ENVIRONMENT

• The surroundings of the house is what determines the kind and quantum of energy that the plot would receive.

• What is around the perimeter of our plot will affect the energy within because it has to cross them before entering the plot.

• It is just like a breeze passing through a scented garden before reaching you.

• What if it is a garbage dump or ditch?

• A palatial bungalow built in the midst of a slum would just not fit in energetically.

• Residents have little or no control over their environment.

• One may re arrange a plot or redesign a building but what can they do about a road or a hill?

• Choosing the environment we want to live in is an important feature.

• The environment sets the trend for our lives.

• Haven’t you noticed that most of the rich live in the same areas and the same goes for the under privileged too.

• There are three features that constitute an environment

• Geographical features

• Suburbs

• Roads

• Nature has its own way of expressing good energies.

• One can look for symptoms of good or bad energies before purchasing the plot.

• If the neighbourhood is already built up, look out for symptoms in you neighbours. Are they prosperous, do a lot of children play in the roads, is the area bright and smelling good? Are people busy?

• If there are no buildings to look for, examine the lands.

• Lands which are always wet or having puddles are bad for living.

• If water seeps from the ground it is a bad symptom.• Land with large cracks are bad too.

• Lands with rocks or pebbles on the surface are bad for energy.

• Generally barren land with no natural greenery brings unhappiness. Lands where anthills, termite hills or snake hills are present are bad for living.

• Level lands are always better for living. Sloped lands as well as those with eroded surfaces are energy deficient.

• Lands which are too high or too depressed in comparison to the environment are bad.

• Living land is one where flora flourish. Dead land has only desert plants living or not even that.

• Good Vastu would have flowering plants in the vicinity. Birds with colourful feathers in habit the area. Choosing a living land is important.

• PHYSICAL FEATURES

• Natural features of an area influence a house and its inhabitants. Physical features can easily be classified by the law of weights.

• Hills and raised spaces are obviously heavy, rivers and ponds as well as depressed spaces are light. Hills could be obstructions and rivers ducts for energy flow.

• Physical features are geographical elements. They are older and larger than many man made structures and are very powerful.

HILLS

• Hills should not be very close to the plot.

• Rocks are not good energetically for people and hilly areas have a lot of rocks in the vicinity.

• A little distance from the hills are okay and the distance to be maintained is measured by the shadow of the hill. People generally should not live in the shadow of the hill.

• A hill should also not be the first thing one sees on opening a door or a gate.

• If the hills are in a distance they are ideal in the south and west directions of the plot.

• Hills on the north and East Side of the plot are extremely bad.

WATER BODIES

• Rivers and streams flow from higher levels to lower level. Thus they serve as indicators of the levels of a place.

• Also as all the rainwater in the vicinity flows towards a water body, all land slopes towards the river too.

• Habitat sciences take into account the mobility of water. Moving water conveys energy to a place faster than other natural forces. Remember, the greatest of civilisations in the world had been founded in river valleys. They believed that not only was it convenient but also added to their power. Even today, most of the world’s important capitals have a famous river bisecting them.

• Water bodies are considered as cavities below the ground and are light in weight.

• Water bodies are excellent in the north and the east of the plot.

• They are bad in the south and west.

• Water bodies can be divided as two. Stagnant and flowing. Whereas the stagnant water is a constant influence, in the case of the moving water the direction of flow is always important.

• The direction towards which water flows is always lower and the flow should be towards the east or north.

• Rivers are best with their water flow towards the north east.

• Stagnant water like ponds and lakes are good along the northeast corner and may extend towards the east and northern sides.

• Dirty water and ditches as well as cesspools and sewers, are lower levels but do not offer the same quality of results along the northeast. . The north east corner of the plot is supposed to be clean and pure and ever rivers with higher percentages of sewerage start giving negative results.

TREES

• Trees are heavy objects and are preferred along the south and west boundaries. A tree in the exterior which blocks the northeast could cause hindrance to the inmates.

• Tall trees are best outside the west and southern boundaries of the plot.

• LIGHT• The light falling inside

the plot is highly controlled by tall objects in the vicinity.

• Tall trees outside the plot may cast shadows within. So may buildings of neighbours.

• A house should not remain in constant shade. A shaded house tires the inmates and makes them susceptible to diseases and losses.

• However the western and southern sides need to be more shady than the north and east. The north east corner should get some sunlight daily to add to the prosperity of the plot.

NEIGHBOURHOOD.

• The neighbourhood consists of man made structures. Even plot size and shapes are controlled by roads that man charts out.

• The effect of the elements of the neighbourhood can be decided by two things- Location and utility.

• Buildings and structures because of their comparative size and height could affect the building.

• It is good to live in a neighbourhood with buildings of comparative sizes. It is not good to live in a small plot sandwiched between.

• Similarly it is not good to stay in a small building sandwiched between two tall ones.

• However when buildings are only slightly taller it is better to have the taller buildings in the south and west of the plot.

• Tall buildings and structures because of their height are bad in the north and the east of the home. They could be beneficial in the south and the west directions.

• A bar or a wine shop adjacent to the plot is bad. It will cause instable energies.

• A meat shop, a butcher or an abattoir next to the house or proximal in the distance is bad. Death and dying energies are bad in the vicinity

•

• A gambling den or a horse race centre very near the house is bad. They add instability to financial matters.

• Graveyards and crematoria in the vicinity of the home are bad. Mental imbalance is the result.

• Even seemingly positive places such as temples, banks and schools are bad nearby. These suck out the energy from the area and the permanent residents suffer from lack of it.

•Keep away from public

places

roads

• ROADS• Any pathway which is used for

common usage is termed a road. The road is one important feature that determines the Vastu power of a plot.

• Roads and streets serve as conduits for energy to the plot. They also determine in which way the plots and houses are oriented.

• The nature of the road is an important factor in determining the stability of a plot

• The roads should be parallel to the cardinal directions and not cross to them.

• Only when this happens will the plot be parallel to directions and obey the laws of Vastu.

• The roads will have to be assessed on their directions, width, height, and gradients.

• While choosing a new plot knowledge of the Vastu details on the roads would be a great help.

height

• A road should not be higher than the plot or building floor. Energy moves above the level of the plot if traffic moves at a higher level than the floor. Hence the place would be energy starved.

• If your driveway or path from the gate is sloping downwards you will know that the road is higher.

Number of roads

• There could be upto four roads for a plot

• Amongst the single road plots those facing north and east are excellent.

2 roads

• Amongst the two road plots which normally occur in corners the plot with the combination of north and east roads is the best. But care has to be taken that the corner of the plot is intact.

• The full benefits of these “better plots” is possible only when coupled with good design of building.

3 roads

• In three road plots the entrance should be kept only in the middle road, regardless of any direction

4roads

• Four road plots are great, but offer best results only if it is used for public purposes

gradient

• The higher end of the gradient is considered heavier and the lower end as lighter.

• Hence using the weight principle a slope towards the north or east is good for the plots.

width

• If the roads are wider it is better for the plots on it. Wider roads offer a smoother flow of energy. Narrow roads encourage crime.

• There should not be a fly over adjacent to the plot.

Dead end/ blind end

• If the road that serves a house ends at a plot then the house is termed a blind end or a dead end. In effect the road physically stops at the gate of the house.

• This is a bad phenomenon.• Energy has a one way traffic

and gets stagnated within the plot. This causes stagnation in career and investments. Money gets locked up in needless avenues.

• Buildings on the sides of blind ends do not suffer this effect.

• Buildings on the sides of blind ends closed in south or west directions are very lucky

• The most feared of Vastu phenomenon is a street banging into the plot from across the road.

• The plot may have a single main road serving it.

• From the other side of the road a perpendicular road may join the main road.

• The perpendicular road may be straight to the plot.

• This plot is said to be hit by a spearing street.

• This feared occurrence was felt in all cultures.• It was called kuthu ( punch in Tamil),

shoola( spear in Hindi) and as a poison arrow in Chinese.

• The perpendicular road channelises a great amount of energy within the plot. It serves as a conduit for energy, which may be good or bad depending on the location it strikes on the plots boundary.

• Spears in the middle of any façade is good.

• For determining the quality of the rest of the spears one has to use the Ucham & Neecham principles, which is also used for placing doors.

• Spears on eastern or northern halves of facades turn out to be good for the inmates.

• Spears on western or southern halves of facades turn out to be bad for the inmates.

GOOD SPEARS

• To be a beneficial spear…………

• A spear on the northern side should strike the north east

• A spear on the eastern side should strike the north east

• A spear on the southern side should strike the south east

• A spear on the western side should strike the north west

BAD SPEARS

• To be a harmful spear…………

• A spear on the northern side should strike the north west

• A spear on the eastern side should strike the south east

• A spear on the southern side should strike the south west

• A spear on the western side should strike the south west

• The bad varieties of street spears have to treated with great care and attention.

• ITS BETTER TO GET A VASTU EXPERT TO HANDLE A BAD STREET SPEAR

The plot

THE PLOT

• The plot is the land on which we build the building. It is the base for the constructed structure and would definitely influence the activities in the building.

• Like the basis the soil offers a growing plant, the earth nurtures the building. We know that Vastu is dependent on earth energies and so the plot, which is the earth component of the home, is important.

• The environment of many houses could be same but the individual differences in each house starts cropping up in plots.

• Unlike the environment a lot of features can be controlled in a plot. However proper plot selection is important too.

• Just as in agriculture the plot has to nurture lives in a home too.

• The nature of the soil, the shape of the plot, man made structures like compound walls and gates, water bodies as the well and the garden features are all components of the plot.

• Man does not use the building alone. He uses the land component also to park his car or draw his water. More importantly He even uses it to cross, to reach his house.

SHAPE OF THE PLOT

• Vastu Sastra believes in balanced shapes. Rectangles the science feels is the best shape to have for a plot or a residence.

• Since it is felt that all four corners are vital in determining the different aspects in a man’s life, a rectangle offers a complete life for people living within.

• Odd plots that include circles, triangles and trapeziums are bad.

• Distortions in rectangles too could be bad. For example when some corner of a plot is chopped or truncated by the corporation (termed as a mandatory splay) problems take off.

• There are different ways in which a rectangle could be distorted.

• The space could out grow the rectangle in some point. Such outgrowths are harmful in all directions except the northeast where alone they are beneficial.

• A squarish growth is easy to identify. It would be a piece of land jutting out in some corner. The plot is said to have extended in the location this extra piece of land is.

• An angular growth is slightly tougher to identify.

• If opposite sides of the rectangular plot do not have equal lengths then the plot would have grown angularly

• The other way to find out is by going to a corner and looking out for an angle in the wall. In longer lengths the cross is easier to identify.

• Open space is considered light and so an angular extention in the north east is welcome.

an extention on any the other side is bad.

SLOPES IN THE LAND

• Perfectly level land is non existent.

• A slope is always provided by nature or architects in a plot.

• While applying the law of weights in a slope the higher land imposes more weight than the lower land.

• Hence it is important to understand the natural slopes within a plot and level it as necessary.

• The southern and western sides should be higher in land levels.

• The plot could be divided as two triangles, the moon triangle and the sun triangle. The moon half should always be higher than the sun half.

• The land should slope from the southwest corner (highest) to wards the north eastern corner (lowest) with all other parts having levels proportional to their distance from these two corners.

• The ideal situation would be when rainwater falling in the southwest corner should exit from the north east corner.

Where does rain water exit from your plot?

• That place would be the lowest in a few years time. It would be because running rainwater erodes the soil.

• In case you have a north or east-facing plot, it would be beneficial for the correct sides would get lowered. In case you have a south or west-facing plot you may do two things

• Slope the land towards your north east collect the rain water there and send it by sub soil piping outside.

• Or• You may pave or cement up the

south or west in the plot which prevents erosion.

• A slope towards the centre of the plot is very bad too.

• Depressions in the plot• Other than a general slope

land may have depressions or mounds. Generally lands with random ups and downs are bad.

• However if the depressions are grouped together than it is best to have them in the north or east for they are below the ground and hence considered light.

• The mounds have to be in the south and west for they are above the ground and hence considered heavy.

THE SOIL

• The soil is an indicator of the energies prevailing in a plot. So true is the fact that the ancient texts even classified soil as living and dead.

• The flora on a land is not only an indicator of the fertility but also the energies in the plot.

• Vegetation should be lush and the plot should look green from a distance. Natural vegetation should not be thorny

• The living soil was one where vegetation thrived and had a good water supply.

• The dead soil was usually a problem land where vegetation was sparse.

• There should not be rocks on the surface or just below it. Jagged rocks which are exposed in the plot indicate very bad energies. There should also not be pebbles on the surface. Rounded rocks or boulders indicate deflected energies.

• There should not be too many holes or crevices on the surface land should be level to a certain extent and not have too many ups and downs. Soil should not have cracks and neither should it look eroded

• Water should neither stagnate in the plot nor should the land look always look wet

• Water should not spout up from the surface with bubbles during rainy season

• The colour of the soil should not be different from the black brown range. Soil should not be whitish which indicates salts

• Soils do have their inherent smell and any foul smelling soil is bad for living.

• COMPOUND WALLS

• Compound walls determine the shape of the plot. Walls also ensure that energies do not leak from the inhabited area.

• It is often believed that a plot gains strength only after the perimeter walls have been constructed.

• The law of weights have to be applied in case of compound walls too.

• The northern and eastern walls would have to be less heavy than their opposite sides.

• So eastern compound should be thinner and shorter than the western compound

• The northern compound should be thinner and shorter than the southern compound.

• Fences are not effective as walls in prevention of energy leaks. The test for an energy leak is to know if the neighbour’s rain water or effluents flow inside the plot or vice versa

• Compound walls should not be truncated or curved in the northeast and southwest corners.

• Compound walls should also not develop cracks which are indicative of leaking energy.

GATE

• The gate is the entry point for humans and energy from the road into the plot. Gates should not be too high or heavy

• Do not have more than three gates in a side as one of them would definitely open up in a negative place.

•The gate should open inside the plot only. Gates opening outside serve as a drain of energy.

• Sliding gates are okay but not as good as swing gates. The gate should move towards west or south.

POSITIONING THE GATES

• The gates should be placed using the weight principle.

• A gate is considered lighter than walls.

• Hence the gate should be placed in the northern or eastern half of a wall.

• For a north or south-facing gate place it in the eastern half

• For an east or west-facing gate place it in the northern half

SPACE

• It is best if you can go around the house unhindered by buildings

• In some cases due to the paucity of space the main building has to be attached to a perimeter wall.

• In that case the law of weights has to be applied. The building may be linked to the west or south walls. Attaching it to the north or east compound wall will invite trouble.

• Keep the corners of the plot free from buildings. If the corners are open to sky it promises prosperity. The southwest corner can be closed with a building but under several conditions.

• When a building does not occupy the whole space of a plot, it is obvious that there is open space on its sides. The distribution of this space is important in Vastu design for once the building is in place not much can be done about it.

• The space being lighter than the building has to be correctly placed using the law of weights.

•

• The northern and eastern parts should have more space than their opposite sides.

• The building should be farther from the north compound wall than the south wall.

• The building should be farther from the east compound wall than the west wall.

• The ideal situation to provide excellent space features would be to have the building in the south west quadrant.

• WATER BODIES• Water accumulates in

depressions and lower areas. The north and east should be depressed for best Vastu effects. If water stagnates there it is beneficial and water is just the indicator for floor level.

• There are two man made subsoil water bodies in the plot.

• One is the well (open or bore)

• The other is the underground storage sump.

• The obvious location for these is low weight areas of north and east.

• Under ground water bodies are perhaps the most powerful of the Vastu features. The well in the wrong place cannot be balanced by anything else. Great care has to be taken in placing the wells.

• The well should be in the open area with sunlight falling on it. The well should not be placed under a building for it will mean locking up your resources.

• Take care to place the sub soil water body in the north east quadrant. Anywhere else it will cause trouble, the maximum being given by a well in the southwest quadrant.

• The well’s parapet wall should be circular in shape.

THE GARDEN

• THE GARDEN• The garden is a

different from other parts of the home for two reasons. It is alive and it is growing.

• Whereas being alive creates energy the constantly growing aspect of plants means it adds weight to the place it is planted in.

• A garden is pleasing to the eye and psychologically serves as a feel good factor.

• In fact there are some modern methods to cure physical and psychological ailments using flower remedies.

• There are several factors to be taken in consideration before planning a Vastu garden.

• Weight of the plant• Nature of plant

• WEIGHTS• The tree is heavy and

the grass is light. Shrubs and herbs weigh in between.

• .

• Heavier plants like trees should be planted along the south and west walls. The northeast should have a lawn and east and north should have herbs and shrubs.

• NATURE OF PLANTS

• Avoid spiny plants in the garden as they cause anger and frustration.

• Do not have plants that yield a milky latex when broken.

• Encourage fruit and flower yielding plants They help in fructifying of your efforts.

• Do not grow plants that are natives of deserts like cactus. They cause anger

• MAINTENANCE• If you can’t maintain it,

don’t have a garden. It could do more harm than good.

•Whereas a well maintained garden replenishes the energy that inmates use up. A badly kept garden sucks up the residual energy of the house too.

• Water, weed and nurture the gardens well and they will nourish the energy within the house.

• Don’t let the wilted plants or dead branches remain. Attention on a daily basis helps.

• However, do not change the natural shape of plants. Topiary may look good but every plant has a shape suited to the energies prevailing around it. Changing it would alter the flow.

• Don’t over water the garden for it should not be wet perpetually nor should water stagnate as puddles.

• Ensure that no litter or organic matter remains in the northeast. It helps to maintain the north east clean.

• OTHER RULES• No trees should be

touching the main house. Trees to be well away from constructed areas.

• .

• Trees should be equally spaced and even in number. Then it would be ensured that weight would approximately increase at the same rate in all areas

• Plants along the north and east compound walls should not grow beyond the wall height. They will restrict the flow of energies.

• .

• No trees should be placed opposite doors or gates. This shoola is a negative feature for inmates.

• Fountains and ponds should be placed in the north and east.

• Rock gardens should be placed in the south and west of the garden.

• Pots within a house should also follow the weight rule and should be avoided in the north and east.