Feng Shui FAQs

In this articleWhat is Feng Shui?Can Feng Shui change my destiny?How do Feng Shui and Vastu Shashtra differ from each other?What is the qualification required to become a Feng Shui practitioner?Initially how much time does a consultant take?Will Feng Shui give me the desired results?Clutter seems to be an important consideration in Feng Shui. What is clutter?Will Feng Shui not work if I do not clear clutter?Do I need to hang wind chimes all over my house to enhance my luck?Where does one place the laughing Buddha?How can I purify my house and reduce the effects of negative energy?Can we bring harmony in our family lives through Feng Shui?What precautions one needs to take while designing the main door of the house?How can I increase my wealth through Feng Shui? What is Feng Shui? Feng Shui is the Chinese art of design and placement of objects. Chinese believe that everything in the universe including living beings is made of energy called "chi". A basic understanding of this energy is essential to bring in harmony and prosperity in our lives. Can Feng Shui change my destiny? No. Feng Shui cannot change anyones destiny but it can reduce the effects of misfortune and enhance your luck. How do Feng Shui and Vastu Shashtra differ from each other? Feng Shui relies on wood, fire, earth, metal and water as elements of energy. Vastu Shashtra considers all these elements, but also takes into account cosmic energy. Feng Shui originated in China, whereas Vastu Shashtra is an Indian science. What is the qualification required to become a Feng Shui practitioner? Unfortunately, there are no schools or courses imparting formal education in Feng Shui. There are people who call themselves Feng Shui experts and start a professional practice after reading a few books. So before consulting anyone, enquire about the credibility of the practitioner. Initially how much time does a consultant take? A consultant generally takes an hour-and-a-half. When he visits your home for the first time, he will tour the house and observe the placing of the various objects in detail. Then, he will suggest the changes required. Initially, only the most important and crucial problems are taken into consideration. Will Feng Shui give me the desired results? It is not possible to predict the changes that occur due to Feng Shui. It is a tool, not a magic wand. There are many other factors that determine the pattern of our lives such as our actions, attitude and astrological charts. If our attitude towards life is very rigid and there is resistance to change, then all efforts to make the changes through Feng Shui will come to a naught. If you approach it with a closed mind, it would be wrong to assume that Feng Shui has not worked for you. It only means that there is a conflict between what you think you want and what you actually need. You need to sort out this mental conflict, first. Approach it with a clear mind and you will be rewarded with a successfulFeng Shui experience. Clutter seems to be an important consideration in Feng Shui. What is clutter? Clutter is derived from the word clot, which in turn means, blocked or obscured. Junk and clutter act as an obstacle in the progress of ones life. Clutter includes those things that you no longer use but have kept it nevertheless, for reasons such as:It holds an emotional value for you;Someone has gifted it to you;You think you may use it some day;Clothes you dont wear but keep it for future, when they may come back in fashion. Things like broken statues or artifacts, non-operational electrical appliances and old unwanted newspapers also constitute clutter. Do not keep non-functional watches and clocks at home as it does not allow you to move further in life. So get rid of them or get them repaired as soon as possible. Clutter drains your physical as well as mental energy. Will Feng Shui not work if I do not clear clutter? Its not that Feng Shui will not work, but it will take unreasonably long period to show results. The best way to bring prosperity in life is by getting rid of mental and physical clutter. Sad old memories and unpleasant incidents of the past constitute mental clutter. Clutter does not allow space for fresh and positive energy to circulate. It is advisable to clear the clutter to ensure good health and prosperity. Do I need to hang wind chimes all over my house to enhance my luck? No. You dont need to hang wind chimes all over your house but the best location is the northwest corner of your house. Metal wind chime with six or eight rods is ideal for this location.Where does one place the laughing Buddha? Laughing Buddha is one of the lords of wealth. So ideally, the statue should be placed in such a way that it faces the main entrance of the house. If that is not possible , then the next best location is the side-table or the corner-table provided the table is diagonally opposite the front door and is facing it.How can I purify my house and reduce the effects of negative energy? There are various ways to reduce the effects of negative energy:Mopping the house daily with salt water will reduce the effects of negative vibrations. Add five spoons of unrefined sea-salt to the water and mop the floor with it. Fill a crystal bowl with unrefined sea salt and keep it on the windowsill of your toilet. If possible replace it daily. Keep your house clean by dusting regularly, removing cobwebs and vacuuming it. Every morning after your regular prayers, play some religious chants or mantras. Echoes of the chants will fill the house with good vibrations. Repair cracks, peelings or discolored paint as soon as possible. Can we bring harmony in our family lives through Feng Shui? Sure! Hang a large family photograph in the southwest corner of your living room. Make sure that all the members of your family are present in that picture. Portraits of people with composed and smiling faces encourage positive feelings. A picture should bring happy memories to mind. Keep a water fountain near the east area of the house to promote family health and harmony. A married couple should have their photograph in their bedroom. In west area of the house, display a picture of your children. Do not display pictures of war or violence in your house. Make sure, that you dine together.What precautions one needs to take while designing the main door of the house?Toilets should not face the main door.Main door should be clutter-free from inside as well as from outside. Good energy enters through the main door. Items like shoe rack, ceramic pots are very commonly seen near the front door. Keep this place clean.Furniture should not hinder the easy opening of the main door.There should not be any mirror facing the main door as it reflects back the good energy.An elevator opposite the main door is not considered good. To eliminate its adverse effects, place a convex mirror above the door outside the apartment to deflect the negative influence.The colour of the main door is very important in Feng Shui. It depends upon the direction in which door is facing. DirectionColours East or SoutheastGreen, Black or Blue SouthGreen, Red, Purple or Orange Southwest or NorthwestBrown, Yellow, Red, Purple, Orange NorthWhite, Gold, Black and blue How can I increase my wealth through Feng Shui? The three-legged frog with one or three coins in his mouth is considered to be very auspicious and lucky. It should be kept near the main door facing inside as it depicts the flow of money in an inward direction. The southeast corner of the home or office must be kept as clean and orderly aspossible. It is advisable to leave a light on in this area as often as possible. The lighting should resemble natural light; it should not be too bright or too dim.

What is Feng Shui?

Feng Shui is the Chinese art of design and placement of objects. Chinese believe that everything in the universe including living beings is made of energy called "chi". A basic understanding of this energy is essential to bring in harmony and prosperity in our lives.

Can Feng Shui change my destiny?

No. Feng Shui cannot change anyone's destiny but it can reduce the effects of misfortune and enhance your luck.

How do Feng Shui and Vastu Shashtra differ from each other?

Feng Shui relies on wood, fire, earth, metal and water as elements of energy. Vastu Shashtra considers all these elements, but also takes into account cosmic energy. Feng Shui originated in China, whereas Vastu Shashtra is an Indian science.

What is the qualification required to become a Feng Shui practitioner?

Unfortunately, there are no schools or courses imparting formal education in Feng Shui. There are people who call themselves Feng Shui experts and start a professional practice after reading a few books. So before consulting anyone, enquire about the credibility of the practitioner.

Initially how much time does a consultant take?

A consultant generally takes an hour-and-a-half. When he visits your home for the first time, he will tour the house and observe the placing of the various objects in detail. Then, he will suggest the changes required. Initially, only the most important and crucial problems are taken into consideration.

Will Feng Shui give me the desired results?

It is not possible to predict the changes that occur due to Feng Shui. It is a tool, not a magic wand. There are many other factors that determine the pattern of our lives such as our actions, attitude and astrological charts. If our attitude towards life is very rigid and there is resistance to change, then all efforts to make the changes through Feng Shui will come to a naught.

If you approach it with a closed mind, it would be wrong to assume that Feng Shui has not worked for you. It only means that there is a conflict between what you think you want and what you actually need. You need to sort out this mental conflict, first. Approach it with a clear mind and you will be rewarded with a successfulFeng Shui experience.

'Clutter' seems to be an important consideration in Feng Shui. What is 'clutter'?

'Clutter' is derived from the word 'clot', which in turn means, blocked or obscured. Junk and clutter act as an obstacle in the progress of one's life. Clutter includes those things that you no longer use but have kept it nevertheless, for reasons such as:

It holds an emotional value for you;

Someone has gifted it to you;

You think you may use it some day;

Clothes you don't wear but keep it for future, when they may come back in fashion.

Things like broken statues or artifacts, non-operational electrical appliances and old unwanted newspapers also constitute clutter. Do not keep non-functional watches and clocks at home as it does not allow you to move further in life. So get rid of them or get them repaired as soon as possible. Clutter drains your physical as well as mental energy.

Will Feng Shui not work if I do not clear clutter?

It's not that Feng Shui will not work, but it will take unreasonably long period to show results. The best way to bring prosperity in life is by getting rid of mental and physical clutter. Sad old memories and unpleasant incidents of the past constitute mental clutter. Clutter does not allow space for fresh and positive energy to circulate. It is advisable to clear the clutter to ensure good health and prosperity.

Do I need to hang wind chimes all over my house to enhance my luck?

No. You don't need to hang wind chimes all over your house but the best location is the northwest corner of your house. Metal wind chime with six or eight rods is ideal for this location.

Where does one place the 'laughing Buddha'?

Laughing Buddha is one of the lords of wealth. So ideally, the statue should be placed in such a way that it faces the main entrance of the house. If that is not possible , then the next best location is the side-table or the corner-table provided the table is diagonally opposite the front door and is facing it.

How can I purify my house and reduce the effects of negative energy?

There are various ways to reduce the effects of negative energy:

Mopping the house daily with salt water will reduce the effects of negative vibrations. Add five spoons of unrefined sea-salt to the water and mop the floor with it.

Fill a crystal bowl with unrefined sea salt and keep it on the windowsill of your toilet. If possible replace it daily.

Keep your house clean by dusting regularly, removing cobwebs and vacuuming it.

Every morning after your regular prayers, play some religious chants or mantras. Echoes of the chants will fill the house with good vibrations.

Repair cracks, peelings or discolored paint as soon as possible.

Can we bring harmony in our family lives through Feng Shui?

Sure! Hang a large family photograph in the southwest corner of your living room. Make sure that all the members of your family are present in that picture. Portraits of people with composed and smiling faces encourage positive feelings. A picture should bring happy memories to mind.

Keep a water fountain near the east area of the house to promote family health and harmony. A married couple should have their photograph in their bedroom. In west area of the house, display a picture of your children. Do not display pictures of war or violence in your house. Make sure, that you dine together.

What precautions one needs to take while designing the main door of the house?

Toilets should not face the main door.

Main door should be clutter-free from inside as well as from outside. Good energy enters through the main door. Items like shoe rack, ceramic pots are very commonly seen near the front door. Keep this place clean.

Furniture should not hinder the easy opening of the main door.

There should not be any mirror facing the main door as it reflects back the good energy.

An elevator opposite the main door is not considered good. To eliminate its adverse effects, place a convex mirror above the door outside the apartment to deflect the negative influence.

The colour of the main door is very important in Feng Shui. It depends upon the direction in which door is facing.

Direction	Colours
East or Southeast	Green, Black or Blue
South	Green, Red, Purple or Orange
Southwest or Northwest	Brown, Yellow, Red, Purple, Orange
North	White, Gold, Black and blue

How can I increase my wealth through Feng Shui?

The three-legged frog with one or three coins in his mouth is considered to be very auspicious and lucky. It should be kept near the main door facing inside as it depicts the flow of money in an inward direction. The southeast corner of the home or office must be kept as clean and orderly aspossible. It is advisable to leave a light on in this area as often as possible. The lighting should resemble natural light; it should not be too bright or too dim.