Feng Shui Fabulous

Feng Shui: a new way of perceiving

What if I told you that your home is actually alive? Would you laugh? Wonder? Dismiss it out of hand? Well, according to the principles of chi (energy), everything is alive, even the chair you’re sitting on and the clothes you’re wearing! They’re alive not only with the molecules that make them up, but also with the meaning and intention that you give them. Think of your favorite piece of artwork. Chances are it lifts your spirit whenever you see it. Or that great outfit that you reserve for special occasions because it makes you feel special. When we consciously surround ourselves with possessions that make us feel good, we invest them with positive energy.

“I have made my world, and it’s a much better world than ever I saw.” Louise Nevelson

The ultimate goal of feng shui is to create a home (or any space we spend a good deal of time in) that nourishes and supports who we are and who we want to be – not just a home that looks good, provides a roof over our head, and a place to sleep – but one that makes us feel good from the moment we see our front door to our first step inside. My goal as a feng shui consultant is to help you create a living or work space that welcomes, comforts, inspires, and yes, even heals.

Often times, our hectic lives cause us to live unconsciously in our own home. We put on blinders and block out the clutter. We ignore belongings that we don’t need, don’t like, or have emotionally outgrown. Perhaps we stop inviting friends to visit because we feel our home is no longer hospitable. When this happens, our spirits can suffer. Instead of being a source of inspiration and joy, our home can become an escape from the outside world.

I’ve been invited into homes of all kinds – from mansions to small city apartments to construction sites. I consider each invitation an honor, for when we open our homes to others, we take a risk: we reveal a part of ourselves.

Very often when my clients first engage my services, they know little about feng shui beyond a vague hope that it will somehow improve their lives. Some have very specific needs – to make more money, to attract a perfect mate, to get a better job. But most clients describe a more general desire – to feel better. One client even asked for a “karma transplant!”

Here is an exercise I often use with my clients that can help you connect on a more intuitive level with your home.

Visualize yourself walking through (or floating above) your home, room by room. How do you feel while looking into each space? Without analyzing, just observe your feelings and move on. Once you’ve completed a circuit, walk (or float) around again. This time, imagine being in your ideal home. Let your senses be your guide. Perhaps you imagine a vibrant new color on your walls, more comfortable seating, beautiful music, inspiring artwork, or photos from happy times in your life. When you’ve completed this part of the exercise, compare the two journeys. You should come away with some wonderful, new ideas and insights for creating your ideal home.

Another way to get in touch with what you want in your home or work space is to create a collage of photos clipped from magazines of homes and landscapes that you’re attracted to. Hang it in an area that you pass by often. Your subconscious will go to work to manifest your desires. I actually manifested a house with a swimming pool about a year and a half after hanging a poster in my front entry that included five photos of pools. At that time, I was just attracted to the beautiful photos. I wouldn’t have believed that a new home with a pool would be in my future!

What is feng shui?

Feng shui (translated as Wind and Water and pronounced fung shway) is the ancient Chinese art of arranging our environments to enhance our quality of life. It is based on the premise that our personal environments mirror our inner selves – as within, so without. Just as wind blows through trees, invisible currents of energy flow in and around us. By balancing the flow of chi in our environments, we can achieve emotional, spiritual, and physical well-being.

Feng shui is both a practical system that offers common-sense solutions and one of mystical insights – the power of many “cures” lies beyond the rational mind to understand. Whether or not one takes this “leap of faith” into the mystical, I witness again and again feng shui’s many benefits. Most important, because feng shui offers a blueprint that helps us align our hopes and dreams with our personal environments, it enables us to live more consciously in the present moment – what we see and feel at home or at work is exactly what we want. This is when everyday miracles begin to occur.