Summer is here! Your life may be filled with many activities such as vacations, summer camps, house cleaning and renovation projects. Through all of this active chaos it is imperative that your home remain your refuge; calm, harmonious and organized. Incorporating some easy Feng Shui corrections will help you relax and enjoy your home and all your summer activities.
The purpose of Feng Shui is to bring positive energy into your home and keep it flowing throughout. Everything we do is ultimately for the sake of spreading positive energy.
Many of my clients have been experiencing stress due to some structural issues in their home such as missing Bagua areas, stairways leading out their front doors and the chaos caused by home remodeling projects. These in turn have affected their health, career, prosperity and harmony.  The chaos in their homes is affecting their lives, but fortunately there are easy Feng Shui cures.
In Feng Shui there are not many hard and fast rules, but rather recommendations. The exceptions are areas that can specifically drain your Ch’i, or vital life energy. For these areas there are a few rules that when followed create a more balanced environment, and a more balanced life. _In an ideal environment the Ch’i enters through the threshold (Mouth of Ch’i) in the entrance quadrant of the Bagua, and meanders happily and slowly through the house. It does not get trapped in closets, stumbles over clutter, or shoots through windows, down toilets or rushes down stairways.

Feng Shui uses the Bagua (Ba-gua) Map to identify the important facets of your life represented by areas in your home.  The Bagua comes from the Chinese philosophy, “The I Ching,” and literally means “eight trigrams with the center for grounding.”
When structural imbalances occur in any of the Bagua areas there are specific Feng Shui corrections that keep the negative energy from wearing away at us.
In my June column I addressed how to anchor missing corners to keep this vital energy in. In this column I’ve chose to focus on two other common concerns that have arisen through a number of home consultations:

1. Stairways facing entryways
2. Calming active chaos

Stairways – Raging Rivers of Ch’i
We call stairs raging rapids and rivers because they can become powerful waterfalls of Ch’i, especially if they point out the front entrance. In this case the nourishing Ch’i pours right out the door, often taking health and good fortune with it.  Rooms at the top of a staircase are continually pulled with the force of the decent, while rooms at the bottom are flooded with too much energy.

Corrections: The key here is to bring out balance of peaceful waters.  When you’re working with stairways that face doorways you need to do your best to stop the flow of Ch’i from rushing out the door by hanging a mirror above or next to the door facing the stairs, or hang a round faceted crystal somewhere above the stairs to slow and recirculate the Ch’i.  Be careful not to accentuate the waterfall design by hanging art in a descending order. Use your art to uplift the energy by hanging it in a straight line.
The worst cases are split staircases going up and down in front of an entry, causing disharmony and confusion.

Corrections: Place a mirror or round faceted crystal facing the bottom of each and if possible place a plant, sculpture or flower arrangement between the staircases to break up the confusing flow.

Calming the Active Chaos
In Feng Shui there are two types of chaos: active and passive. The passive is the clutter that remains in piles all over the house which needs to be decluttered. The active is the mess created by creative projects such as crafts, cooking, remodeling etc… This leads to something beautiful and will be cleaned up after.  In the latter, how do you keep the calm if the project is long-term?
We’re in the middle of a massive master bathroom remodel. Each day the contractors are here demolishing, hanging cabinets, laying tile and plumbing. This area is in our Health/Friends and Family Area and all our clothes from the walk in closet are on our bed in the Master bedroom in the Knowledge and Self Cultivation Area. We’re currently sleeping in the guest room. (Fortunately in the Love Area) Being concerned about the effect of chaos on each of the two affected areas I use a simple Feng Shui correction.

Corrections: The Five Element Display – Each day the contractors clean up as best as they can before leaving but we are left with the active chaos of the day’s work. After they leave I sweep the area as clean as I can then I place a 5 Element Display in the center of the torn up bathroom. My display is comprised of a large white and red orchid (wood- flower, metal-white and fire-red) in a shiny round black pot (water-black) on a rectangular yellow tray (earth-yellow, rectangular). This helps to bring calmness and beauty to the room. I bless the space with an affirmation that the work being completed well, then remove the display each morning before work begins.*   Creating a small 5 element arrangement in any room helps to strengthen the Ch’i, and adds power to affirmations and enhancements. It marks the beginning of positive change and invites the Ch’i to move.  For example, adding a 5 Element Arrangement to the center of your home can help ground you when you’re feeling overwhelmed or tired. Quick Fixes are also excellent when you need a boost to specific facets of your life, such as when seeking a job, deciding to start a family or any other life changes.
Use this Feng Shui Element guide when selecting items for you personalized display:

The Wood Element:
Wooden furniture and accessories, indoor and outdoor plants (including artificial), plant based cloth and textiles, floral prints, art depicting landscapes, gardens and flowers, columnar shapes and stripes, the green and blue color spectrum.
The Fire Element:
All lighting (electrical, candles and natural), things made from animals (fur, leather, bone, feathers, wool etc.), art that depicts people, animals, sunshine or fire, shapes such as triangles, pyramids or cones, the red color spectrum.
The Earth Element:
Adobe, brick and tile, ceramics or earthenware objects, shapes such as squares and rectangles, the yellow color spectrum, art depicting earthy landscapes in earth tones.
The Metal Element:
All types of metals, all natural rocks and stones, natural crystals and gemstones, the white and light pastel color spectrum, the shapes of the circle, oval and arch.
The Water Element:
Water features of all kinds (fountains, aquariums, and birdbaths), reflective surfaces such as glass, cut crystal and mirrors, flowing asymmetrical shapes, the color black and dark shiny objects.

Our home and work environments are vibrantly alive and completely interconnected with the rest of our lives. When our choices in selecting and arranging our environments are focused on keeping the vital energy circulating throughout in a harmonious and peaceful way, there is a greater chance for peace, harmony and balance in our lives.   Enjoy your Summer!

Affirmations and Inner Work:
In Feng Shui, intent plays a significant role in enhancing your home or business. All enhancements need to be made with intentionality, with written or stated affirmations as if they have already happened. Examples of affirmations for calming the chaos: “My home is calm and filled with positive energy”, “The remodel is going smoothly, will be completed expediently and within budget.”
Feng Shui at Work:
I recently did a presentation to a large number of real estate agents, giving tips for selling a home faster. The first thing the client sees when entering a home is important to their first impression. I recommended placing a beautiful 5 element display in the front entrance; whether a painting with all elements represented, or an arrangement. This will bring the home good energy and intrigue the buyers. I also recommended the mirror cures if the house unfortunately has staircases leading out.  The good energy is not only for the sale of the home but for creating good Ch’i and harmony for the buyers after they move in.                                                                                                                                                For questions or home consultations email at mtmccull@aol.com and put “Feng Shui” on the subject line, or visit my website at www.fengshuibymaria.com, (where you can read past columns), or Facebook “Feng Shui by Maria”, where I post pictures as examples to enhancements.

Classes:
I will be teaching a series of three classes through Acalanes Adult Ed:
“Feng Shui for Prosperity”
Thursdays,   Sept. 27 to Oct. 11 from 1 to 3 p.m. Acalanes Adult Ed is located at 1963 Tice Valley Blvd. in Walnut Creek. You can register online at acalanes.k12.ca.us/adulted (Participants will receive $40 off a home consultation.)

* Check out my BLOG
Just go to the website and click on “Blog”: You can view many pictures and, I will respond to your questions quickly.
Until then…blessings!

Maria McCullough is the owner / founder of Feng Shui by Maria (www.fengshuibymaria.com) and is a speaker and educator with over 20 years of experience. She specializes in residential, landscape and business consultations. She is a graduate of the Western School of Feng Shui and has personally trained with Terah Kathryn Collins, founder of the Western School of Feng Shui, specializing in Essential Feng Shui® and author of numerous books including “The Western Guide to Feng Shui.”

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