Drinking tea can be quite an art form. The ritual of preparing tea can have a hidden impact on your good fortune, as tea releases propitious energy into your home. It was in Chengdu that I discovered that the tea brewing ritual evolved from an ancient belief that pouring freshly-brewed tea onto specially-made clay images of auspicious items such as the rolling ball (which signifies continuous good fortune) and to auspicious creatures such as the farmer’s cow or the pi yao – plus a whole lot of other lucky symbols – was in actual fact an excellent way of unlocking their inner auspiciousness.

Indeed, we were all so charmed by the simple truths being explained to us by the charming young ladies in the tea supply shop we stayed for hours! And after that, between us, we practically bought up her shop’s supply of lucky objects, we were so happy! We were mesmerized by the clay ox that had been “grown” by them over several months, using tea to create a special shine to the ox; this was done by pouring freshly brewed tea over the ox. The tea left a thin veneer of red, which over time got ingrained into the ox, hence its beautiful detail and shine.

This was how they could ensure the clay ox could unlock its inner energies of abundance. They then pointed to other auspicious objects in the tea tray, before the tea lady started to show us how the tea was brewed. The water should be boiled to about 1000C. It was first necessary to pour hot water over all the cups, jug and pots, and this was basically to wake up the tea set before filling the clay tea pot with fresh tea leaves.

Always use the same teapot unless you are a collector of teapots and have special ones for special occasions or for different purposes. Place the tea into the teapot, and then pour the freshly boiled hot water into the pot. Leave for about twenty seconds or so, then pour away this first dousing of boiling water. Pour it over the auspicious objects already placed on the large tea tray… and think… “with this first pouring of tea, I shall awaken the good fortune hidden within my inner essence”.

You can see from the picture of the tea tray above that there can be as many different auspicious objects as you like. Here on this lady’s tray can be seen a pig (she was born in the year of the pig and hence its presence here is to awaken her personal luck). There is also an object showing two dragons offering the red rolling ball – this is said to be very lucky indeed, as the rolling ball indicates continuous good fortune; then you can see the groundnuts which bring growth luck, the ingot which brings prosperity, the lions to offer protection and the Pi Yao with a coin in its mouth. We had such a fun time investigating ALL their auspicious objects!

The tea is left to brew for several minutes. It is then poured onto a clay or glass jug from where the tea will then be poured onto the small clay cups and offered to the guests. When the teapot has been emptied of the first infusion, hot water is again poured onto the leaves to make a second infusion.

We were advised that when pouring in the hot water, we must always pour enough for the water to overflow, as this is a very auspicious sign. Water overflowing from the teapot indicates an abundance of wealth luck. Altogether, the tea leaves should be of a quality that can offer as much as seven infusions of tea. And after the tea colour has thinned out, it is time to wind up, or if you want more, to discard the old tea leaves and place fresh tea leaves into the pot.

Note that the pot and cups should never be washed with soap. They are always washed with boiling water and left in the tea tray. When the tea drinking is over, the tray collecting water from all the washing and drenching is then discarded. Tea stains are always left on the cups, the pot and the auspicious objects. This is what gives a continuity of good fortune!

WHY DRINK TEA?

Well brewed hot Chinese tea helps the body settle after a good meal; it is an excellent way to still the mind, enabling you to rid your body of tension. Offering tea to elders is also a sign of respect. It is the nicest way possible to apologize or to convey gratitude to one’s parents. Drinking good well-brewed tea after a good dinner adds good chi to any celebration. Over the years then, the art of tea drinking has become synonymous with joyous occasions.

In the present day, the most important occasion when serving and drinking tea is taken most seriously is during the tea ceremony at weddings. That is when the bride and groom use the tea offering to signify their respect for their parents and their elders.

To the older generation, sitting down to share a pot of tea with a friend is very meaningful as this transcends the superficial. It signifies more than two friends being sociable; to those who understand the deeper meanings associated with the ritual, the seemingly relaxed way of preparing the tea signifies that good feng shui is maintained in the relationship.

Sitting down to share several pots of tea evokes the philosophical concepts of Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism – the three Pillars of classical Chinese culture, so in itself, drinking tea is already a great way to socialize. Add the extra dimension of good feng shui and it becomes something beautiful to do together.

When you sit down to enjoy several cups of ceremonially brewed tea with me, we will be surrounded by many auspicious objects. You will participate with me in a ritual which takes on an empowering dimension. This is a potent Taoist secret long practised by ancient masters. I could not wait to start practising once I learnt it. The ritual is full of promise and I have incorporated it into my typical day. I have watched with fascination as my auspicious Laughing Buddhas and rolling balls come alive.

Now I know that preparing and enjoying good Chinese tea that has been brewed in a special pot, with water boiled to the correct temperature, using excellent tea leaves to create the mood required and served with specially-fired clay cups can be transformed into a powerful way of “growing the abundance of your home” simply by incorporating artfully-crafted auspicious celestial creatures and carefully selected auspicious objects that awaken good fortune for the household. The operative word here is “awaken”; making the luck represented by these auspicious come alive. Grow them to maturity and watch your luck grow alongside!

USEFUL TIPS IN TEA DRINKING

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Mirrors have long been described as the cure-all for deflecting bad feng shui shooting at the home from the outside environment. For years, people used the Pa Kua circular mirror placed in the center of an eight sided symbol empowered by the yin arrangement of trigrams on eight sides of the mirror. This easy Mirror remedy has been associated with feng shui for many years, but I have discouraged its use.

The Pa Kua mirror is indeed powerful and does work pushing away bad vibes caused by secret poison arrows in the surrounding environment. But in reflecting away bad chi, the Pa Kua mirror is simultaneously pushing everything else away from your home. The power of this cure made strong by the yin arrangement of trigrams is quite indiscriminate, and as a result, good fortune and friends also get pushed away. There is thus a need to be skillful in one’s use of mirrors for feng shui purposes.

I have sometimes also seen the Pa Kua mirror hung up above doorways for no reason at all. This not only sends negative harmful chi to the neighbour opposite, they also harm the house that hangs it up, as it messes up the relationships of the residents with outsiders.

Thus I have been strongly discouraging people from using the Pa Kua mirror as a cure and instead to use something more benevolent. The 8 Hums Protection Wheel Mirror which protects against afflictions that come from the 8 directions at different times of the year is a better approach to defensive feng shui. While making your feng shui good, it is equally important not to make other’s feng shui bad.

1. Mirrors must never reflect toilet doors or sharp edges of corners. Inside shops, mirrors must double good fortune and never double anything negative. They should ideally reflect customers coming into the shop as this increases the yang chi that is vital for bringing in good fortune.

2. Deep into the interior of the home, Mirrors work best in the living and dining areas. In these rooms, floor to ceiling mirrors are excellent for creating a visual expansion of space, which is always lucky, and even more so if the wall mirror also reflects pleasant views from outdoors – either a river, healthy growing plants or rolling hills – that suggest a vast expanse of pure energy. Views of trees bring in “growth energy” while views of scenic mountains bring great relationships. Views of water bring prosperity!

3. Mirrors are a very effective tool for doubling good feng shui in the workplace. They are particularly useful for retail establishments and restaurants that are dependent on walk-in customers for business. Having a floor-to-ceiling mirror near the front of the shop has the effect of “pulling” customers into the store and if the cash payment register is also reflected in the mirror, it symbolizes a doubling of business. This helps to literally “double” your sales. Shops presently suffering from the economic slowdown hitting the world might want to try using this to improve their sales revenue.

4. Mirrors should stay out of bedrooms. This is one of the most important taboos to take note of in interior feng shui. Old masters were steadfast in their advice to ban all reflective surfaces from the bedroom, as these often attracted third party interferences into the marital relationship and was deemed extremely harmful for the family. When mirrors reflect the sleeping couple during the nocturnal yin hours, there is also the danger of the “spirit” of the couple being robbed of their essence, their intrinsic chi. Hence the danger of mirrors here.

5. At home, mirrors in the foyer visually expand the internal bright hall making space for good fortune chi to settle, creating a feeling of space as soon as you enter the home. This attracts good strong energy into the home. Take care however that any mirror placed in the foyer does not directly reflect the main door. This means that you should not have a mirror facing the door. Any mirror placed in the foyer should be on one of the side walls. It does not need to be a floor to ceiling mirror.

6. Expand a narrow cramped space with a mirror. This is a feng shui solution to any space being excessively narrow or cramped. The visual effect of expanded space can be very beneficial. Try improving the energy of tight corners and narrow passageways this way.

7. Dining area mirrors enhance yang chi. A wall mirror here is especially beneficial when the family dines in frequently. Also each time you entertain at home, your mirror will be doubling the yang energy of the home. The effect is very subtle but also extremely beneficial.

8. Mirrors should never reflect bills, open fires or old newspapers. These are just a few examples of items that must never get “doubled”. Thus it is a good idea to keep mirrors out of your home office where all manner of invoices get placed on desks before they get paid. This doubling of bills creates the energy of high expenses. Similarly, mirrors are best kept out of the kitchen where reflecting the fire that cooks the food is NOT a good thing. And definitely, reflecting old piles of newspapers suggests a family constantly living in the past.

9. Never allow cracked mirrors in your home. This is one of the deadliest of interior décor ideas. Even mirror tiles are a bad idea, as this creates distorted reflections of residents inside the home. When you use mirrors, make very sure they are single piece mirrors.

10. Deep into the shop, mirrors create depth of energy. Here mirrors can reflect racks of products to double products being displayed. All retail shops benefit from the Mirror effect mounted deep inside the shop – from restaurants to supermarkets to specialized boutiques. If you visit some of the more successful establishments of Hong Kong, you will see that the retailers there are extremely creative in incorporating lucky mirrors into their décor.

11. Mirrors on ceilings can visually raise a low ceiling that makes you feel hemmed in. This is an effective cure when not used in the bedroom or over too large an area. But my advice is to go easy on the mirror reflecting you from above. In small doses they can work well, but when covered over too large a space, they can become a feng shui problem.

12. Mirrors in the dining area have the effect of doubling the food being served. This symbolically suggests a doubling of wealth for the family. But because of this, the mirror should not reflect garbage dumps or dirty drains from the outside. When the exterior view is inauspicious, it is better to create good interior feng shui by using curtains or blinds to shut out the outside world. If you live in an apartment, mirrors in the dining area can reflect in the wonderful blue skies, and this is auspicious.

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Roads are important purveyors of chi energy, especially for those who live in modern city environments. The approach roads to your home as well as major highways that surround your neighbourhood exert a far greater effect on your feng shui than you realize. Feng shui manuals that deal with the significance of roads are usually compass-based. This is because the direction of traffic flow is what determines the road’s effect – either benevolent or pernicious – on the feng shui of dwellings around it. In this article, Lillian Too offers some important pointers on the effect of roads on your feng shui.

First determine the “strength” of the roads around your home. When the road is a big one with plenty of traffic, the strength and potency of the chi generated is more powerful than if it were merely a small lane. City roads are said to exert great chi strength, but highways are usually even stronger. When the direction of the road is favourable to your home, then the stronger the road is, the more good luck it brings. Likewise, when the direction of flow is unfavourable, its negative effect is also greater.

Second, determine the speed of traffic flow. As a rule of thumb, when the traffic moves very fast, the chi created along the road is like a bullet bringing negative harmful energy. When the flow of traffic moves slowly, its chi energy is a lot more benevolent and therefore much more positive in its effects. Thus secondary roads (like those within suburban neighbourhoods, gated communities or housing estates) usually bring better feng shui than primary roads, ring roads or highways.

Thirdly, winding roads are generally more benevolent than straight roads. Roads that either “hug” your home or apartment building, or are winding in their approach towards your home usually bring better feng shui than roads that come straight at your entrance. In fact, when roads are straight and head directly towards your home or building, they take on the form of poison arrows. Such roads are generally considered bad feng shui.

Fourthly, elevated roads tend to be more harmful than roads that are on the same level as your home. Even when you live in an apartment building, unless you live on the upper levels, elevated roads can be very harmful when they seem to “cut” into your building. One can use element cures to counter the slicing effect of such roads, but generally they are hard to remedy. This is because roads usually carry very strong chi energy.

Fifth, when your home is sandwiched between two roads, the effect on your feng shui also tends to be negative. It is worse if one road is higher and another is lower. It is also worse when the road that is lower is behind your house, as this suggests there is absolutely no support. This is considered one of the danger configurations of roads.

Finally, take note of the direction of flow of the road and how it approaches your home, how it passes your front entrance, and how it flows away from the home. These compass directions offer detailed information on how the road affects the feng shui of your house or building. It also affects the feng shui of offices buildings. This is a compass-based formula that combines the information contained in the Yin and Yang Pa Kua arrangements of trigrams to reveal the kind of roads that bring different kinds of good or bad luck. The direction of roads is taken from the front of the house. If you have roads that pass your house, observe them carefully and take note of two important directions:

1. the direction that the traffic on the road is flowing
2. the direction of its incoming traffic and the direction of its outgoing traffic.

Stand just outside your house and take the direction of the road traffic coming towards the house and also the direction of the traffic leaving the house. Note that as long as you can see the road, it has an effect on the feng shui of your home.

1

Road bringing help from Influential People
Traffic comes in from the South and leaves in a Northwest direction.

This is regarded an excellent direction of traffic flow around your house or building. This road brings the luck of helpful people, wealth, success and continuous business luck. However, do note that traffic must move towards the house from the South and the road must then turn away from the house in a Northwest direction. It must not move in the opposite direction ( i.e. coming in from the NW and going away in a South direction.) When it moves in the opposite direction, the road brings loss, misfortune and sometimes even death, most likely to the breadwinner of the family. If the traffic of the road moves in both directions, the effect of the road is neutral.

2

ROAD BRINGING GOOD FAMILY LUCK
Traffic comes in from the North and moves out in a Southwest direction.

This road brings great family luck which includes love, romance and marriage luck. Residents living in such a house enjoy harmony within the family. This road comes from the North, goes past your front door, then moves towards the distance until it disappears from view in a SW direction. Traffic on the road must come from the North and move away in a SW direction and not the other way around. If the traffic flow is the other way around, the house suffers loss of the family unit, ending in misfortune and sometimes even early death to the matriarch of the family. When the traffic is moving in both directions, the effect of the road is neutral.

3

ROAD THAT BRINGS GOOD HEALTH
Traffic comes in from the Northeast and goes out in a East direction.

This road brings good fortune to the eldest son of the family as well as robust health to all residents of the household. This road direction – coming from the NE and moving past your front door, then going towards the distance until it disappears from view in an East direction – is a good fortune direction. However, the flow of traffic must not be the other way around. If it is, it results in loss, misfortune and sometimes even death to the eldest (or only) son of the family.

4

ROAD THAT BRINGS WEALTH
Traffic comes in from the Southwest and goes out in a Southeast direction.

This road brings wealth and prosperity. It is also a road that tends to favour the women of the family, bringing them the luck to accumulate assets and property. Here the traffic on the road comes towards the house from the SW, goes past the front door then goes out towards the distance until it disappears from view in a SE direction. However, the road must not move the other way around. If it does it has the potential to bring misfortune luck and loss of wealth.

5

ROAD THAT BRINGS ACADEMIC SUCCESS
Traffic comes in from the Northwest and moves out in a Northeast direction.

This road favours the youngest son and brings academic success to the children of the family. Here the road comes from the NW, moves past the front of the house, then moves towards the distance until it disappears from view in a NE direction. If you have this kind of road, it brings knowledge and wisdom luck. It also brings recognition and scholastic achievements. However, the road must not be moving in the opposite direction as this will bring bad luck to the youngest son and to other young boys living in the household.

6

ROAD THAT BRINGS GOOD DESCENDANTS LUCK
Traffic comes in from the Southeast and moves away in a West direction.

This road brings excellent descendents luck to the family. It comes towards the house from the SE, moves past the front door, then goes towards the distance until it disappears from view in a West direction. However, the road must flow towards the house from the SE and flow away from the house in a West direction, and not the other way around.

7

ROAD THAT BRINGS RECOGNITION AND UPWARD MOBILITY
Traffic comes in from the East and moves out in a South direction.

This road brings recognition luck to the residents of the household. It comes from the East, moves past the front, then moves towards the distance until it disappears from view in a South direction. The road must not move in the opposite direction. If it does it can cause the family to lose its good name, and fame then turns to notoriety.

8

ROAD THAT BRINGS EXCELLENT CAREER LUCK
Traffic comes in from the West and moves out in a North direction.

This road brings excellent income and career luck and favours those in working life. It comes from the West, moves past the front door and moves towards the distance until it disappears from view in a North direction. The road should not move in the opposite direction as this brings bad career luck for the residents.

The post The Effect of Roads on Your Feng Shui appeared first on WOFS.com.

This is the way to tutor your consciousness so the attainment of desires becomes easy. Here LILLIAN TOO shares are 18 powerful ways to make your mind tune itself to creating positive energy, to help strengthen the yang side of your consciousness.

1. Move Your Goal Posts

Do not wait till it is too late to realize your goals may simply be far too small, too mediocre or too vague to excite you very much. So many of us are afraid to set higher standards and higher goals for ourselves, so we aim low, satisfied with mediocrity. Setting easily achievable goals can never really excite us, because we know deep inside that in the end, our success is not enough for us. You may be able to fool the world, but you sure cannot fool yourself.

A small goal is a small goal. But a large goal is something else again. When your goal is seemingly difficult or even impossible, it takes on a magical aura. It lives and breathes, and provides powerful motivational energy. It is there with you in the mornings when you wake up, and there with you when you sleep. You can taste it, smell it and feel it. You will doodle about it, write about it, speak about it as it fills your life with a purpose of stunning clarity. So move your goal posts if you are indeed setting your sights too low.

2. Discover Your Key

Find out what really galvanizes and excites you. When you know what button to press to get you enthusiastic, it is like discovering the key to making your life one long enchanting journey. So many of us do not really know what we want, nor appreciate the potential we have of finding permanent happiness. The wise men of all traditions tell us that the beginning of experiencing real happiness is to understand the true nature of happiness. Then only can we find the special key that will bring happiness to us.

3. Create A Vision

This is an excellent motivational tool. When you have a vision, your mind has something exciting to focus on and to look forward to. There is nothing more empowering! Create your vision now and refine your wishes as you think about how you can live your life in a fulfilling and rewarding way. Remember that creating a vision is not about what you want so much as how you can make your life excitingly meaningful. This is how yang energy comes to life – with thoughts that empower the road ahead with real meaning. When it is merely thinking about what you want, your thoughts will lack sustenance and strength; because what you want will change from month to month, and even from day to day. Making your life meaningful however is a lasting vision, which gets more stable as you think it through.

4. Practise Whole Brain Thinking

So many people I know wait for an awful crisis to erupt in their lives before forcing all their brain cells to get working overtime. Theirs is a life lived in reacting to circumstances. This is what is meant when someone describes a person as being reactive rather than proactive. Such people seldom, if ever, practise whole brain thinking. They use only one side of their brain. To them, creativity is an unknown word. They live with only one side of their brain activated, while the other side grows stagnant with stale chi. As a result, there is no music, no art, no frivolity in their lives. They are so serious, these people. They don’t know how to laugh. People like this cannot think with both sides of the brain, so something will always be lacking. From the start, train yourself to use your entire brain – both right and left sides, with the serious mingling with the joyous, the rational with the frivolous. Whole brain activity leads to creativity of the most wondrous kind.

5. Deprogram Your Negatives

From childhood, we may have been programmed to think so negatively about ourselves that when we do succeed, we negate our own success by denying it. If you are one of those who have been programmed in the negative, the best way to motivate yourself is to start the deprogramming exercise now. Don’t waste any more time. Bring yang chi into your psyche by discarding everything associated with the negative mindset. Everyday, tell yourself you are getting better and better at being positive, optimistic and happy. Program yourself with affirmations. Surround yourself with positive friends and discard everything that reminds you of the negatives in your life. Read motivational books. Use your mind to mentally discard all negative thoughts and then picture all these negatives flowing right out of you!

6. Embrace Your Willpower

Everyone has willpower. If you think you have no willpower, you are undermining your own success potential. You must believe you have it and you must welcome its presence as part of you. If someone said to you, “Let’s go climb Mount Everest,” what would your answer be? Would you laugh and say “Impossible!” And then go on to say how unfit, weak and lacking in stamina you are? These answers indicate a rejection of your willpower, undermining your potential to be strong, healthy and fit enough to climb Mount Everest. Think about this and you will realize that we all have it in us to do anything, including climb Mount Everest. If we want to do it badly enough, we can indeed generate the willpower to become strong and fit enough to do so.

7. Inspire Yourself With A Biography

Next time you feel the need for someone to give you a push and shake you out of lethargy, go in search of a well-written biography. There’s nothing more motivating than reading about someone’s hard-earned success story. The first time I read a biography, it was a book called Long Road To Freedom about Nelson Mandela. I had been given the book as a birthday gift and at that time, I knew little about the politics of South Africa and was certain I would be bored. How wrong I was. Nelson Mandela’s journey of peace and his determination to lead his people out of their awful state inspired me so much I have been reading biographies ever since. If you want to motivate yourself, find a worthwhile role model in a book, then watch yourself get strongly inspired.

8. Debate With Your Dark Side

Whenever you catch yourself brooding, worrying, feeling depressed about a situation or an outcome, recognize instantly that it is the negative side of you being dominant. Everyone has a negative side. This is nothing to be ashamed of. But if you want to strengthen yourself with powerful inner chi, start a debate with your dark side, making sure you win! Convince your mind how much better life looks when you see the bright side brought about by having an optimistic attitude. Build a case for being an idealist. List all the ways your mind and heart can expand as you open doors to all that is possible rather than close the door because you think everything you want to do is impossible.

9. Become A Hero / Heroine

Get used to playing the role of the conquering hero or heroine. This is what initiates success vibrations within you. Reject the role of the supporting or bit player. In your scheme of things, see yourself as the main player, as the star. When the inner consciousness gets used to thinking of itself this way, motivating oneself becomes a hugely satisfying exercise that gets built on over the years. You will find it much easier then to drive yourself into making the kinds of decisions and taking the kinds of action that will actualize this.

10. Challenge Yourself On A Regular Basis

With every new day, challenge yourself and the strength of your determination. It is challenge that brings out the hidden skills and talents that lie asleep within you. Resist the urge to seek your comfort zones. When we give way to laziness and lethargy, it is easy to get buried in sloth. Comfort zones are for resting, not for living. Use comfort zone times to consciously relax so as to restore your inner energy. The body needs rest and so does the mind, but remember also to challenge yourself, striving all the time to improve, so the benchmarks you set yourself get harder. Train the energy that accompanies all your efforts with a sense of the positive. You will be surprised how good chi gets even better when stretched.

11. Turn Daydreaming Into A Mental Skill

Do not belittle your mental fantasies, they are the stuff of potential reality. Give your mind free rein to dream of all that you can be and all that you can do to bring fulfillment and meaning into your life. If you fantasize about being rich, think of how you can use all your wealth to benefit so many people. And if you want power, think of all the great things you would do to make the world a better place. When you fantasize, you are using your subconscious mind and thoughts to excite you and this will activate your inner capabilities, lighting up pathways inside your head that will lead to the stretching of your potential. In feng shui philosophy, we learn that it is the thinking that provokes the movement, which in turn wakes up the power of the tai chi – the coming together of yin and yang to activate the powerful whole.

12. Confront Your Fears

If you are harbouring deep-seated fears, the best way to overcome them is to confront them! Fear arises from feelings of inadequacy, of standing in awe of someone, of being rejected. To deal with them and not let them become obstacles on your journey to success, first admit these fears to yourself. Face them squarely and confront them. Secret fears often manifest as wild animals chasing you in a dream and you will be running away. Next time it happens, turn around and confront the wild animal. Likewise, each time you are afraid of anything, stop and face whatever is making you afraid. If you fear speaking in front of a group of people, force yourself to do it. If you fear being rejected by asking a girl out, just do it. Often, the reality of what you fear is
a lot less fearful than you expect.

13. Discover Your Inner Einstein

Everyone of us has the capacity to be a genius. There is an Einstein lurking within our heads somewhere – if only we make an effort to find him!  Let me tell you a true story. About ten years ago when my daughter Jennifer was still at school, she shared her dream of wanting to make it to Cambridge University with me. “It’s so hard to get in,” she said to me, “there are so many clever people wanting to get a place there.” I realised that arranging the feng shui of her room would not be enough. I had to convince her she could make it. I had to imbue her with some powerful inner feng shui – build her confidence and her belief in herself. So we went shopping for Einstein.

We found the most gorgeous painting of this genius along Bayswater Road in London on a Sunday morning on one of her exeats from school. I paid 200 pounds for the painting and then hung the painting above her bed in her room at school. “Each night as you sleep,” I told her, “Einstein will help you become so good in your Maths you will sail right through your A levels, and with a double A in Maths that should help you in your application to Cambridge”. So for two years, Einstein worked his magic for Jennifer. She scored A’s in 12 modules of A level Maths and gained a place at Cambridge. Here is the picture of our Einstein painting to help any one of you readers along who might want to use it the same way we did.

14. Paint Your Universe

Don’t go through life allowing others to control your aura and your environment. The key to enjoying excellent feng shui whether inner or outer is to take control of your surroundings, and by extension your life. Paint your own Universe. Create your canvas. Fill it with the colours and strokes of your choice. If you go through each day accepting what other people and circumstances splatter on your canvas, your painting (and your life) could well get ruined. How much better when you are in control, if not completely then at least partially. This is a freedom we all have. You only need to recognize it and you will begin to see that there are pots of paints in every hue and colour just waiting for you to make something of your life’s canvas.

15. Sing Even When You Don’t Feel Like It

The best time to lift your voice in song is when you don’t feel like doing so. There is something truly magical about singing – it lifts the spirits like nothing else can. Even when you sing sad songs that move you to tears, it is incredibly cleansing, helping you pour out all the negatives inside your head. And when you sing happy songs, it creates bridges made of lights and moonbeams from your heart to your mind, infusing it with a brightness of spirit that will make even the most depressed and insecure of souls get up and dance. Next time someone asks you to sing, do so, even when you don’t feel like it.

16. Hang On To Your Encouraging Friends

Life can be a long, hard road of negativity if one is surrounded by pessimist friends who convince us how bad, ill equipped and weak we are. It is so much better to surround oneself with friends that raise us high, build us up, make us feel like we can do anything, climb any mountain, swim the deepest oceans. Friends who encourage you and nurture your inner chi are as precious as the brightest of gemstones. Hang on to them!

17. Create A Game Plan

If you want to work with passion and imbue your everyday life with a sense of purpose, it is a good idea to develop a game plan. When you have a game plan, your waking hours suddenly become more productive. Whatever you do then is instilled with a sense of purpose. There is then a road map to attaining success and a benchmark to evaluate your days. Creating a game plan also helps you establish vital signposts of attainments.

18. Talk to Yourself

The best way to program yourself positively and to rid yourself of debilitating negatives is to talk aloud to yourself. Write a script describing everything positive about yourself and then read it aloud. This should be an exercise in boosting your confidence, in making you feel good and in convincing yourself that you can be whatever you want to be. That there are simply no heights in the world you cannot attain. Each time you hear yourself saying anything pessimistic or derogatory, pinch yourself and loudly contradict it. Be careful what you subject your ears to. They believe everything they hear unless the mind actively tells them not to believe. So each time you talk to yourself, say positive, encouraging things. Use the same attitude towards others around you. In time, you will find that you criticize yourself and others less and less, thereby setting the stage for only good and positive things to come into your life.

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For dream interpretations to be accurate one needs to focus on the ONE feature that stands out most while simultaneously recalling other elements that made the dream vivid or memorable. Seven years ago I had a special dream. I dreamt of white tigers and upon waking up in the morning, I knew instantly the dream was a sign of some kind. It stayed vivid in my mind for days.

In my dream, I was with Jennifer and I said to her, “Look darling – a white tiger. Neither of us were afraid and that was strange. Suddenly the tiger sprung down in front of us, jumping from the branch of large tree and I said, “Wow, he is beautiful”. Then Jennifer said “Look Mummy, there is another one…” and she pointed at the tree again and sure enough there was another white tiger high up on the tree.

No one could tell me the meaning of that dream. It was a year later after I had met my spiritual guru, Lama Zopa Rinpoche, that I discovered the meaning of that dream. He presented me with a thangka, a Tibetan painting of Buddha. The Buddha was seated on a throne and in front of the throne I saw were paintings of two white snow lions… and I realized my dream had been not of tigers but of snow lions and they heralded the arrival of my guru into my life.

Since then I have been fascinated by the prophetic nature of dream symbols and have come to realize that the greater the conviction one has that a dream is prophetic, the more meaning it conveys. Here are some dream situations that could be omens of some kind.

Accidents

Dreaming of accidents indicate a deep-seated worry about something. It suggests that in your worry you are overlooking something else that requires your attention so it is your inner most mind shaking you to look at something you have overlooked or are overlooking. If your dream has you involved in an accident, it indicates you might be worried about something being wrong with your body. Do go for a medical check up.

Adultery

If you dream of being unfaithful to your spouse, it indicates that you must be careful about confiding in someone. Be wary of new friends coming into your life. They could betray your trust. If you dream of being tempted to have an affair but did not, it means you will allow an opportunity coming into your life to pass you by.

Aeroplane

Dreaming of planes in flight indicate your creative mind working overtime. If you were the pilot, you are in command of your situation, and it means you have the freedom and ability to soar upwards and outwards. It is a good dream. If you were a passenger, it suggests some news coming into your life that could quite significantly change your attitude about something or someone.

Animals

Dreaming of wild animals heralds good news about your business. Placid animals are good omens unless they are threatening you or fighting amongst themselves. Such a scenario suggests misunderstandings arising within the work place. Dreaming of one’s pets usually has little prophetic value. But dreaming of running horses means you will outpace the competition.

Anxieties

Dreaming of your worries or of situations that occupy your mind indicate they will soon be resolved, so this is a good sign. Generally, anxiety dreams are not prophetic in nature. They simply reveal the anxious state of your mind.

Birds

Dreaming of birds is incredibly prophetic and the news is often beneficial, but how good the good luck coming your way also depends what kind of birds you dream of. Usually the more beautiful and spectacular the bird, the better the indications are. There will be opportunities coming that will make you soar into the skies. Birds in flight suggest you are already in orbit. Birds are believed to be the messengers of the Gods or of the higher inner self. They usually bring good news that in some way prepares you for greater fame and glory. Birds also suggest recognition and great fame. They herald the blossoming of your own creative impulses.

Bride / Bridegroom

Dreaming of brides suggest purity of intention. If you were the bride (or bridegroom) it suggests some hidden wish becoming fulfilled. If you dream that you kissed a bride, it means an inheritance is coming your way and if you dream of catching the bride’s bouquet, it suggests that you should rethink your life’s priorities.

Colours

Bright colours in your dreams indicate happiness in general. There is joyousness in the air. But if any of the following colours dominate, note the meanings:

Death

This is the most famous of the contrary dreams where the meaning is the exact opposite of what it suggests. Dreaming of death indicates a letting go and rejuvenation of life. So death suggests a transformation and the need to be brave, and to revitalize yourself.

Funeral

Dreaming of funerals always indicate a watershed in one’s life – funerals suggest a “letting go” of something – perhaps an attitude, an old relationship or situation. The dream is advising you to walk out of an old situation. Dreaming of funeral is also a warning against succumbing to temptation.

Fight

Dreaming of a fight often suggests some hidden grievance that must be resolved – otherwise when it does surface it could explode.

Fire

Dreaming of fire always means success if you are looking at the fire from a distance – then the larger the fire, the brighter will be your success. Fire also lays bare your deepest emotions suggesting a release and a letting go of your anger or your hidden passion. This is a good dream.

Flowers

Dreaming of flowers is generally a good omen suggesting happiness. Flowers are symbolic of beauty.

Frogs

Dreaming of frogs is a good omen. In fact dreaming of frogs is usually prophetic of a sudden windfall of cash coming into your life. It is the same as dreaming of red bats. Frogs should be green in your dream as these are the good fortune frogs.

Food

This dream is telling you are dissatisfied with your life and that something is missing. If you have recurrent dreams about food, you should give in and indulge yourself. Give yourself a hearty meal and blow the diet for a day at least.

Killing

Dreaming of a killing or of death suggests rejuvenation, a rebirth. It is prophesizing that you can successfully shrug off an old attitude, or an old expectation. A negative indication of this dream is that your lack of courage could well get you into trouble.

Kiss

If you dream of being kissed by someone, it suggests a romantic liaison of some kind. Be alert to your feelings. If you see yourself smiling with pleasure, the omens are favourable. Feelings of ambivalence usually suggest eventual disenchantment.

Mountain

Climbing a mountain indicates some sort of quest or project is coming your way. Successfully reaching the top indicates success. Mountains also indicate a need to overcome some major obstacles that stand in your way. Such dreams usually mean you should prepare yourself for something big that’s coming into your life. How things work out depends on you and how you react. Not everyone likes to climb a mountain.

Nudity

Dreaming of being nude suggests you have a secret and you worry about being discovered. If you dream of catching someone naked it means you will uncover a plot, or find out about a secret that was not disclosed to you. Dreaming about it suggests your inner consciousness somehow suspects some deceit is at hand.

Paralysis

Dreaming of being “frozen” is a common dream. It suggests a feeling of impotence, of helplessness in the face of some situation. Maybe it is better to lie low for a while.

Running

When you dream that you are running away from something, it suggests a deep-seated fear of some kind. It also means being overwhelmed by a situation or by a person. The best way to overcome such fears is to try to turn round and confront whatever or whoever you are running away from.

Snake

Dreaming of snakes means a warning of some kind. Snakes are said to be secret guardians. If the snake gets killed in your dream, it is bad omen, so you must be wary.

Spider

This indicates the tangled web you weave coming back to haunt you. Spiders generally suggest bad luck and if you dream of spiders being killed, it means your troubles will be overcome and resolved soon.

Water

Finally, a dream of water is an excellent sign. Dreaming of a waterfall indicates material wealth coming to you. In fact, any kind of water flow indicates enhanced income. Dreaming of a calm lake or a great expanse of water is a good sign especially if the water is clean. Dirty water suggests danger. If you dream of going fishing, it means you are about to set out on an important business venture. If you dream of successfully catching fish, it is a good omen.

The post Dream Symbols appeared first on WOFS.com.

Everyone knows now that WATER is the key to unlocking prosperity in feng shui, that the shui in feng shui brings the exciting results everyone wants – enhanced wealth. There are so many different formulas one can follow, so many ways to build the Water Dragon, and all that Flying Star stuff, as well as focusing attention on water stars and water flows – that it can all get a bit confusing, especially since not everyone who installs a fountain or pool in their home instantly gets richer. Why is this ? LILLIAN TOO explains smart ways with WATER and reveals some hidden taboos that sometimes block rather than bring wealth luck.

I have often explained that WATER in feng shui brings enhanced income luck and there are different ways of building water features and designing water flows in and around the home to attract this very sought-after result of using feng shui. For sure, when there is a view of water, the feng shui of any abode instantly improves and the best is to have one’s home built near a natural body of water – a lake or a river – and then creating an orientation to the home so that the cosmic forces help one to harvest the riches from the river or to tap into the wealth of the lake. This is where a skilled feng shui master can really help you to capture the luck of the water.

Natural fresh water lakes and rivers that have their source in the high mountains are the most potent in bringing good wealth luck, especially if these waters have been flowing for thousands of years. It is when one can build near such a flow or body of water that it really benefits to get a feng shui master genuinely skilled in the ways of the COMPASS to make sure your home is tilted exactly right to capture the water.

To get this orientation correctly requires the feng shui expert to engage the cosmic forces of that particular environment. Believe me, the orientation exercise can be tricky. It is easy to make mistakes. One needs to know exactly how to use the compass and precisely how to create the facing direction of the home (or building). But get it right and riches should flow to the residents of the home easily and effortlessly. Usually this exercise is best done with the help of the third dimension i.e. engaging the help of the landlord spirits of the land.

But we do not all live near lakes or rivers… people like us must create our own water flows and our own bodies of water – ponds or pools of water that are near enough, deep enough and yang enough to simulate the prosperity-bringing properties of natural water. This is possible only if you live on landed property; only then is it possible to create auspicious water that benefits your home.

The good news about water is that there are probably four or five SPOTS around your home where its presence would either enhance prosperity luck for you or subdue afflictive luck coming from harmful structures in the surrounding environment. Learning to position your water correctly is part of what good feng shui is about.

Thus for instance the front of the house where the front door is located i.e. what we in feng shui term your facing palace, is where the presence of a body of water is most helpful. In this part of the house, having yang water here would definitely enhance your growth luck and increase your net worth. This is based on the sheng chi energy located in the facing palace, and since sheng chi is of the Wood element, Water here helps the Wood grow and expand. So water at the front of the house is always a very beneficial feature.

Then comes the difficult part…

Do we create the water inside or outside the house? Here, different feng shui experts recommend different things. Some prefer the water to be outside gathering the chi and then wafting into the home through an open door or window, while other experts firmly maintain that having water inside the home, in the vicinity of the foyer area, is what will get the prosperity chi moving.

For me, I have water both outside as well as inside the home… and inside the home I prefer to place the water on the left side of the main door, as water in the middle (very good for period of 8) is not convenient for me, while water on the right will cause me too much headache in case my husband develops a heightened libido for sweet young things! To avoid this problem, I have made very sure my water is on the left side of the main door. But definitely I want water also inside the house.

Water inside the home near the foyer area, near the main door and if possible placed in the facing palace of the home is very auspicious. This is also something that can quite easily be built; and APARTMENT dwellers can also have this kind of prosperity-bringing water. The only problem is that water is most effective when it is dug into the ground. There has to be at least some kind of depth to the water – and according to the old Masters I consulted with in the old days, the deeper the water at the front of the house, the deeper will be your wealth luck! That is why building wells in the backyard or near the front of the house in the appropriate Compass location is simply so beneficial.

But while water that fills up a hole dug into the earth is the most auspicious, this is not something that can be done carelessly. Note that to have a pond of water inside the house YOU MUST INCORPORATE THIS INTO YOUR PLANS WHILE BUILDING THE HOUSE. You must not dig inside your house once you have moved in. Digging a hole in a ground inside the home especially if you or your family are living within is so BAD, and is such a TABOO, that it can cause the family to lose the house altogether and to become bankrupt.

Now that’s the secret taboo! If you want to build water inside your home, make sure it gets done before you move in. You cannot and must not dig inside the home. This disturbs the EARTH SPIRITS of your home – and the repercussions can be extremely severe.

ANOTHER SOLUTION. Or you can do what I did!

I had a very nice pond outside my house in the Seventies when my house was first built. That time my knowledge of feng shui was quite inadequate so we kept the water outside the house. It brought me luck but small luck! After I returned from my nine years in Hong Kong, I was armed with more serious knowledge of feng shui. I decided to expand my home by building around the pond, hence wrapping it around and bringing it into the home.

This signified bringing the wealth represented by the water into the home. The effect of this simple move and of the renovation did wonders for us in terms of enhancing our feng shui. Basically I had successfully brought the lucky water inside without digging.

The post Water Smarts: Wrapping Round Rather Than Digging appeared first on WOFS.com.

Conventional habits make us think of spring-cleaning – washing, dusting and sweeping away the past year’s grime and dusty buildup during the end of the year. This is excellent of course, because annual cleansing does ensure that the home does not suffer from excessive clutter and yin spirit formation building up to dangerous levels. But why should cleansing the home be only a once-a-year exercise? We already know that the malaise caused by clutter in the home, in the cupboards and in all the rooms frequently used by us, can really cause powerfully negative blockages that bring bad feng shui. So why not just create a habit to live without clutter, once and for all, and make it a habit to cleanse and de-clutter regularly.

Why not tune into the ambience of your home on a daily basis? Choose a time of day to do this, perhaps each morning or at the end of the day? Once a day, devote a few minutes to checking up on the refrigerator, the cupboards in the home, the state of the curtains and definitely the state of the messiest room in the house. Once a habit is developed, keeping the home “fresh” and cleansed becomes the foundation for the creation of powerfully bracing energy being present at all times. It’s like having a canvas to paint fresh new ideas on! A de-cluttered and clean home is what brings out all the creativity and confidence that lies latent within you.

I make sure the fallen leaves from my beautiful trees in the garden are raked at least once a day. My pipes and drains are never allowed to clog up, and my light bulbs are changed the moment they expire. Over the years, it has become a habit with me.

I have to confess that I am a compulsive de-cluttering addict. I do it all the time! I believe that a cleansed house devoid of stale energy is what keeps the family happy and joyous, filled with optimism and good vibes all the time. I keep my doors and windows open through the day to let in the air; cosmic chi from outside flows through my home all the time, so it is re-energized each time the wind blows, the rain falls and even when lightning and thunder is booming. I am a great believer of harnessing these natural energy forces whenever they occur, as they emit precious and powerful energy that is not always available…

It’s all a lot easier than it sounds. Just develop the habit. If you have a maid, create a schedule with her. People who work for you are really happier when they know exactly what you want done. Tell them what you want, then leave them to get on with the job without nagging them. Do allow some rest time and allow them to work what needs to be done into their schedule of other work. Do voice some appreciation every now and again.

If you do not have a maid, and you are a small unit family with both of you working, then create a schedule that incorporates de-cluttering and cleansing 20 minutes each day. The more regularly you maintain the visual cleanliness of the home, the less likelihood you will have of stale energy building up. So do not keep dirty dishes piled up, leave rotting food in the refrigerator, or the beds unmade every day or the bathrooms dirty and oily… make the effort! This is the way to ensure living with good feng shui.

When you feel something is wrong in the house but cannot quite put your finger on what the problem might be; when you feel that the atmosphere of your house has turned gloomy, when family members get exhausted easily, feeling disoriented, fearful and even suffer from extreme pessimism – that is when the quality of your house energy has been compromised. You need to correct things before things get worse.

Malaise is usually caused by the buildup of clutter in the home. It becomes not a nice place to come back too. You will find yourself spending more time out of the house than in the house. You (and/or your spouse) will start staying back at work later or accepting any kind of excuse not to come home. Be alert to your own warning signs.Those that have not addressed this aspect of their home maintenance and notice their family members manifesting a listlessness, or see that work is not going well or relationships are fragmenting, you might want to start tuning in to the quality of energy within the rooms of your home.

Concentrate on finding areas of blocked energy; these can be caused by stacks of old newspapers, piles of unwashed dirty laundry, grimy curtains, dark corners caused by bulbs that have blown or just the house feeling in desperate need of a clean up! When the blocked up corners are corners that are important to your animal sign, or they are afflicted corners according to the feng shui chart of the year, then you definitely must immediately unblock the hindrance by “clearing the clutter”.

Blockages in the home are what cause setbacks and problems to manifest in everyone’s life. But often, just by having the intention to clean up generates enough positive energy to make a difference and it will somehow get conveyed to the home.

These days, many people already know how effective just having positive intentions can be, so this can be applied to improving the energy of your home. The secret lies in the attitude. Make up your mind to transform your home energy and you will generate the motivation to start the de-cluttering exercise. You do not need a list of How-to’s to get started – a lot of it is common sense. What is important is generating a firm resolution to smarten up your home. Change your mind set and it will extend into your living and work spaces. Do it. Feel the difference!

The post Clearing Out the Clutter appeared first on WOFS.com.

FAMILY PORTRAITS CREATES HAPPINESS AURA IN THE HOME

This is an essential component in the Happiness Aspiration of all feng shui practice. If you want your family to stay devoted to each other, never getting separated from each other for whatever reason and always staying safe as a family unit, one of the easiest ways of ensuring this is to arrange to take a family picture of all members of the family smiling or laughing and obviously happy and secure in each other’s company. Let the camera capture the spirit of intimacy, the feeling of security and the depth of love that flow between each other.

The camera never lies, so it is good to choose an auspicious day to take the family picture. It is vital that the smiles captured are real, so every member in the picture should be feeling reasonably happy with each other. Most times, carefully planned pictures do not work as well as pictures taken of a family on vacation or doing something they love doing. Then selecting a picture that spontaneously reveals the genuine joy of the family would be ideal.

Make your feng shui family portrait as large as the room can take, so make sure you take your pictures in high resolution so the picture can be blown up big without looking murky or hazy. And let there be enough light, so outdoor pictures with good natural light always look better. if there is a suggestion of the sun’s rays sending blessing energy into the picture, it will be even more auspicious!

It is usually better not to have three people in a picture, but if there are only three of you making up the family, you can create a triangle in the way the people are positioned in the picture. In any case, family portraits are always luckier when the people are not placed in a straight line. It is always better to create a “mountain” effect, as this engages the feng shui strength of the mountain symbol. In Flying Star feng shui, the mountain star always stands for family harmony, excellent relationship luck and good health.

Family vacation shots are also when everyone is at their most relaxed, so these are great moments to capture and then use to ensure that the happiness of their being together stays with them. BUT THESE PICTURES MUST BE DISPLAYED. They have no power when they get locked away or are hidden inside photo albums that are stored inside cabinets. Then they become memories, not living testimony to the togetherness of the family!

BEING MINDFUL OF THE FIVE ELEMENTS

It is also a good idea that the picture contains all the symbolism of the five elements. This is the ultimate “secret” ingredient of many feng shui enhancers and cures. There is great power when all the five elements of Earth, Fire, Wood, Water and Metal are present, and this can manifest as colours, shapes, numbers or actual symbolism of the elements. Thus group family portraits can be extremely effective when crafted with good feng shui inputs.

When there is a beautiful family picture hanging in the living room, where everyone in the picture is shown smiling and looking secure and safe in each other’s company, the picture itself ensures protection against anyone splitting the family. It protects against intruders or third party interference coming in to break apart the togetherness of the family. This is one of the best and most effective ways of countering the influence of potential troublemakers. It is for this reason that I encourage my daughter, my niece and my nephew to always display pictures of their whole family – mother, father and two kids each – either hung up on the walls of the main rooms or placed around the home in frames on table tops, on pianos and cabinets!

I also encourage them to take family holidays, for this is when the best “happiness” pictures will get taken. Family vacation shots are also when everyone is at their most relaxed, so these are great moments to capture and then use to ensure that the happiness of their being together stays with them. BUT THESE PICTURES MUST BE DISPLAYED. They have no power when they get locked away or are hidden inside photo albums that are stored inside cabinets. Then they become memories, not living testimony to the togetherness of the family!

There is enormous power in harnessing the power of the visual image, and in today’s world when digital technology has revolutionized picture-taking to such an extent, there really is no excuse for not using visual feng shui techniques to enhance the quality and happiness of your life – and few things bring greater meaning to life or happiness as real as that brought about by the sense of family.

KEEPING YOUR PICTURES UP-TO-DATE

There is a time dimension to the practice of feng shui, and energy is a dynamic force. Energy is never static as it is constantly on the move, constantly evolving. Thus, in the same way that good feng shui needs to be updated, likewise, your family portrait also requires regular updates. Parents grow older with each passing year and children grow up faster than we realize. They develop personalities and get involved in new activities as they grow from babies to teenagers to adults.

The family portrait should reflect the changing stages of our lives and if not each year, then at least every few years, the family picture should get refreshed. There should not be a limit to the number of family pictures you display inside your home, and indeed, it is the presence of these pictures that prevents the formation of loneliness energies. If you want to permeate your home with love and friendship vibrations, then start displaying pictures that give you snapshots of memory moments of happiness.

POWER OF FAMILY PORTRAITS

If you could see into the intimate spaces of some of the most famous of families, you will find that in many cases, powerful matriarchs like the British Queen for instance fill every room in every one of her homes with framed pictures of her husband, her children, her sister, her mother and father, and these days, also her grandchildren and great-grandchildren! Thus despite the divorces and broken marriages of her children, nevertheless, her own marriage and her own family has stayed powerfully together and strong!

I have followed the fortunes of the Queen for a long time, as she is one of the icons of the past and present century I have admired for a long time; and I have always believed that for her, the power of feng shui is instinctive. She has dressed and lived with excellent feng shui all her life! She has made every palace of hers come to life with her insistence for pomp and ceremony, but she also insists on family gatherings throughout the year! Most of all she believes in images! Like I say, each time we get a glimpse into her private spaces, there will always be rows of portraits on her desk and on her side cabinets. There are even pictures of her dogs and horses!

The same can be said of all the SUCCESSFUL business dynasties of the world; the Estee Lauder family for instance is probably one of the most successfully managed thriving family business that is also a publicly-traded company. I just read a story of the two sons of the old lady who founded the company, and the pictures that accompanied the story reveal beautiful family pictures hanging on the walls of their private offices. I noticed that their table tops and cabinets had beautifully-framed pictures of family members, sons and daughters bringing their private world to life. This added much to the story on their company and on Estee Lauder’s son Ronald Lauder. I was very taken with the story. It inspired me to write this and encourage everyone to display family portraits.

There is a wonderful supremacy in the power of the visual image. Family portraits encapsulate all the vitality and inner fire of the members of the family. How easy it is to harness this incredible and powerful inner momentum! Those of you reading this, if you have not already done so, I do suggest you take this piece of advice to heart.

The post Happy Family Portraits Bring Powerful Happiness & Protection Feng Shui appeared first on WOFS.com.

In this article, LILLIAN TOO puts the spotlight on the few vitally important walls that have the potential to bring extreme good fortune or misfortune, and thus are deserving of attention. The effect of walls on residents is almost subliminal, and these days, with so many modern ways of improving the feng shui of our surroundings, there is simply no excuse to get careless about our walls.

Start by studying the location of all the walls in your home. The general rule is that every room should have at least one solid wall. This signifies the abode where the spirit of the room resides; it creates the foundation around which energy accumulates, so how the location of this one wall interacts with the rest of the home has a great impact on the mood of the home; whether it is a happy enriching wall or a source of negative depressing vibrations.

To make your walls of your home truly auspicious, constantly inspiring you and lifting your spirits, you need to work at making each important wall a strongly enhancing wall rand protect against it becoming a blocking wall that merely brings obstacles and blocking energy. So the first thing to take note of is the way the walls of the home have been positioned.

When you start looking at your walls this way, your own common sense will immediately tell you which of your walls are enhancing and enriching and which are those that just do not seem right – just asking to be knocked down !

You can have more than one solid wall but rooms should not have solid walls on three sides; otherwise the room will suffer from potentially stagnating energy; where a shortage of fresh cosmic energy soon causes the room to suffer from yin spirit formation. The room then becomes suffocating. Rooms must be airy and they should benefit from daily fresh supplies of cosmic energy . These must flow in from the great outdoors. Rooms devoid of this flow of replenishing energy tend to cause problems for residents. So there must not be too many walls blocking this vital source of energy.

Rooms should ideally have at least one wall with windows; rooms that lie in the center of the home can suffer from a lack of cosmic replenishment so they should not have more than two solid walls. Then only can energy flows not get blocked. Remember that the center of your home should not suggest too much hemmed in energy. It should never become enclosed dead end space. This guideline to good feng shui is especially important in homes which are left empty for much of the day.

These are the major walls you can work on to bring incredibly good feng shui into your living space. Focus on each one in turn and consider the different ways you can enhance their energy so they become a source of contentment, peace and even inspiration. Think of the times when these walls leave a subliminal imprint onto your mind, stamping itself into your deepest subconscious minds. This is why the walls that hit you on a daily basis must indeed induce positive rather than negative thoughts.

You can use any of the feng shui tools – mirrors, wall paper, wall decals, lights, paintings, photographs, murals, inspiring words and even powerful mantras – all these and more can be used to enhance your wall.

Some people even hang beautiful decorative images from their important walls. Or they glue on inspiring words, or carefully decorate their walls with auspicious decals that leave strong and powerful imprints. My walls are decorated in a variety of ways and I use wall decals a lot as these are subtle and unobtrusive yet so powerful in their positive effect.

Enhancement techniques do not need to imply a permanence of decoration. Walls in fact benefit from being redecorated, repainted and totally revamped every two to three years.

I redo my walls regularly either with new decorative decals or with new paintings. And definitely the walls are repainted every other year. There is nothing I love more than clean walls that hint of fresh paint. This gives the whole living area a feeling of freshness that suggests good things are just beginning. I also make sure that my walls, and everything that hangs on it or is used to decorate it, never get dirty or dusty. These get wiped daily.

Clutter and dirt are the principle enemies of good feng shui. This is why I am so compulsive about keeping all my spaces clean, free of clutter and never blocked. My walls always look pristine. Where I have installed a wall mirror such as for instance in my dining area to directly reflect the dining table and thus double our daily food on the table; or the one in my living area to double the yang chi of activity created here; these mirrors are wiped daily with a dry piece of newspaper ( this is an excellent way to enhance the mirror and keep it really sharp and clear). I also make sure my mirrors never gets smudged with dirty hands.

The WALL that directly faces your main door should not have a mirror. A reflective surface here can cause all good luck to bounce right out again; it also brings illness to the master of the house. This wall should instead have either an auspicious image or it should be left blank. You can use a matte color to create a feature wall. For instance bright red wall that faces the direction South or an understated darker green directly facing East would be lucky. Choose colours according to the element of the facing direction of the door. Thus earth or yellow colour for doors facing SW or NE; Blue for doors facing North and metallic for doors facing NW or West.

Colours can also be used to suppress some afflictive star number causing problems for your door in any given year. For instance this year, doors that face SE are afflicted by the 5 yellow, so a metallic colour wall directly facing the main door would be an excellent idea.

Any wall that faces your front door, whether it is a complete or a partial wall, should always seem welcoming; it is auspicious when it makes you think positive or inspiring thoughts related to an important ambition or aspiration of yours or it should simply bring a smile to your face. I do not have a wall directly facing my main door but I do have a two feet wide upper wall on which I hang a large plaque with nine golden dragons. This welcomes in beneficial chi and seeing it every time I come home makes me feel very welcome indeed.

Walls that are in the living room area or the dining room can also be used to hang happy family pictures. In fact it is a great idea to select an especially happy picture of the whole family together, and hang this on a prominent wall in the house. This is powerful feng shui. It creates the feng shui of safety and togetherness for the whole family.

Then on the wall leading into my home I have used golden decals to create a flock of happy birds flying into my house. these are very tastefully designed and artfully placed by the designer who makes these decals – my niece in law actually, Audrey who is married to my nephew Han Jin. She has a great artistic gift which she is cleverly channeling into making beautiful artistic wall decals that really personalizes space in the most effective way.

One of her best selling designs are exactly these birds that bring good luck and wonderful opportunities into any home. She tried them out for her own home first and since putting up these birds on the wall leading into her home, she has progressed in her career really satisfactorily. Her little online business is also growing very fast. More importantly, she has never felt happier or more fulfilled. Birds do have that kind of positive effect! Each time someone wants to sell a house for instance, creating the image of a bird on the wall here but now flying out with the price being asked for in its mouth is one way of attracting a serious buyer!

Any wall that directly faces your bed should have a soothing ambience although some people have placed inspiring words or powerful affirmations here with great success. Doing this is like practicing 3D feng shui – as subliminal thoughts get implanted onto the sub conscious mind without you even realizing it. Each night the last thing you see before closing your eyes and each morning the first thing you see before becoming completely awake should be images or thoughts that make you feel galvanized, confident and very secure. Good feng shui always follows positive thoughts. And you can use your bedroom wall to plant these thoughts into your mind. This also leads to good pleasant dreams that is so good for your subliminal feng shui.

Do avoid placing images of depressing or socially aware pictures such as starving children, depressive scenes or other nightmare inducing images in your bedroom.

The wall that directly face you at work can also be a source of affirmative words – although powerful words impacting on a busy mind cannot have the same effect as it does on a relaxed mind. If you work from home it is an excellent idea to face a water feature or a beautiful garden and if this is not possible, then simulating the presence of such would be most beneficial. Thus having a wall facing you decorated with a wall mural can be a great way of simulating the presence of flowing water or a harvesting scene … anything taken from nature that suggests something abundant or lucky will always work well. At all costs avoid anything that can represent or signify an obstacle or which appears threatening. certain types of modern artistic renditions can be harmful so be watchful of the stuff you hang in front of you.

The wall that faces me as I write in my home office is my prize Chinese painting of the 8 Immortals, each holding an auspicious object and having a wide smile on a happy face.

Finally the wall that is behind you as you work is even more important as this wall represents support for you. Whether you are at home or in the office a wall behind you is always beneficial. An image of a strong mountain placed here suggests support for you. Do not hang a picture of a hole or at your back. It is also not good having anything hostile here. Refrain from hanging pictures of sharp edged buildings or wild animals behind you.

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Lillian Too puts the spotlight on developing cosmic awareness to investigating feng shui ills around the house that could be causing problems to surface. The method involves using a special hand mudra used in conjunction with a focused mindset to investigate things that are out of sync inside your home; things that could be causing imbalances that create problems, setbacks and obstacles that block your success.

FIRST, THE HAND MUDRA

There is an investigative hand mudra you can learn to use when you wish to uncover and “smell out” negative energy that may be causing you or your family to fall sick, or causing you to experience obstacles in your life.

First, focus on whatever may be troubling you. It can be an illness, an obstacle, perhaps severe quarrelling energy, conflicts with others or within the family; troubles at work, a sudden worsening of a physical ailment, an accident, an attempted burglary or a financial crisis… actually, the problem can be anything at all, but if you “feel” that perhaps something may be not right about the energy of your space, you can find out if indeed something may be out of sync.

The hand mudra recommended here is a powerful mudra found on many sacred statues and images of Buddhas and Kuan Yin, the Goddess of Mercy. Taoist masters give it great credence in feng shui work.

Used correctly, it will draw you towards physical imbalances in your space or towards misplacements of objects that could be emitting bad energy in your important corners. These are items you may have overlooked or which have broken but you are not aware of it or it may not be immediately obvious. The mudra is sure to assist you in your feng shui detective work.

With both hands joined thus, walk around the rooms of your home in a relaxed manner, but keeping a keen eye out for the familiar objects in your home, including your furniture, decorative items that are on the walls, the tables and the floors. Be mindful of the energy at all times. Tune into it while allowing your joined hands to point the way.

Your hand mudra is a powerful investigative gesture which also affords you great auric protection. This is the mudra that connects you to the cosmic realms that are parallel to our human realm, and it also engages the assistance of the spirits and local landlords of your space. They will recognize the sacredness of this hand gesture.

When the energy of any portion of the space is negative, your hands will start to tingle or shake. If it does, do stop and look around you more closely. Your hand mudra is helping you to penetrate the chi of that part of the house, and usually, if you look closely enough, it will reveal the cause of any illness or problem area you may be experiencing.

Developing the ability to feel out spaces with negative energy enables you to play feng shui detective in your homes. You can over time systematically develop all seven of your awareness sensors to help you find the cause and then alleviate, for instance, a sudden spate of illness hurting every member of the family, an unexpected lowering of energy causing despondency which seems to sap you of your strength, a series of business setbacks causing your mood to turn negative and just almost any kind of obstacle that may affect your success.

Taoists Masters steeped in the knowledge of cosmic principles know that many negative developments/events/occurrences in any home or office can be caused by some matching affliction in the physical space; and that when what is wrong can be detected, then the cause of negativities can indeed be “traced” and then dealt with. Usually, the feeling that something around you or your home does not feel “quite right” should be pursued.

To help you understand how this works here are three examples.

1. NEST OF RED ANTS

Once some years ago, one of my maids suddenly developed an ugly red rash across the front part of her body. Nothing we used could get her out of her misery as the rash itched and caused her a great deal of discomfort. And no matter what we did, the rash simply refused to subside.

I decided to play detective and using the hand mudra walked around the inside and outside of her room. I stopped outside her window where I discovered a nest of red ants at the base of the rambutan tree there. The nest of ants was directly facing her room window and the nest itself was quite large.

I immediately appeased the ant nest with incense offering… invoking the local spirit there for assistance. Within a week, the ants appeared to have left to build their nest elsewhere. More importantly, the rash cleared up; the itch disappeared.

2. LINE ACROSS THE FACE OF LADY IN MY SCREEN

This was a Chinese Screen I used to place along one wall of my living room. It was a beautiful antique screen that featured the Queen of the West Hsi Wang Mu. There was a hairline crack across the face of this lady and when I noticed it, I realized it was really quite inauspicious.

I had developed a very severe pain across my face and was reluctant to see the doctor because there seemed no apparent reason for the pain. I used the investigation mudra to get a feel for the energy in my living areas and that was how I discovered the problem. As soon as I saw the crack, I dismantled the screen, folded it and stored it away in the back room. Believe it or not my pain vanished almost instantly.

3. BIG CRACK IN OUR RICE URN

This was something that happened many years ago but I never forgot because it made me extra careful after that. I had just returned from Hong Kong and was going through a bad time. Despite a great effort on my part, I simply could not shake off a feeling of dread and fear; it was totally illogical and unreasonable, but I kept feeling that I was about to lose some money, that my investments would go bad, that I was over spending… I could not sleep well at all. So I decided to walk round my home in the hope of seeing if perhaps something was not right with the energy.

I used the mudra and stopped in front of my rice urn. My heart skipped a beat because I was starring at a huge crack that ran the length of the urn from the mouth to the bottom. The maid had turned the crack to the back so it was not immediately noticeable.

Once I changed the rice urn, it was like a cloud had lifted. My feelings of dread evaporated and I became more confident. So sometimes when you feel uncertain and unsure of yourself and it is affecting your judgment and your relations with others, use the mudra and see if maybe something in your living space is perhaps causing you to feel the way you do.

It is a good idea to mindful of decorative objects hanging on your walls, plates used daily, art pieces standing on your mantelpiece, paintings in your important rooms, broken glass on the windows, cracked furniture in the bedroom and so forth – these can often cause bigger problems than you realize. The energy of space is sensitive to imbalances and these can manifest in afflictions and ailments that really cause problems.

The post Looking for Troublesome Feng Shui in Unlikely Places appeared first on WOFS.com.