| In This Issue |
| Getting Your Life Into Balance |
| Feng Shui as a Path to Inner Peace |
| The Power of Intention |
| THE ABCs Of Feng Shui |
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| Life Balance and Feng Shui |
December 2008 |
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Welcome!
This year has been a year of great change for many of us, as individuals, as members of our countries, and of course, as members of our global community. The practice of Feng Shui has it's foundation in the cycle of change - Yin and Yang. This months articles are a call back to balance. While we may feel that there is little we can do to affect change, the truth is, we hold the power of change in our hands, we have only to take the first step ourselves. Living and working in balance takes an effort, there is much to keep us busy and away from focus on our health and well being. Change begins with us. I encourage you to read all 3 articles, I am sure that you'll find them thought provoking and timely as this year comes to a close.
Enjoy!
Laurie Bornstein
CEO/President
International Feng Shui Guild
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| GETTING YOUR LIFE INTO BALANCE |
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 by Ann Bingley Gallops
Everything in the world is made up of a balance of the energies known as yin and yang. Yin energy is classically known as "feminine" - dark, intimate, cool, quiet, symbolized by the moon and by nighttime. Yang energy is "masculine" - bright, lively and social, hot, dry, symbolized by the sun and by daytime.
The more extreme an environment gets in either direction, the more uncomfortable it becomes. An extreme yin environment might be a spooky cemetery, while the hot desert is a good example of an extreme yang environment. You wouldn't want to be in either of these places for long - we crave warmth and sunlight in a cemetery; we seek shade and a drink of cool water in the desert.
In other words, we're looking for balance no matter where we are. In our homes there are particular measures of yin and yang that are appropriate for various rooms, according to their function. When you bring your space into the right equilibrium you'll begin to feel more balanced yourself.
Here are examples of rooms that commonly get out of balance, and corrections you can put into place right away. See if any of these examples apply to you, and let me know what happens when you do a bit of "re-balancing"!
The Living Room
Have you ever been in a living room where it's obvious that no one spends time? This is a living room that's "too yin": it sits there, looking pretty but going unused, while people spend their time elsewhere, maybe in the kitchen or den where activity and sociability are welcome.
The function of a living room is to foster life: to invite people to gather together, socialize, and relax. So the living room needs a balance that's more yang than yin.
Living rooms that work best are filled with warm colors, good lighting, growing plants and lots of things to do - games and books, a TV perhaps, a stereo for music. "Yang up" your living room, and watch it come to life!
The Bedroom
On the other hand, we need our bedrooms to be more yin than yang: a bedroom needs to feel like a sanctuary, to promote intimacy and restfulness. This is why Feng Shui encourages people move "yang items" like desks, books, TVs and exercise equipment out of the bedroom. These kinds of things throw the bedroom out of balance and undermine our efforts to relax and take care of ourselves.
I know of so many people whose lives were transformed (for the better!) when they moved their office or treadmill out of the bedroom. If intimacy or getting a good night's sleep is an issue for you, try removing some "yang" items from your bedroom and see what happens.
The Bathroom
Bathrooms are super important because they're all about water. Water is meaningful in so many ways: it's the number one symbol of cash flow in Feng Shui, it signifies spiritual renewal, and of course it cleanses us inside and out.
But all this water also has a tendency to make bathrooms "overly yin." A bathroom that's too yin can have a draining effect, detracting from the physical and spiritual renewal that a more balanced bathroom provides.
To create a bathroom that truly restores you, make sure it contains some good, strong yang elements: healthy growing plants to lift the energy, good lighting, warm colors and sensual linens.
If it sounds like I'm describing the spa-like bathrooms that are so popular these days, I am. Create a bathroom that you love going into, and make yourself feel special every time you're in there.
Why is balance so important in your home or office? Because the more balance you bring into your space, the more you'll create in your life. Take a look at the yin and yang in your space, and bring your life into balance today!
Find out more about Ann...
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| FENG SHUI AS A PATH TO INNER PEACE |
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By Carol C. Wheelock
 Feng Shui is often thought of simply as de-cluttering, moving furniture, or hanging wind chimes. While these are part of Feng Shui, they don't explain what it is really about. The ultimate goal of Feng Shui is to create balance or centeredness in a person's life through creating supportive environments. What does it mean to feel balanced or centered? It's about inner peace, feeling interconnected.
Begin with the energy flow in your home or office. If cluttered or blocked, you will not be able to receive that which you say you want. In order to feel at peace, a space has to be open enough for you to feel that you have clarity and options. If your space is totally filled, there is no room for you to be in balance and to have that feeling of inner peace. You will, instead, feel blocked and stuck.
Confusion in a space always creates confusion for those who live or work there. Entrances that are not easily found or defined, rooms that don't have clear purposes, homes with bits of office work in many different places, and awkwardly arranged furniture all create confusion. Clearly define entrances and rooms, organize and rearrange. Clarity in your space supports clarity in you, paving the way to inner peace.
Yin and yang contribute to that inner peace when they are in balance. Too much make it difficult to settle down and focus. Too much yin creates too great a struggle to get up and move. When both yin and yang are present, the space is balanced and supports activity with ease.
Never underestimate the power of color. We need color, especially the seven rainbow colors, which also correspond to the colors of the chakras, or energy centers of the body. One client placed balls of different colors of yarn in a basket. It was simple, inexpensive, and very effective. By making sure that all colors are somewhere in your home, you will be supporting wholeness on another level, supporting the balance we are after.
The five elements are essential to bringing balance to a space. Any excess or lack of water, wood, fire, earth, or metal will create an imbalance. Spaces with too much wood tend to make those who live there feel overwhelmed and/or over committed. Too little fire and people feel a coldness and lack of emotion. When each of these elements is present, people feel comfortable. It then becomes easy to walk into a room and have that "ahhhhh" feeling.
Other factors that can influence the feeling of inner peace are completely unseen. Places with leftover negative energy from arguments, trauma, death, or other disturbances will feel off balance. Geopathic stress can also create feelings of uneasiness. Electromagnetic energy from power lines and too much technology in a small space can also lead to fatigue and edginess. Both geopathic and excessive electromagnetic energy should also be considered health risks.
By following the principles of Feng Shui to create balance in our spaces, it is much easier to have balance in our lives. Inner peace comes from that balance. Our surroundings affect us and we reflect our surroundings. We owe it to each other and ourselves to achieve as much balance and inner peace as possible so that we can reflect it out into the world.
The familiar ancient Chinese proverb says it best:
When there is a light in the soul, there is beauty in the person;
When there is beauty in the person, there is harmony in the home;
When there is harmony in the home, there is honor in the nation;
When there is honor in the nation, there is peace in the world.
Find out more about Carol...
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| THE POWER OF INTENTION |
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 By Peggy Cross
In Feng Shui, the intention that we bring to our spaces - our homes and offices - is very powerful. Our thoughts are the foundation of our intentions when utilizing Feng Shui principles; and the physical expression of these intentions may be seen in the object cures we use in our environment - crystals, mirrors, plants, color, wind chimes, personal symbols and more. The purpose of our intentional thoughts in using object cures is to manifest a change in our lives, be it an enhanced love relationship, a different career, selling our home, more money, greater creativity, pregnancy, knowledge of our life's path, marriage, healing of a relationship, opportunities for service, help for our children, settlement of a law suit, a good plumber, balance and harmony throughout our lives and more. We set our Feng Shui intentions and the extent of these intentions is endless. However, do we bring awareness of our thoughts and intentions to our lives throughout the day? What about our "ordinary" thoughts? Are we aware of their power? These thoughts also create our realities, and this is how I perceive their effect.
My thoughts are plantings, elements of creation. These are the seeds I am sowing for today, this moment that will never again exist. I ask myself, am I using this moment to the very best of my abilities? Are my thoughts ones of joy and kindness, of gratitude and service, or are they not?
When I am truly aware of my thoughts I understand their effect on my mood, on my feelings, on my ability to be creative, attentive, productive and loving as I move through my day. I may choose to be open or closed in my thoughts about what the universe presents to me. I may encounter a friend in distress who just wants to be heard, a new client seeking guidance, or an opportunity for personal expression. When my mind and heart are open, my experiences in turn generate further uplifting thoughts, an upward spiral of creation. However, sometimes my thoughts, the seeds I am sowing, generate fear -- a fear of lack, a fear of loss, or a fear of the unknown. I recognize when I am using my thoughts to beat up on myself -- useless thinking about lost opportunities, the path not taken. These negative thoughts result in a downward spiral of existence. I also know that all these various types of thoughts, of seed sowing, of mental habit planting, are part of our human experience.
My intention is to continue to ask myself frequently, where is this thought taking me right now? Is this thinking beneficial for myself and others? Will these thoughts assist me in the task I have before me, or perhaps, will this new planting of intentional thought serve me in pursuing my life's purpose? My thoughts create my actions and life experience because they determine how I choose to perceive my world.
Find out more about Peggy...
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| THE ABCs OF FENG SHUI: GEOMANCY |
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 What is the Feng Shui word of the month?
Geomancy
The art of creating balance and harmony between people and the energies of the earth. The study of the energies of the Earth and earth-based divination techniques that have appeared in nearly all cultures and spiritual traditions. In modern times it is a study of geomantic, geopathic and environmental influences with the intention of mitigating those energies that appear to have an adverse effect on health and well-being.
Find more Feng Shui terms in the IFSG Glossary...
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