feng shui
Using Feng Shui to Improve Sleep
If you have problems sleeping why not use the ancient tradition of Feng Shui. Sleep is an important part of our lives that can have a beneficial or detrimental affect on all other aspects of our life. By following the brief guidelines and making some small changes you can help improve your chances of getting a good night sleep.
- avoid sleeping with your head towards the door, or your feet directly in front of the opening.
- avoid sleeping under a window, as it is believed that any bad chi that may enter via the window will go straight into you, and have a negative effect. A way of combating this would be to hang a curtain to stop the bad chi from entering.
-it is recommended that pictures of water are not hung in the bedroom, as it is believed that it will attract bad luck and promote insomnia.
- make sure there are no sharp points, pointing towards the bed, these can be room corners, sharp edges to furniture etc. You can neutralise these by covering them or placing a plant in front of them.
- blue is a relaxing and peaceful colour that will promote a restful ambience.
- avoid creating a work space in your bedroom, as this can alter the energy of the room making it more active and less peaceful. If you need to put a desk in the space make sure you cannot see it from the bed.
An Introduction To Feng Shui
Feng Shui
Feng Shui known as ‘wind and water’ has been a traditional part of Chinese culture for thousands of years. The ancient art stems from the belief of positive and negative energy reflected in the Yin and Yang flow of Chi. To create a harmonious and balanced atmosphere placement of furniture is key, it can even help the flow and movements of natural rhythms.
Chi
The most important element of Feng Shui is considered to be chi, an invisible energy or life force that runs through everything. By organising our environments we can alter the flow of chi, which in turn is believed to affect health, wealth, luck and even the energy of the individuals living and work in that space.
The idea is to create a healthy flow around a space and prevent it from stagnating.
Yin and Yang
Yin and Yang
Yin and Yang are considered to be two parts of a whole, two opposing forces alive in all things.
Yang comes from the heavens, bright, masculine and forceful, it gains direction and purpose as it moves toward the earth, and Yin. Yang is so overpowering that Yin manifests as a dark, consuming element that moves upwards, toward the heavens, returning to Yang. Yin is regarded to be the earth, dark, feminine and passive, a complementary opposite to Yang’s bright, active, masculine energy. Together these two elements represent a perfect balance.
Feng Shui is all about getting the right balance between these two forces. As Yin is a passive and calming force, decorating using this energy is best kept to places where a relaxing atmosphere is important, such as a bedroom. On the other hand for a lively atmosphere such as a child’s playroom decorating with Yang would be more ideal.
The 5 Elements (or Wu Xing)
The 5 elements are as follows;
- Metal - Releasing (complete, ordered, structured, pure, joy, evening, white, gold, round etc.)
- Wood - Trusting (growth, new beginnings and ideas, rising, input, morning, rectangular etc.)
- Water - Aligning (power within, dormancy, midnight, blue/black, irregular etc.)
- Fire - Opening (enlightenment, action, midday, midsummer, red, triangular etc.)
- Earth - Connecting (resourceful, centred, balance, afternoon, yellow, square etc.)
The 5 elements are regarded by the Taoists as an expression of nature. It’s believed everything is made up of these energies, but with differing amounts of each. These manifest themselves with various traits and tendencies specific to the element or elements that are most dominan
New Section Added! Introducing Feng Shui
We are happy to announce a new section about Feng Shui.
Entitled ‘An Introduction to Feng Shui’, it describes the basic fundamentals of this tradition, such as the Chi energy, Ying and Yang and the 5 elements.
Feng Shui known as ‘wind and water’ has been a traditional part of Chinese culture for thousands of years. The ancient art stems from the belief of positive and negative energy reflected in the Yin and Yang flow of Chi. To create a harmonious and balanced atmosphere placement of furniture is key, it can even help the flow and movements of natural rhythms.
Click here to read more about Feng Shui and it’s principals
Again this is another section we will be adding to, it covers a lot of ideas. Although most people won’t be able to change their entire environment to suit the rules there are always elements that can be used and adapted for your space.