Have a Ball…

We know that the faceted crystal ball is particularly adept at bringing us massive amounts of good luck.  Any day one is freshly hung and reinforced with good intentions, you begin to receive good energy not only in your life but new opportunities begin to appear that you never knew existed.  If you already have a crystal in use and find things just aren’t popping for you, it may be time to remove, clean, and recharge your crystals.  A gentle washing plus a day in the sun, or a night with the moon, or 24 hours resting submerged in sea salt should have you back in action. Everything needs recharging every now and then. These are three excellent ways to start the ball rolling again.

Next time, useful cures from crystal placement.  Until then,

Peace.

Fu Dogs or Temple Lions, that is the question.

 
Names are plentiful for this popular feng shui symbol.  Which ever one you choose to use, it will not be wrong. Contemporary beliefs seemingly push the use of Fu Dogs, probably because of the resemblance to the small dog with a lion like mane. Ancient beliefs generally favor the use of the Guardian  Lion or Temple Lion. I am happy with Fu Dogs and that is what I call the pair at my front door.

Generally, Fu Dogs find their existence to be dated to the early Chinese period of (206 BC) throughout the Han Dynasty then gradually disappearing until the time of the Tang Dynasty in (618—900 AD). During these early days, a “Dog of Happiness” or Celestial Lion Dog could be found guarding the entrances of the Buddhist temples or the homes of affluent Chinese families. The relative expense of creating a pair of these symbols of protection prohibited their use by the masses of the time. Today however, they are readily available and have gained huge popularity allowing even owners of small homes to have their entrances guarded.

The Celestial Lion Dog name probably gained favor due to the combined mixed appearance of both a lion and a Chinese favorite, the dog breed known as the shitz zu. Even though lions are not native to China, art containing their image surfaced after lions were imported as gifts to the emperor. The Lion Dog, believed to be a companion of Budda, was also believed to possess the ability to chase away evil spirits as they stood guard over his temples and over tombs.

Fu Dogs are always used together in pairs in order to maintain balance in the environment. Proper placement is vital because if they are misrepresented, you stand the chance of inviting bad luck rather than their powerful protection. As you stand inside your home or business looking out, place the female outside the entrance to your right; place the male outside to your left.

The male has his foot placed on a sphere, some say it is a ball, some say it represents the world.  Neither is wrong. Its placement, however, on the sphere, symbolizes the Fu Dogs authority and power over evil spirits. The female cuddles a cub as she exhibits strong maternal instincts.  It is her job to protect the interior of the home or building while the male guards the structure itself. The male stands taller than the female and he represents yang energy with his mouth open, she possesses yin energy with her mouth closed. Together, with their tilted heads, they imply that they are keeping a sharp eye out for evil spirits while denying them entry into your home or business. If danger threatens, you can count upon this pair of protectors to ward it away by using their menacing looks and displaying the impression of powerful aggression.

May your good fortune be plentiful.  Peace.

For the Birds

A few mornings back, while having my morning coffee on the patio, I couldn’t help smiling to the trill of the songbirds that have returned for the summer. It was like music to my ears. Did you know that in feng shui, birds are a symbol of wealth and harmony?  They are considered powerful symbols of all the new opportunities available to you.

Have you ever held a handful of those round white seeds that are often mixed with crunchy sunflower seeds? You can find them available in most home stores. When they are flung upwards, to  fall back to the earth, you’ve not only called our fine-feathered friends to dinner, it’s as if you’ve called a shower of blessings from above to your home and to yourself. As the seeds bring the birds to your home, the birds call good luck chi to your home in much the same way. To share abundance is to call abundance. It’s a good thing to remember when you put a feeder out for our bird friends.

Do you need good chi or auspicious luck in a matter? The placement of a feeder outside or an art display inside your home can be advantageous simply by placing the item in the proper baqua area.  Let’s say you are searching for a job, a feeder on the northern side of your home is most beneficial. Using a beautiful picture of birds, whether it is of peacocks or the illustrious phoenix, placing it along the northern wall on the inside your home can help accomplish the same thing. This is the career area, as you recall, and to stimulate the chi here is quite useful. You have invited fine-feathered luck to visit you. The next phone call you receive just may be the new job opportunity you’ve been waiting for.

The wealth corner, resting in the upper back left, can be inspired to call forth financial abundance by the placement of art objects representative of birds. A lovely music box decorated with birds and playing beautiful musical notes is doubly favorable. Another pleasing picture? That’s fine as well, just be sure to choose an item that will fill you with the same happiness that you are searching for.

Colors in shades of yellow, white, silver, pinks, oranges or magenta, displayed in your bird art, encourages chi to pass through. It will bring auspicious luck with it as it draws good favor from these auspicious colors.

Remember, when you use good feng shui in the placement of your birds, it becomes a most positive way to feather your nest!

Good luck should come flying your way.

Peace.

How'd You Sleep Last Night?

Some nights are better than others, but we all know when we've had a good night's sleep. Seven to eight hours of quality rest will raise your energy level and start you on your way towards a great day. If you've been tossing and turning, there's a very simple feng shui tip that can help to stack the deck in your favor.

The Chinese believe that numbers have the ability to change their lives. Using your personal kua number, find one of the numerous charts available in books or on the internet,  use the column affecting your health, and begin sleeping with your crown facing, as close as possible, to your most auspicious direction. I have a kua number of 2. Knowing that I had been sleeping with the crown of my head in a westerly direction, I knew a change was necessary. Find your most auspicious direction for health on one of these charts and begin using your most auspicious direction. You'll be pleased with the difference.

I've known this for years, but somehow had neglected to incorporate it into my new landscape when I moved in.  After a particularly fitful night's sleep, it occurred to me that I had been sleeping with my head in the most inauspicious direction available to me.  Unable to rearrange the furniture in my bedroom, I simply decided to try sleeping with my head at the bottom of the bed. With my head in the west for good health, I found upon waking the following morning, I had slept better than I had in months. The beds still made up in the normal manner, but at night, my pillows and me convene to the other end.
You may be able to do a little room rearranging that I couldn't, and place the bed in the proper direction, either way, you'll find a pleasant night's sleep is headed your way.

Find your best direction, using your kua number, for any situation you may need help correcting concerning wealth, health, love, or personal growth and get the numbers going in your best direction.

Peace

The Turtle verses the Lo Shu

  

I’m not sure when I realized this but every year, in the early summer, I transform from a feng shui advisor extraordinaire, into a single unit turtle rescue squad. As it happens, I seem to draw the amiable tortoise to me like a moth to a flame.  One morning last week as I headed out to work, I found yet another one scrambling across the hot pavement looking for adventure.  I always hate to tell them, but usually there’s nothing on the other side of that hot road  they didn’t have on the side they just came from. Usually, I just grab them from behind and run to the other side. Once I get it settled into the closest patch of tall grass I can find where it can consider whats just happened, I’m on my way.

This time, the creature was near my own turf, not somewhere further down the road, so I kept running with him straight into my own backyard.  My mind fairly fizzed with the information from my own feng shui background.  I was filled with the desire to have this hard-shelled creature make his home in my own garden. I felt as if I was a descendant of the great Chinese Emperor Yu Huang.

Emperor Yu Haung was the first person known to observe the unique pattern of squares on the back of a turtle he had seen swimming in the vast Yellow River. Here, is where the legend of the  Lo Shu Square began over 5,000 years ago.

The magical Lo Shu Square, based on the mathematical formula found within its 3x3 grid, contains numbers within the 9 squares that, no matter which column you choose to work with, all add up to 15. From this time forward, the square began to be recognized by the Chinese as a symbol of natural order, balance, and a way to maintain a connection with the universe.

You may recall the Baqua, which, to me, is the easiest tool used to correct the balance of chi within your home. It grew from the Lo Shu and is based on the same principles. With either of these, you can begin to adjust the balance of harmony in your home as you address the concerns of any of the life areas.

It makes me wonder if the rescued turtle roaming around my garden was just trying to adjust his own harmony when I snatched him up so he could adjust mine.

Peace

Black Tortoise Rising

 
We’ve talked about the Red Phoenix, the Green Dragon, and the White Tiger. Today we see the Black Tortoise creeping in to take his place at the back of your home.

Ideally, we hope to see a gentle rolling hill in place.  It is suggestive of a higher mountain and is there to represent a protective barrier at the rear of your property. If the support initiated by having this creature near by seems to be lacking, the occupants might face considerable difficulty. Work on creating a symbol of the Tortoise immediately.If there is no natural hill or mountain, a nice fortification in the form of tall rounded trees, or a large storage structure can be built to symbolize the Black Tortoise.

When the representation of all of the four celestial animals is in place, it’s like an announcement of a great auspicious area being declared for the location of your property. If you are building a structure upon your property to stand in for a gentle hill, and are given only one choice of these four magnificent creatures to select from, choose the Black Tortoise. It is said to have equal importance to the Green Dragon. You can expect the Tortoise to help in careers, provide the blessing of happiness while on the job and it guarantees great margins of success in each business endeavor.

When the Tortoise is at your back, you are surrounded by a symbol of long life and happiness as well as being supported with a great defense from negativity.  It is said that the occupants of the home will receive solid structure and backing when he is found near by. The Black Tortoise is yin and corresponds to the North. Its earth element is that of water, it’s season winter, and black, or dark gray and charcoals represent the colors for it.

This large creature is considered not only wise, but also clairvoyant. He is always listening, continually gathering useful information, as he makes plans to protect the occupants of the home. His shell is strong and represents an ability to prevent change from occurring in your homes energy. In feng shui, his shell is often used for divination.

When you put him in his place at the back of your yard, you’ve whispered the secret that you are willing to accept his protection.

Peace. 

White Tiger Protection

Look out your back door.  I’m hoping you see a small hill to the western side of your yard. This is the area that the White Tiger inhabits. It’s another of the fantastic creatures that helps to protect the invisible, unfelt energy known as chi that surrounds you and your family.

The White Tiger is represented by a slight rise or elevation in the landform of your property.  His area rests in the west and is guided by the element metal. He is known to be equally as strong as that factor. When you have reached the level of success that you seek and have obtained the blessings of health and of wealth, the tiger watches from in hiding and springs forth to defend your successes from loss. He adopts a cunning nature, knowing when to strike and when to only observe.

Cultivate a rising landform on your property if there is not one there. This is a place in which he can rest. You may need to build a small berm, which is easily done, or shape bushes that may already be growing on the western side of your property into the shape of a small hill. These can symbolize the hiding place of the White Tiger and is where security will linger for those in need of protection.

Plant white flowers and bushes on the berm you have built.You can find many varieties in garden shops such as at a Lowes or your Home Depot. White is the color that represents the tiger and these will help to make him even more strong and powerful. There is no certain plant that would be better than another; but the color of the plant that is important in your choice. Also, do not build the height of your hill area greater than that of the Dragon area located to the eastern side of your property. To do so would diminish the strength of the Dragon. You are striving for harmony in all things.

This spectacular creature holds the key to the certain safety of your family. Invite him in.  When you have a tiger in residence on your property, you have the feng shui equivalent of absolute reliability.

Peace.