I was thinking about something "light" to talk about on here, and this popped in my head. Does anyone here actually PRACTICE this????? To me it seems a little "weird" but I'm sure that things I do are weird to most also. Like the fact that I won't blow dry my hair because I'm scared to hold the blow dryer while my head is wet... hmmm OOOOOOOOOOK... stick me in a padded room I know...

Ahh but anyway...

Do any of you use this technique? Does it work? What exactly do you do?

I would LOVE the hear more!!!

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I am on a mission with this theory I think.. lol


Feng Shui is an ancient art and science developed over 3,000 years ago in China. It is a complex body of knowledge that reveals the ways to balance the energies of the environment to assure health, wealth and good fortune for people inhabiting it.

"Feng" means "wind" and "shui" means "water" (pronounced fung-shway). In Chinese culture gentle wind and clear water have always been associated with good harvest and good health, thus "good feng shui" came to mean good livelihood and fortune, while "bad feng shui" came to mean hardship and misfortune.

Feng Shui is based on the Taoist vision and understanding of nature, particularly on the idea that the land is alive and filled with energy.
The ancient Chinese believed that the land's energy could either make or break the kingdom, so to speak. The theories of yin and yang, as well as the five elements, which are some of the basic aspects of a feng shui analysis, also come from Taoism.

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I don't practice it but I do have a vase of bamboo on my breakfast nook table in the north corner of my house. It was a table arrangement at a friends wedding, she told us we could take them - the same arrangement at a florist was almost $30! Anyway the only sunny spot in my kitchen was on the table in the north corner. She came to visit last year and saw it there, she assumed I had placed it there because Feng Shui teaches bamboo placed in the north corner of your house gives you good luck with money (or something along that idea.)

I haven't gotten rich yet but I am better off than I was a year ago.....

Maybe you're onto something there...lol

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I've read quite a bit on feng shui. I believe there's something to it, as I think the Chinese are so much better tuned to feelings and energies than we are in the Western World. I don't consider it a religion, but I can see where it has a connection to spirituality.

I started reading about it when decluttering my house. Feng Shui principles strongly advocate for clearing clutter to bring new energy into your home. It's a sort of "out with the old, in with the new" philosophy. If you keep old stuff around that isn't useful or beautiful, it creates dead stagnant energy in your home. If I get rid of it, I'm creating an opportunity for new energy and things to enter my life. Did you know that the Chinese do a thorough cleaning on Jan. 1 to get ready for the new year? It's kind of the same thing. I try to remind myself of this when getting rid of my stuff.

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I studied Feng Shui a while back, and plan to build my house (some day) according to the Bagua. The Bagua is an octagonal (or sometimes square) guide by which those practicing Feng Shui can tailor/arrange their homes (or build them) according to it's suggestions of how certain areas of your home are best suited for certain uses. It also suggests which natural elements and colors to incorporate in that area. Feng Shui concentrates on how a home "flows" (furniture placement), color palette (best colors to use for good luck, money flow, better relationships, best health, etc.) functionality, harmony, minimalism, and how to "fix" your home if it has "bad chi". (Mirrors placed in certain areas will reflect bad chi from your home, for example.)

A few years back, Feng Shui became popular as an "up and coming" and "new" (yet ancient eastern) way to decorate and build homes, and many people began to consult with Feng Shui designers in order to "fix" their homes, and offices, for reasons of prosperity, among the others listed above.

There are many good websites on the internet that teach you about Feng Shui. Here's one of my favorites to get you started: Feng Shui - How to Apply Feng Shui - Bedroom, Home, Color Feng Shui Tips

A photo of the Bagua can be found here:
http://www.buy-utah.com/images/graphics/Bagua.jpg
And more information about how to use it is here:
Feng Shui Ba Gua (Bagua) - Fastfengshui.com

When I first started reading about Feng Shui I thought it was kind of "weird" too. But then I realized that the basic concept of it was peace, harmony, and tranquility. Who couldn't use more of THAT in their homes these days? It's all about minimalistic living (which I love the idea of), decluttering (which would make my life SO much easier), and surrounding yourself in a stress-free environment via furniture arrangement, color, and natural elements. Now, I don't know about the crystals, mirrors, and some other things I've read about (red envelope in the NW corner of your bedroom to bring wealth?) that are said to ward off "bad chi" (like octagonal mirrors on the outside of your house) but one thing I read that makes sense to me...is that if you live on on a dead-end street, (or where traffic flowing TOWARDS your house all the time) I can see where tension might be created there. And I just couldn't live in a house that was positioned like that. The other day we were out riding on a highway south of town, and came up on this curve going 55 mph. There was a house situated RIGHT at the end of this curve, and I remarked to DH that there was NO WAY I could live in that house!! If someone ran off the road coming out of that curve they would surely run RIGHT INTO that house! (Bad BAD chi, and all around BAD vibes!)

It all makes sense, once you think about it. And I don't believe you have to go FULL ON Feng Shui to get many of the benefits it can offer you. There are some things I wouldn't do, that I've read about, but 95% of them totally make sense to me.

Yes, I've mapped out my house and, thankfully, our place is perfectly laid out - all the rooms in the right places. Our only problem is our master bedroom and especially the way our bed faces is rather 'busy'. And in a way that is true. Seems everyone gathers in our bedroom at night. Hubby and I, of course, sleep there then the dog joins us and somewhere during the night DD does, too. I keep commenting that out of 5 bedrooms and 3500 sq feet, WHY does every soul in the house have to sleep in one 60 square foot area!?!?

To top it off, it seems that when hubby and I area trying to settle down at night, THAT is the time when heavy-duty conversations start. That is hardly conducive to sleep or marital bliss.

The book's suggestion is to put aquamarine at the head of the bed to block outside influences. I was going to buy an aquamarine crystal when my husband mentioned his birthstone is aquamarine and that's the stone he chose for his high school class ring. Sure enough we placed his school ring at the head of our bed and many of the disruptions stopped - even annoying middle of the night phone calls.

We also have a shallow dish of silver coins at our front door. That is supposed to invite in prosperity. In a way it has - for DD - since she keeps swiping the quarters out of the dish!

And you're supposed to keep the toilet seats down or else your wealth will go down the drain. I just like how that looks better so I haven't noticed much difference. My dog, however, doesn't like the fact that he now has to push up the seat with his nose.

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About toilets...I read once that your toilet should not be seen immediately upon entering the room. (Half wall or curtain in front of it?) But, in leu of major construction, it's difficult for some to fix that problem. Right now my desk is in a little alcove just outside the bathroom. I plan to move it, put up a curtain to section this area off, and make this my "dressing room", and part OF the bathroom, as the bathroom is really small. I guess that would solve the "toilet seen immediately" problem. Didn't realize that until now.

About bedrooms, I read that you're supposed to place your bed so that you can see the door (feet towards the door), and that no mirrors should be placed so that if you were to sit up you might frighten yourself. (ha ha) Similar theory with offices...you shouldn't place your desk so that your back is to the door. "Fixing this" would involve placing a mirror in front of you so that you COULD see when someone entered the room.

There are so many other "fixes"...the list is endless, really.

I don't know, i would hate to think any bad luck i have had over the years had anything to do with the placement of my couch. So what kind of stone do you hang over the bed that will increase the amount of sex you have??? lol

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