Everything you always wanted to know about Feng Shui…
…but didn’t know who to ask!
Understanding How Feng Shui Can Help You Achieve Your Goals
By Ken Lauher
Excerpted from:
Feng Shui Secrets: What Everyone Should Know About How to Be Successful with Feng Shui
Feng Shui (pronounced fung schway) is the art and practice of living in harmony with your environment to produce tangible results naturally. It involves the intuitive, aesthetic adjustment of visible and invisible objects or factors, realigning all dimensions of the environment into a balanced, harmonious state.
Living in harmony with your space does not mean removing the clutter or placing things in their proper or “right” place. It is how you align your inner worlds and desires with your outer environment.
Taoists feel there is a current to how life flows and when we live in harmony with this Way, we experience joy, peace, success and happiness. And when we go against this current, we start to have disruptions in our lives.
This allows you to begin to see and understand the direct relationship between what is happening in the energy of your space and what is going on currently in your life or business.
The connection between your life and your environment, as you begin to explore it, can seem disconcerting — scary, even. But just remember that Feng Shui is about making your home comfortable, harmonious, and stable. Then it’s about creating an environment that supports your goals — what you really want to do and accomplish — in your life. In essence, it’s about creating a more positive environment where you can achieve your goals with renewed energy.
Because really, the energy to take action is one of the keys to success. We can’t shoot for our dreams if we don’t even have the desire or strength to get out of bed in the morning, right?
When you begin to harness the chi (energy) of your living environment so it’s in alignment with your goals, you’ll discover an amazing power to create the life of your dreams, including health, wealth, and happiness.
But let’s be clear on our definitions of these things before we move on.
When we say we’re creating a healing home in Feng Shui, it means the flow of chi will be pleasant, smooth and full of healthy, life-giving energy. In a good Feng Shui home, the occupants will be vibrant and healthy — as will the plants and animals, and even the landscaping. Occupants will eat foods that contribute to their health, wake feeling well-rested, and go to bed tired enough to fall asleep quickly.
Overall, they will feel good, and they will have the energy and desire to pursue their goals. Because if you’re not feeling well, whether it’s a temporary condition or chronic fatigue, everything else suffers, too. And good Feng Shui helps you maximize every aspect of your life to live your true purpose. Vibrant health permits us to pursue wealth — which really means pursuing opportunities.
Feng Shui is, in essence, the art of assessing our quality of life by observing and analyzing our living environment.
Here’s a side note for the history buffs: The term Feng Shui (literally translated as “wind and water”) was coined by Guo Pu in his classic Burial Book (written circa 300 AD). He notes that, “Chi rides and scatters with the wind, and gathers at the boundaries of water.”
Wind, water, sunlight and other natural elements play a huge role in Feng Shui. Later in this book, we’ll learn how to “balance” the elements within a space to create a more comfortable living environment that helps us to achieve our goals.
How can Feng Shui help you? With the power of your intention behind it, Feng Shui will provide you with the tools you need for success in the most important areas of your life.
I surveyed 3,000 of my clients and contacts about why they want help with Feng Shui. The top 10 answers were to:
1. Increase money and overall wealth
2. Find love
3. Improve career
4. Experience peace & harmony
5. Improve marriage or existing relationship
6. Find balance
7. Help with creativity
8. Get “unstuck” in their life or with their current situation
9. Improve family relations
10. Improve work relationships
You may face challenges along the way. The biggest challenge many of my clients face is in their mindset. It can be hard to “get unstuck” and take that first step toward change. Human beings are set in our ways. We dislike inconvenience, and change can be inconvenient until momentum begins propelling us forward.
As you Feng Shui your home or apartment, keep your eye on the goal. Think of the carrot — not the stick. You opened this because you are ready for a change in your life. Be open to embracing that change and the results will amaze you!
The Different Schools of Feng Shui
As a leading Feng Shui consultant, the number one question people ask me has to do with compass directions of a person’s home, bedroom, front door, etc. This is a big frustration for many people, and it can be hard to grasp. But here’s the good news: not every school of Feng Shui relies on compass directions.
First, it’s important to understand that there are a variety of different schools of Feng Shui, with different ways of understanding and interpreting the flow of chi and the Ba Gua. Sometimes, as people begin their self-study, they purchase tons of books and then realize that each book tells something completely different. That’s because all schools of Feng Shui are based on similar universal knowledge, but have developed different approaches and techniques for identifying and balancing chi.
The two oldest traditional schools are the Form School and the Compass School.
According to His Holiness Professor Lin Yun Rinpoche (one of the foremost experts in Feng Shui), the most prominent contemporary schools are Three Harmony, Three Era, Nine Stars, Southern school, Taoist schools, Eclectical School, Yin Yang Schools, and Buddhist Schools.
This is important to know when selecting books or reading articles on Feng Shui. Many people get confused because they pick up two different books on Feng Shui based on two different schools of thought and become even more frustrated.
Black Sect Feng Shui
I personally study and practice Black Sect Feng Shui. Of the Buddhist Schools of Feng Shui, Black Sect Feng Shui contains traditional Feng Shui knowledge, mixed with the intangible dimension concerns, having to do with what we can’t see. It emphasizes intention, intuition, and the flow of chi.
Do I Have To Convert?
No, you don’t have to convert or need to be a Buddhist to study or practice Black Sect Feng Shui. You don’t have to be of any particular faith at all to apply the principles of this school of Feng Shui. But it can be a great complement to any existing faith.
What Distinguishes The Black Sect Feng Shui Approach From Traditional Feng Shui?
There are some important differences to understand when comparing the teachings of different Feng Shui schools. This brings us back to those compass directions. Many traditional schools rely on a compass (or Luo Pan) and the cardinal directions of North, South, East, and West to interpret the layout and flow of chi (life energy).
The Black Sect way of understanding this is not necessarily based on the cardinal directions, but on how the chi enters a space or environment. It Focuses on the site’s unique traits. A second characteristic of the Black Sect approach is that it emphasizes more than just the tangible factors of the environment, such as the placement of a door in a specific location. The Black Sect school of Feng Shui also emphasizes intangible forces derived from one’s intuition, while recognizing the great importance of what can be seen.
Though Feng Shui has been practiced in various forms throughout the world, it became particularly strong in China, where the BTB practices were integrated to become a cohesive discipline.
Ken Lauher is one of the foremost Feng Shui consultants today. He consults for many famous people and many more not so famous people and is the author of Feng Shui Secrets: What Everyone Should Know About How To Be Successful With Feng Shui.
He advises individuals, businesses and organizations on how to implement practical Feng Shui solutions to help you achieve your goals and live a more fulfilling life. His inspiring work with well known actors, actresses, TV hosts, singers, songwriters, CEO’s, businesses, and corporations has made him a sought-after speaker on Feng Shui and life enhancement.
