Oberlin, Ohio
Feng Shui was an amazing topic to study. It was
interesting because I had never heard about Feng Shui
before. Feng Shui is an art of design that is meant to
increase the energy flow in the body. Not many people have
heard of Feng Shui which is another reason I chose this
topic. I like to be different so this was a great
opportunity for me. I first heard about Feng Shui in a
magazine I had been reading one day. I have always been
interested in design so this article really caught my eye.
In fact, I liked it so much that some of the tips from the
article are in this very report. This topic was very
interesting to study. I learned a lot studying this topic. I set very high
standards for myself. I wanted to learn how to do over a
room so that it would have a good flow of "chi ", and be
able to do this very easily. I wanted to know a good amount
of Feng Shui before the end of this project. Things
definitely didn't work out how I wanted them to. I didn't
learn quite as much information as I had intended, but it
was just as exciting as I had planned. Learning about Feng
Shui was really fun and interesting. There were many steps involved in my research. I used
lots of books, though I did get some information off the
computer. It wasn't very easy, categorizing some of the Feng
Shui tips I found but I managed to pull through. A lot of
the websites I found on the internet were selling items,
from books to Feng Shui kits, to candles, it was all there,
so it was difficult finding good websites. This project was
easy since books were very easy to find and although I
wasn't able to get all the information I had hoped for I got
a good amount of it in this report. I hope you enjoy this
report as much as I did researching for it. Feng Shui history is important, as it dates back
thousands of years ago. Feng Shui originated in China and is
still practiced there. Many different methods have arisen,
but only some survived and are still practiced today. I
could not believe it when I found out that Feng Shui
originally began as the study of optimal places for grave
sites. This practice was based on a belief that graves were
"houses" for the ancestors. Many people believed that by
placing the graves in auspicious places, their ancestors and
rulers helped to make certain success for their family and
nation. This practice developed into the study of the most
powerful places for royal palaces and religious temples.
Soon wealthy landowners became interested in learning Feng
Shui advice for their homes. Priests and sages, many of whom
were a combination of minister, doctor, astrologer, and all
around soothsayer, were the original practitioners of Feng
Shui. After an extensive site examination, these energy
wizards would give good advice on how, when, and where to
locate and construct the home. Eventually, more of this
knowledge became common among general people, and secular
practitioners began performing Feng Shui as a business
endeavor. There are different methods of Feng Shui and different
Feng Shui schools teach different methods. There are two
main types of Feng Shui: the Forms Method and the Compass
Method. The Compass Method practitioner would take an
astrological reading for the master of the house to
determine the best direction for the house to face. Compass
Feng Shui masters used a special Feng Shui compass called a
"lo-pan" to pinpoint the ideal setting and orientation of
the home. More aspects of the building process, including
proportion, dimension, the time and date to begin
construction of the house, and many others were calculated
based on compass readings, numerology, and the positions of
heavenly bodies. The Forms Method is also important. It approaches the
same basic goal from a different angle with an emphasis on
reading and understanding visible and invisible shapes and
energies inherent in the local landscape. Landforms were
symbolically interpreted as representing mythical shapes.
Factors considered included nature and the flow of water
features, local weather patterns, and the views from each
direction. According to the specific needs of the landowner,
the chosen site's landforms would be in harmony with the
building's purposes. Professor Lin Yun created a type of Feng Shui called
Black Sect Feng Shui. It features Indian, Tibetan, and
Chinese teachings, and Western approaches to ecology and the
environmental sciences. Black Sect Feng Shui combines
several schools of Buddhism, Taoism, folk methods, and
theories from Professor Lin Yun himself into a large body of
powerful life changing techniques. Using these techniques in
your life does not require you to adopt any foreign belief
or ideology, but simply to have and open mind and the desire
to improve your home's energy. There are methods not very
well known, such as the Symbology method in which everything
is seen and interpreted as a symbol for understanding
energy. Another example of an uncommon method is the Reading
Chi method that emphasizes feeling the building's energy
through the body, senses and emotions to provide an
intuitive Feng Shui understanding for the occupants. Those
are several types of Feng Shui. "Cures" are basically what Feng Shui is. There are
several types of cures including sounds, mobiles, heavy
objects and several others. A cure is any little change you
make in your house or building. In this report, almost any
sentence is suggesting a cure, also known as a "tip". The
cures work together, meaning that you should have a wide
variety of cures. For example, it would be better if you had
a fountain in one place and a statue and all types of things
in every room than having a fountain in every room of the
house. Cures are probably the most important thing in Feng
Shui. The principles of Feng Shui are simple. In Oriental
philosophy, Feng Shui is one of the most important things in
life, contributing to health, longevity, and overall
happiness. Your "chi" impacts and conditions your whole
being, including your body, mind, emotions, and spirit. If
your chi is depressed, your thoughts and physical energy
will be depressed as well. If your chi is stagnant you will
look and feel stagnant and stuck. If your chi is bright and
animated, your body will experience bright energy. There is
no "magical switch" you can use to get away from
experiencing Feng Shui effects. Positive and negative forces
act together in order to create energy. Yin and Yang
represent these two forces which are in constant movement,
each attempting to gain dominance. Where one achieves
dominance, and imbalance occurs, so when one force becomes
too strong it takes over. These are the basic principles of
Feng Shui. Chi is a very important part of Feng Shui. Just as chi
energy flows through our bodies, it also flows through the
Earth. The meridians of the Earth's energy are called
"dragon lines". Where the chi is near the Earth's surface,
the land is energetic and rich in vegetation. Where the chi
circulates far below Earth's surface the land is barren and
dry. In our homes, chi flows throughout it based on
geometry, layout colors, and other factors that constitute
the structure. The arrangement of rooms, proportions of the
design, and relationship of the house and land create energy
channels and patterns within the home. Balancing the chi in your home is important because the
chi in your home is one of the most powerful factors the
conditions your flow of chi. "Chi" or life energy is what
animates your body, gives color to your face, and causes
your limbs to move. When a person dies, what leaves the body
is the chi and the "empty body" is left behind. According to
Chinese medical theory, chi flows through meridians in the
body. The meridians carry life energy to the organs and
limbs. All levels of the body are considered superficial to
chi. They all depend on chi for their functioning. Chi is
incredibly important in Feng Shui. The Ba-Gua is an important part of Black Sect Feng Shui.
To apply the Ba-Gua to your home, overlay the octagon onto
your home floor plan. The Ba-Guas' orientation is based on
the placement of your front door rather than Earth
directions. Front door refers to your main door, even if you
use another door more often. Many books have a procedure for
applying the Ba-Gua. The Nine sections of the Ba-Gua with
their corresponding house areas and symbolic colors can be a
very important part of Feng Shui and are as listed : There are sections of the Ba-Gua that represent the
different areas of life. These are called the Guas. Some
examples of Guas are wealth, fame, and health. The Ba-Gua is
important in Black Sect Feng Shui. If you have the option to get a new house, there are some
things you should consider. A house facing the entrance of a
dead-end road is at risk since the chi seems to hurtle
toward it. Deflection is needed, and a hedge would help. A
road that is ridden on often is not very good. Waist high
shrubs and plants on the boundary of the garden and plants
on the windowsill will slow down chi. A curving road is
considered very good and auspicious as a position for a
house. Paths to the house would ideally be garden paths that
meander to the front door to slow down energy. Narrowing
paths and straight paths to the front door funnel chi too
quickly in and out of the home. Any paths that grow wider as
they grow close to the front door resemble a jug pouring
away the good chi from the house. If trees overhang a road
it is considered very auspicious as they give a welcome
relief from the glaring sun. However, long stretches may
cause headaches brought by the dark light. Nice views will
make you feel energized, but take care not to lose
concentration when driving. Narrow country lanes afford
absolutely no relief for the driver, especially if there are
high banks with hedges. When they twist and turn, the
driver's vision is very limited. Regular use will become a
strain. Be careful when choosing a new house. If you want to earn a little extra cash, then you should
consider using some wealth tips. If you have a fish tank in
your house, then be careful. A fish tank placed correctly
can bring good fortune. Sometimes if a fish tank is placed
incorrectly it can bring lawsuits, bankruptcy, work
pressure, troubles and problems. If you noticed any of these
after about four months, place you fish tank somewhere else.
Moving water represents the flow of money so having flowing
water in your space represents having a strongly circulating
cash flow. Another good thing to do is to use all the stove
burners on your stove because the burners are its specific
money generators. If you use some stove burners more heavily
than others, the burners will be "dormant", which can cause
damage on your creation of money. Try these cures and some
others to bring up your money power. Many people are concerned with their health and vitality.
There are many cures you can use to help this problem. There
should be no shoes or slippers lying around the main door of
the house. Remove them if possible. Chi rides with the wind
and will collect all the smell of the shoes and slippers
into your house causing sickness. To get an energy boost use
a bowlfull of mini irises. Just put the bulbs - soil an all
- in a shallow pasta bowl and mulch with grass or moss from
a garden store. Their blue color will get you through frosty
February. Anything on the ground can leave you feeling
grumpy or depressed. Simply pick up all that stuff off the
floor and even move short plants off the ground for and
energizing effect. These are some tips that will leave you
feeling well. Business and career can be very important to some people.
Promote harmony in your company with plants. Put green
plants in the entrance to promote peace and unity among
members. Attract more helpers in your career with sound or
mobile energy. Hang a wind chime or mobile near the entrance
to get more people to help you. If you live with a lot of
work pressure, maybe it is the marble table in your dining
room. Wooden tables would be better. Think before you get a
red sofa set. The color red represents the element of fire
and for Feng Shui, some places should not have red. A red
sofa gives rise to heavy work pressure, troubles and
obstacles. Use some of these tips to reduce work
pressure. Family and children are important too. Children's chi is
important. Try not to let children sleep on mattresses on
the floor because it allows young children to frequently
fall sick. If your child falls sick in the bedroom, then
switch bedrooms or hang a six rod metal chime. You should
not let children sleep on double bunkbeds, even if it saves
space. The child that sleeps under won't have fresh chi so
their health might be bad. If due to space constraints, add
in a metal six rod wind chime or a crystal sphere, to break
up stale chi around the bed. To help the family, ensure that
the stove is not opposite the refrigerator, washing machine,
washing basin, or toilet. The fire and water crash, causing
family disagreements. To strengthen family ties, use a
citrus centerpiece, like oranges. These are great family
tips. There are many tips to help knowledge and
self-improvement. I have a few. Your bed should always face
a wall behind you. This enables good rest and helps you
concentrate on your work better. For young children, try to
have their back to the wall when studying if they like. This
allows them to have sturdy support so they can study longer.
These are some tips on knowledge. For a reputation or fame, use some of these tips. Boost
your reputation with a large mirror to magnify the chi in
the reputation area of your life. Hang a bamboo flute to
have more fame. These are just a couple tips for reputation
and fame. His Holiness Grandmaster Professor Lin Yun was a very
important person in my topic. He is probably the greatest
Feng Shui master in the world. Professor Lin Yun does the
foreword to many Feng Shui books. His greatest achievement
was creating Black Sect Feng Shui. Professor Lin Yun helped
me with my topic since a lot of the research I did was by
Professor Lin Yun. He has taught many people his Black Sect
Feng Shui and will probably teach more. Professor Lin Yun
was a very important part of my project. There were some tips that I thought were pretty
interesting. A very simple cure is to put everything where
it goes. This lets chi flow freely and has many effects.
Always open your bedroom at least twenty minutes each day to
allow fresh chi to come in and stale chi to get out. Put a
basket of apples on your table since these are the ultimate
peacemakers. Green apples mean tranquility and red boosts
happiness. Surround yourself in earth colors to get
grounded. Brown, russet, and beige help you prioritize so
tasks seem achievable. Put baby daffodils on the windowsill
to relieve tension. Place and indoor water fountain in you
home, position in a favorable area to attract whatever you
want in life. I thought these tips were useful and easy. There aren't many jobs connected with my topic. You can
be an author and write books so people can "Feng Shui" their
home. You can be a teacher and give lectures on Feng Shui or
start a school for Feng Shui. You can even start a business
and make suggestions on what they should do to their home.
For all of these you need to know a lot about Feng Shui.
Those are some careers involving Feng Shui. Doing this project has been really fun. I loved every
moment I spent doing it and I thought it was very
interesting. This project has been good for me because it
has taught me planning (since I had deadlines for this
project) and it has taught me a lot about Feng Shui, of
course. If I had more time for this project I would have
given more information and made it more interesting for
people to see. I also would have tried to get a chance to
see Professor Lin Yun. It was really, really fun doing this
project. Glossary auspicious - of good omen ; boding well for the future ;
favorable ; propitious Ba-Gua - an octagon that is laid over a floor plan of the
home ; used in Black Sect Feng Shui career - a profession of occupation which one trains for
and pursues as a lifework chi - an energy that flows through our bodies compass reading - a Feng Shui practitioner would use a
compass to determine the best direction for the house cure - a change you do to your house for Feng Shui Feng Shui - a form of design used to improve chi
health health - condition of body or mind Holiness - the quality or state of being holy lo-pan - a type of compass used in the Compass method sage - a very wise person tip - a cure or idea for Feng Shui tranquility - the quality or state of being tranquil wealth - a large amount of something ; abundance Bibliography Ashlin, William P. (1995). Feng Shui : the Chinese art
of design and placement. Nevada City, CA. Brown, Simon. (2000). Practical Feng Shui
Solutions. London. Hale, Gill. (1999). The Essential Book of Feng Shui :
a complete guide to harmonious modern living. Bath,
UK. Kennedy, David Daniel. (1998). Feng Shui Tips for a
Better Life. Pownel, VT. Mitchell, Shawne. (2002). Exploring Feng Shui :
ancient secrets and modern insight for love, joy &
abundance. Franklin Lakes, NJ. Unknown Author. (2003). Feng Shui. First, pp.
78-81. Unknown Author. Feng Shui Tips. [Online]
Available http://www.fengshuitips.co.uk/home.htm,
December, 2004. .
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