medical or herbal advice or diagnosis. Caroline Patrick is not responsible for any misuse of her advice or suggestions. Caroline’s “West Meets East” weekly newspaper column can be read from archives on her website www.fengshuiartistry.com.
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