Feng Shui Decorating Guidelines

The importance of following feng shui decorating guidelines.

Feng shui decorating guidelines show us the correct way to place objects, furniture and how to decorate in order to achieve harmony. Living and working spaces and their decorations affect the people inhabiting them, and feng shui decorating knowledge studies the way to make that factor affect in a positive and harmonic way.

If you want to learn and be able to follow feng shui decorating tips, the first thing to do is to learn about feng shui in general and its main concepts. By learning this, you will find yourself naturally acquiring information on how to decorate any different spaces according to feng shui.

According to feng shui decorating guidelines, the way and the position in which we place our furniture, the colors we choose, the different objects and places we choose for them, everything can be done in a way that ensures harmony. Actually, in China people are used to look for a feng shui expert to guide them in occasions such as when they buy a new house.

Following feng shui decorating guidelines is not the same as decorating in order to make a space pretty or nice looking but it is about making it be in harmony with us. Actually, many times a decoration done by following feng shui would not look nice or be esthetically correct at all. By following feng shui, we could end up doing some of the things we would never have thought to do in our decoration.

For example, the position we place a bed can have main importance according to feng shui decorating tips. A bed should be placed in a position that allows the person to easily look at the door, but at the same time it should not be facing it directly and it should be against a wall. Even if this leads to an option which you wouldnt have thought of for you to place your bed, you should do so in order to be able to sleep well and comfortable.

Feng shui does not see decoration with the same eyes a merely esthetically based decoration does. Feng shui decorating guidelines are meant to help people make their spaces as much harmonic and positive for their inhabitants as possible, even if esthetics have to be sacrificed for it.

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Feng Shui

Feng Shui is a Mandarin phrase meaning - Force of Wind, Flow of Water. As old as Chinese culture itself, the name originated around 6000 BC. Feng Shui is described in classical texts as ?Auspicious heavenly influence, beneficial topography, and harmonious human actions.? In essence, it?s a means of superimposing divine, archetypal order on the earth, and living in accordance with the Tao, or Way of Heaven. Ultimately, it aims at maximizing the positive environmental forces, or Qi, molding the landscape if necessary to enhance the flow thereof. Its other purpose is to divert, and neutralize the negative Sha Qi forces. Chinese alchemy, especially as outlined in the Secret of the Golden Flower, when applied to Feng Shui, aims to ultimately transcend the inter-death state by building the imperishable diamond body.

More mundanely, Feng Shui considers our residences to be a direct extension of ourselves. It provides the means of living in harmony with nature, and how to benefit from the positive energy, or Qi, in our living environment.

Many Feng Shui Schools have developed over the millennia, reflecting the multi-faceted nature of the discipline, however, most are a combination of the Form, and Compass Schools.

Feng Shui Schools

The Compass School based on the 8 trigrams of the I Ching, known as the Pa Kua, which, in turn, is based on the eight compass directions. Each direction being associated with a season, and a specific energy or ?element?, (more correctly, 5 stages of change).

The Form School, is based on the morphology of the landscape: topographical features, soil quality, and watercourses. The ?Regulating the Qi? school was concerned with finding the ?the Feng Shui spot?, and made detailed studies of the land, and watercourses, and concerned itself with locating the ?dragon pathways?, the ?Dimai? or arteries , and veins of the earth.

Eight Mansion/ House Feng Shui, is based upon an individual?s Kua number. Initially, the male householder?s Kua number is utilized to bring the house into harmonic balance. Each person has auspicious and inauspicious directions, discoverable from the birth-date. The auspicious directions relate to success, health, romance, and development, while the inauspicious directions relate to bad luck, obstacles, illness, and destruction.

Nine Star Key uses the stars to establish lucky, and unlucky days. Astrology dictates when, and whom to marry. Each year, the Nine Star Key reveals what astrological house holds sway, and how best to live in accordance with its principles.

Black Hat Sect, relies on the Ba Gua diagram, which is an orientation device. It allows one to pinpoint the 9 areas of the home: prosperity, fame, relationships, family, health, children, knowledge, career, and patrons.

Flying Star is based on a combination of numerology, and astrology. It allows one to avoid continuing sickness, arguments, bankruptcy, legal problems, loss of wealth, relationship problems, health problems, and accidents.

Four Pillars, based on Chinese astrology, delineates the individual relationship with the zodiacal animals relating to the year, month, day, and hour.

There is much interchange of concept, and methodology between each of these schools. The best way is to experiment personally to find the most temperamentally suitable.

Understanding The Benefits Of Feng Shui

Many homeowners are toying with the idea of decorating their home in the Feng Shui style. They have basic misconceptions of the true Feng Shui style based on companies that were selling books, or a particular service.

The reality of Feng Shui is that is was used in all homes, poor and rich. Home decorators do not need to hire someone to create a true Feng Shui room. The first step to bringing the benefits of Feng Shui to your home is to understand exactly what it is.

Feng means "wind," and shui means "water" (pronounced fung-shway). In the Chinese culture, a gentle wind and smooth water is associated with having plenty and being healthy. As apposed to a harsh wind and stagnant water that are linked to famine and disease.

This is important to understand, because a few mistakes can actually cause you to create a negative atmosphere in a room. Good feng-shui means good livelihood and fortune. Bad feng-shui means hardship and misfortune.

However, from a pragmatic point of view, the colors and textures in the good style are relaxing and reduce stress. This is the most important benefit in our stressful culture. At least 80% of all our diseases are stress related, so the primary benefit of feng-shui is to reduce stress and promote health.

Feng-shui is not a superstitious set of decorating rules. It is the science of understanding the emotional impact the different forces of nature have on us, and using these to design houses and workplaces which create harmony instead of stress.

Feng-shui is loosely based in Chinese medicine.

There is a standardized body of knowledge that takes years of formal training to master. However, the home decorator can use this decorating style in their own home with success, because they are responding to their personal needs and emotions.

The master is trained to deal with different environments and people, the home decorator only needs to worry about their own environment.

Feng-shui is divided into two branches: the Landform (ti-li) branch and the Building Characteristics (chai-yun) branch.
The Landform Classification branch focuses on the flow of energy over, around, and through objects and the connection between that energy and nearby objects.

The Building Characteristics branch focuses on the flow of energy inside a building and how it affects people.

Before starting to decorate your home, it is wise to take the time to study both branches. But, it is also important to determine what you need from the room. Do you sleep too much? Do you need to be energized? Then you will use different elements than someone who needs to relax and detoxify their system of stress, anger, and aggression.

The best thing about Feng-shui is that it can be incorporated into the most sophisticated and elegant home decorating style as easily as it is utilized in an open concept, modern home. The only thing limiting the home is the decorator?s imagination and willingness to learn how to turn their home into a healthy environment.

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