Geomancy

Nathanial GoodmanThe Art of China. Professor J.P. Park

2012.12.14

Geomancy is the Korean word for Feng Shui. The term "geomancy" translates as earth

divination. Its main concern pertains to the selection of favorable (auspicious) house and grave

sites, and the construction of those respective structures in a harmonious manner. "Certain

locations are more auspicious than others.”1 It is therefore the geomancer's duty to analyze

landscapes, determine auspicious locations, and construct harmonious structures to modify the

landscape in order to receive its benefits.

Feng Shui is the Chinese word for geomancy. Feng meaning wind, and Shui, meaning

water can provide insight as to the origins of the practice. "An analysis of the basic principles of

geomancy strongly suggest that geomancy derived from man's knowledge about his environment

and that house geomancy developed earlier than grave geomancy.”.2 Because of the translations

of the terms "feng" and "shui" it can be assumed that site selection primarily dealt with basic

human necessities: the need for water, pertaining to personal needs like drinking, cooking, and

washing, the needs of domesticated animals, and agricultural needs like irrigation for example. It

is believed that water holds energy. Wind seems to be dealt with as a catalyst for comfortable

living. Windy conditions are harsh, and shelter is a basic necessity for life. Wind disperses

energy. These terms also exhibit a duality. Although water (feng) which connotes "god's" favor,

can facilitate the growth of life essentials, too much water, like flooding for example is

destructive. Wind (shui or yu) connotes "god's" disfavor, however wind is essential in seasonal

fluctuations and weather patterns. Wind brings the warm spring weather and allows for rain. This

duality can be examined in all cases of Feng Shui and is prominent in Chinese philosophy.

1 Hong-key Yoon. Geomantic Relationships Between Culture and Nature in Korea. Taipei: The Oriental Cultural Service ,1976. 12 “Feng Shui”. (11 December, 2012). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feng_shui

"Geomancy must have developed long before the development of cities.”3 One can

assume this because cities, specifically walls provide for the protection from wind, and have

wells from which to collect water. If one lives in a city, the basic necessities for life are

intrinsically met (protection from wind and water for life). Once these basic necessities were

met, people could become concerned with other matters, like proper burial of the dead.

"The first form of Chinese geomancy was concerned with house selection only; later this idea

was influenced by Chinese ideas of ancestor worship and filial piety. subsequently it began to

deal with the selection of grave sites.”4 Filial piety is a Chinese concept rooted in Confucianism,

pertaining to the devotion of one's self to their parents, or through marriage, the parents of the

male partner. Filial means “of the son or daughter”, and piety means “devotion”, generally in a

spiritual sense. This includes composing one's self in a good respectable manner, and acting this

out toward parents and the outside world in order to generate a good name for the family.

Because there is no "I" or individuality in the pious beliefs of Confucian China, one can say that

they are synonymous with their ancestors, and that the ancestors live on through the living

descendents and family name. " Duty to the family was greater than duty to anything else

including ones self, I doesn’t exist apart from family and destiny is inseparable.”5 A pious

individual would seek to support their parents when of age, obtain and maintain a respectable

career, and mourn the deaths of and make sacrifices to the deceased parents. It is because of this

concept that grave geomancy became a prominent practice.

Grave Geomancy could arguably be the most important form of Geomancy. Due to the

size of an auspicious location, or geomancy cave, and its situation amongst land forms, the sites

3 Hong-key Yoon. Geomantic Relationships Between Culture and Nature in Korea. Taipei: The Oriental Cultural Service ,1976. 2494 Ibid 2545 Ibid 158

themselves appear to be more conducive to burials of singular individuals, rather than to the

construction of cities. A geomancy cave is the area where vital energy becomes of use to man.

Because the focus of Geomancy is to utilize the energy of the earth intrinsic to auspicious places,

it would seem more effective to allocate this energy for a specific purpose and lineage. This

energy can be obtained by the burial of bones (of ancestors) in the location. “Parents are

considered as the main body (root) of their children.”6 The energy propagates through the bones

and the blessings of the place are received by the decedents of the buried ancestor. "Every living

body is a concentration of vital energy, condenses to form bones, influence descendants by

returning the vital energy from the bones… the mediator between the vital energy under the

ground and the living descendants are the bones of the ancestor .”7 So one can see that bones are

a conduit for the transfer of this vital energy from the land to the descendents. More so just as it

was the son's duty to the parent to be filial, it was the parent's pleasure to have the honor of

having many children, and a successful lineage. " Ancestors could know nothing more pitiable

than to see the discontinuance of the family line.”8 Therefore it was in conjunction with the

wishes of each family member to have an auspicious gravesite and burial, and to receive the

benefits of the land for the propagation and flourishing of the lineage."[If he] did not have

descendents, then who would take care of his grave?... The wish to have prosperous descendants

can be seen as the desire for a guarantee that they, as ancestors, will be serve.”9

Vital energy is crucial to the Geomantic System. Without the vital energy there would be

no reason to seek out auspicious locations, and no blessings to receive from the sights even if

6 Hong-key Yoon. Geomantic Relationships Between Culture and Nature in Korea. Taipei: The Oriental Cultural Service ,1976. 267 Ibid 268 Ibid 1589 Ibid 159

found. "Vital energy gives birth to all things and supports all living things. ”10 The nature of the

energy is cyclic, and can be characterized by the confrontation of Yin and Yang. “generally the

energy of Ying-Yang belches and becomes wind, ascends and becomes clouds, fights and

becomes thunder, descends and becomes rain, flows under the ground and becomes vital

energy.”11 One can see that the vital energy does not stay everywhere. A location must meet

geomantic requirements in order to hold the energy. In addition, in accordance with the natural

order, it is easiest to obtain the vital energy from the ground, because the ground unlike wind and

water does not move. To further understand the concept of vital energy, one must understand the

idea surrounding auspiciousness. This is because the vital energy is only accessible through

auspicious locations. The underlying principle of site choice is that some locations are more

favorable or auspicious than others. This has to do specifically with surrounding land forms, and

how they direct the flow of wind, water and energy through the land itself. "Auspicious sites can

only be found by examination of the landscape according to geomantic principles.”12 After a

suitable location is found, a burial in accordance with auspicious dates and times must be

conducted to utilize the energy of the location. "Once acquired and utilized lineage can be

influenced by the auspiciousness of the locale.”13

The presence, absence, and flow of vital energy is dictated by land forms, specifically by

mountain ranges and water courses. Mountains are the most important land form as they dictate

the flow of water courses. They therefore direct the movement and storage of vital energy to

places, and deflect wind as to preserve the concentration of vital energy. There are many

different types of mountains characterized by their shape, but the general form of mountain or

10 Hong-key Yoon. Geomantic Relationships Between Culture and Nature in Korea. Taipei: The Oriental Cultural Service ,1976. 2511 Ibid 2512 Ibid 2513 Ibid 211

continuation of mountains attributed to the flow of energy are characterized as dragons.

"Dragons are mountain formation that control energy.”14 Dragon is a seemingly appropriate term

because the oriental dragon, more serpentine than the western conception of the dragon,

undulates and winds, and exhibits the anthropomorphic character within the mountains. This then

describes the organic nature of the dragons, which direct the flow of vital energy through them.

"[They] direct the flow of energy into a geomancy cave - a site where the power of the

surrounding land can be available to man.”15 It can thus be determined that the Geomantic

Landscape is "A living organism with vital energy [who's parts] form a system to produce

auspicious places.”16 This is analogous to the parts of a plant which are linked together in the

production of fruit and acquisition of nutrients. This also relates to the transfer of energy from

the ancestor’s bones to the descendents. “This belief can be analogous to a root or a trunk of a

tree with many branches. When the dead bodies of the parents or ancestors are suffused with

vital energy, the remaining living branches also may receive the benefits from the energy.”17

In the Geomantic System, there are essential landforms that provide for an auspicious

location. These land forms in conjunction with certain appreciations are required to generate and

hold vital energy in an area and connote it as auspicious. In the system there are four important

mountains: the Black Turtle or Main Mountain, the Azure Dragon, the White Tiger, and the Red

Bird. The Black Turtle is a large mountain located at the end of a dragon. The Azure Dragon

extends down from the Black Turtle on the left side, and the White Tiger on the right. They must

provide shelter for the Geomancy Cave. The Red Bird is positioned in front of the Geomancy

Cave. In addition to being present, the mountains must meet certain requirements, namely,

14 Hong-key Yoon. Geomantic Relationships Between Culture and Nature in Korea. Taipei: The Oriental Cultural Service ,1976. 3015 Ibid 3116 Ibid 2817 Ibid 27

exhibit a willingness to channel energy into the Geomancy Cave. Some examples of this

willingness are anthropomorphized as: "Bend[ing] its head toward the geomancy cave, flying

and dancing in the air, [having a] desire to embrace the cave with ends bending inward to watch

the Geomancy Cave, trained like a well trained dog whose master doesn't have to worry about

being bitten.”18 There are additional requirements concerning mountains. The most important is

the idea of connectivity. If there is not a connection between the landforms, the site is not

auspicious, as the vital energy cannot flow from the dragon and Black Turtle to the Geomancy

Cave. Others stipulations are: Parts of a dragon must run in elemental order and be beautiful,

they must exhibit dense vegetation and plenty of wild life, and they must keep the wind out.

Some important caveats follow. Mountains are not dragons. Mountains have dead energy. Rocks

are the bones of mountains. They have no vital energy. A hill is not important; it is just an area

higher than the surrounding landscape. It has no energy. A branch or a continuation of hills from

a dragon can carry energy.

There are some important things to remember in regards to the classification of

mountains. These can generally be attributed to other entities such as landscapes as a whole, or

something small like a Geomancy cave. Living and dead are relative terms that describe a

measure of organic-ness. Living things are attributed lots of character. The shape of mountains or

landforms is related to the quality its energy. Also, "Mountains, and all things can be

characterized by elemental form.”19 In addition, mountains and Geomantic Landscapes will be

characterized by anthropomorphic appearance. Examples of this are: A floating lotus, a thirsty

dragon drinking water, and an azure crane sitting at its nest.

18 Hong-key Yoon. Geomantic Relationships Between Culture and Nature in Korea. Taipei: The Oriental Cultural Service ,1976. 3419 Ibid 40

Secondary to mountains are attributes of water, soil and wind. Soil is of prime importance

because it "has direct effects on bone preservation.”20 A firm yellow fine soil is considered

auspicious, as is living virgin soil that has never been dug. Wind more often than not carries

energy away however, a calming wind brings energy. The presence and character of wind is

dictated by mountains, therefore, mountains can prevent the leaching of energy. Most important

of these three is water. "Acquiring water is more important than calming wind.”21 This is because

water holds energy. If there is no container, the energy cannot exist. "If there is no water, vital

energy will flow away from the place.”22 Much like the Azure Dragon and White Tiger, the

water should flow in such a manner as to embrace the auspicious place from an angle

perpendicular to the mountain ranges. Ideal water will be gentle in form and beauty. It will

meander and the river will bend many times. The river won't be small and stagnant, nor large and

raging. This will carry energy away, or impede its existence. Direction is of the utmost

importance concerning water flow.

Before analysis of actual geomantic practice, I feel it necessary to discuss the application

of Geomancy and its operation within a magical system. Sir George Frazer defined magic as “A

spurious system of natural law… fallacious guide of conduct, a false science as well as an

abortitive art… A system of natural law where rules determine sequence of events.(Frazier).

"Magic is always an art, never a science; the very idea of science is lacking in [the magician's]

undeveloped mind.”23 Aleister Crowley provides a more optimistic insight "Magic is the science

and art of causing change to occur in conformity with will...the reconciliation between free will

20 Hong-key Yoon. Geomantic Relationships Between Culture and Nature in Korea. Taipei: The Oriental Cultural Service ,1976. 4521 Ibid 4822 Ibid 4823 Sir James George Frazer. The Golden Bough. Sympathetic Magic: 1. The Principles of Magic. http://www.bartleby.com/196/5.htm 1

and destiny.”24 It is beyond the scope of this paper to confirm or refute the effectiveness of

magical practices, however it seems necessary to discuss in a scholarly manner, the functionality

and rationality behind the practices of Geomancy and Feng Shui, in a historic and modern sense.

There are many types of magic, but the principles of sympathetic magic seem to fulfill the need

of the Geomantic System. With in the sympathetic system, there are two laws, the Law of

Similarity, and the Law of Contagion.

The Law of Similarity, addresses the principles of Homeopathic Magic. That is that "Like

produces like, or an effect resembles its cause.”25This principle is exhibited when analyzing

landscapes to provide cures or "curses", and in house geomancy takes into consideration of a

missing area of the Bagua. If, for example, the fortunate blessings area is missing in the house, or

the toilet is situated in that area, there will be no fortunate blessings because they are either

missing in the lives of the residents, or symbolically being flushed down the toilet, and

opportunity lost. This can also be exhibited in the Geomantic Landscape System.

According to geomancy, the village Daksil [literally, chicken village] is a geomantic landscape of a golden chicken sitting on its eggs. Thus, the name of the village derived from the geomantic concept. It is said that the people are advised not to dig wells in the village because extracting water from wells would be analogous to extracting blood from the brooding chicken.26

The Law of Contagion states that "Things which have once been in contact with each

other continue to act on each other at a distance after the physical contact has been severed.”27

This principle seems to be exhibited in a singular circumstance, but, however is the utmost

importance to the functioning of the Geomantic System. That circumstance is the contagiousness

between the bones of ancestors and the living descendents, and functions solely by contagion.

24 Aleister Crowley. Magic without Tears. New Falcon Publishing: Tempe, 1973. 2725 Sir James George Frazer. The Golden Bough. 2. Homeopathic or Imitative Magic: 1. http://www.bartleby.com/196/6.htm 1 26 Hong-key Yoon. Geomantic Relationships Between Culture and Nature in Korea. Taipei: The Oriental Cultural Service ,1976. 9527 Sir James George Frazier. The Golden Bough. 3. Contagious Magic: 1. http://www.bartleby.com/196/7.htm 1

"Every living body is a concentration of vital energy, condenses to form bones, influence

descendants by returning the vital energy from the bones – mediator between the vital energy

under the ground and the living descendants in the bones of the ancestor .”28 As Yoon exhibits,

the bones are the quintessential link between the vital energy present in the location of their

burial and the descendents of the buried ancestor, in addition to exhibiting the contagious

principles. Additionally, it is important to understand that geomancy operates on a symbolic

system. Often representations are used to produce the manifestation of homeopathic effects.

“Chinese homes are filled with paintings and ceramics that symbolize all sorts of good fortune. A

pair of mandarin ducks symbolize happiness in love.”29

Feng Shui and Geomancy have been dynamic practices, changing and adapting with the

needs of people since their origins. This can be seen throughout the progression of the art and its

applicability from site selection oriented towards survival, to grave site and city selection, to the

modification of housing sites, within a city. “This…however, is not only a condensation of the

geomantic superstitions of former ages, but it carries the doctrine of Feng-shui farther by

extending the geomantic influences, which were formerly ascribed to graves only, to the

dwellings of the living.”30

The need for gravesites has changed significantly from historic to modern times. Due to

the utmost importance of auspicious burial, individuals would emaciate their finances to

compensate geomancers for their services. In addition grave site selection allotted for trips into

the wilderness, where natural beauty was sought out and appreciated. The appreciation of nature

was intrinsic to geomantic fieldtrips. “geomantic trips offered good opportunities for Koreans to

28 Hong-key Yoon. Geomantic Relationships Between Culture and Nature in Korea. Taipei: The Oriental Cultural Service ,1976. 2629 Lilian Too. Basic Feng Shui: An Illustrated Reference Manual. Oriental Publications: South Australia, 1997. 5230 Ernest J. Eitel. Feng-Shui: The Science of Sacred Landscape in Old China. Synergetic Press: London, 1873. 57

appreciate nature.”31 Natural beauty is of course a necessity for auspiciousness. With the advent

of urbanization, including but not limited to the construction of cities and cemeteries, and the

introduction of Christianity and western thought, the demand for geomantic field trips has

significantly decreased. “In cities, and other urban areas, buildings become mountains, and roads

take on the energy flow of rivers… Chi must be allowed to slow down, meander, revolve and

accumulate.”32 Thus it can be seen that substitutions and Feng Shui cures can be used to

compensate for practically any shortcoming of the landscape. Furthermore, it has become more

necessary to thoughtfully plan a city than to venture out into the wilderness seeking auspicious

locale. Christianity does not allow room for interpretive “false sciences” laid out by the I-Ching

and Geomantic doctrine. Burials were of course conducted in a fashion conducive to the ensuing

culture, deeming the Geomantic practices anachronistic. It can be seen from European dealings

with practically every culture in Colonial times, that an incorporation of native culture and belief

in to their system of thought would have be digressive to European life style and culture. This is

evident especially in the writings of Eitel where he uses terms like “blind gropings, nonsense,

and childish absurdities.”33 to describe the practice of Feng Shui.

The idea of the cemetery has also been a driving force contributing to the down fall of the

practice of Grave Geomancy. The cemetery provides a convenient and expedient means for

disposing of the dead. No longer would a monk have to be carried into the wilderness, to locate

an auspicious grave site. Bodies could be buried readily after death, near the homes of the

descendents. Despite the obvious advantages of localized mourning and applicable filial

devotion; auspicious gravesites required time and energy to access. Do to the size of the

31 Hong-key Yoon. Geomantic Relationships Between Culture and Nature in Korea. Taipei: The Oriental Cultural Service ,1976. 19932 Lilian Too. Basic Feng Shui: An Illustrated Reference Manual. Oriental Publications: South Australia, 1997. 3433 Ernest J.Eitel. Feng-Shui: The Science of Sacred Landscape in Old China. Synergetic Press: London, 1873. 69

geomancy cave it is quite unlikely that even if a graveyard was positioned in an auspicious

location, that the whole cemetery would receive the benefits. The practice of grave geomancy

has not altogether been ruled out however. “Some rich Koreans higher famous Geomancers and

search for auspicious grave sites with airplanes and helicopters.”34 Therefore, geomancy still

appears to be a tool utilized by upper class individuals to generate power. “In more recent times

it has also been speculated that both Mao Tze Tung and Deng Xiao Ping owed their rise to power

to the most special orientation of their respective ancestors’ graves.”35

The need and the function of the tools necessary for geomancy have hardly remained

static. The original tools were undoubtedly intuition and carful observation particularly in

relation to environmental direction. Prevailing winds come from the west and north in the

northern hemisphere. Weather tends to travel down landscape features in conjunction with this

prevalence. South is the aspect of solar input. This would make a housing site that was sheltered

from the north and west, but exposed to the south ideal. One could infer these things from simple

observation. In addition, it can be assumed that no mechanical device was needed for a

Geomancer to deduce an auspicious location from land forms. “The first compass called piao

consisted of a magnetic spoon and always settled due north. From this simple compass dating to

the time of the Han dynasty, the complicated geomancer’s compass was invented.”36

After the invention of the directional compass, the geomancer’s compass was close to

follow. “The Luo pan or [Geomancer’s] compass is the basic reference tool used by past

masters.”37 What differentiates the Luo pan from the directional compass is the addition of

concentric circles surrounding the compass dictating the cardinal direction. “These circular rows

34 Hong-key Yoon. Geomantic Relationships Between Culture and Nature in Korea. Taipei: The Oriental Cultural Service ,1976. 20435 Lilian Too. Basic Feng Shui: An Illustrated Reference Manual. Oriental Publications: South Australia, 1997. 836 Dr. Evelyn Lip. What is Feng Shui?. Academy Group LTD: London, 1997. 12-1337 Lilian Too. Basic Feng Shui. 61

of words correspond to trigrams, elements, yin and yang attributes, stems, branches, lo shu

numbers and other meanings.”38 From the information provided by the Luo pan, a Geomancer

can align a city, structure or grave in accordance with the needs of an individual within the

confines of the natural environment. One can see that the abilities of the compass have

developed in accordance with the needs of humans as civilization progressed. The compass

provides the template for the alignment of the Pa Kua. The Pa Kua provides a frame work for

spatial organization. It is essentially a floor plan that designates places of power within a system,

like a house. There are two arrangements of the Pa Kua: That of Early Heaven and Later

Heaven. The Early Heaven arrangement is designated as yin, and is oriented to dictate

arrangement of the dwellings of the dead or grave geomancy. The Later Heaven arrangement is

dedicated to the dwellings of the living and is yang. It is divided into nine sectors, with a trigram

associated with each. “This dictates which family member will receive the most benefit from

being situated in a certain part of the house.”39 Trigrams can be read into further, and deal

significantly with elemental and yin yang theory, divination and the human being, however a

detailed discussion of the trigrams is beyond the scope of this paper. Power in each room is

kinetic. Its variety and focus changes on a fractal scale ranging from eons, to the second. This

energy could be described as sinusoidal, having peaks and troughs in each room. Hypothetically

speaking, one could utilize the benefits of the energy at all times, but it would require moving

around the house to follow the transition of energy.

An alternative to the Pa Kua is the Bagua. “It derives from the I-Ching and can be laid

over the plans of your home or workspace to show which areas of the building relate to which

aspects of your life. Knowing this means that everything in your home takes on more

38 Lilian Too. Basic Feng Shui: An Illustrated Reference Manual. Oriental Publications: South Australia, 1997. 6139 Ibid 66

significance, because now its symbolism can be directly related to different asp40ects of your

life.” It is unclear when the Bagua developed, however it is a more expedient and user friendly

tool to the lay Feng Shui practitioner than using the Pa kua in conjunction with a geomantic

compass. This is because in order for the Bagua to function, it only needs to be aligned with the

front door of the house, and does not require training to interpret the Geomantic Compass.

Furthermore, the application of the Bagua and Pa Kua, can be applied to everything. “Just as life

is a series of microcosims within macrocosims, so there are baguas within baguas. There is a

bagua of the plot of land that your home stands on. Then there is a bagua for the actual building.

Within that there are baguas within each room of the building. You can even take it right down

to the baguas of individual desks beds and so on.”41 To further spatial analysis beyond direction,

there exists a geomantic ruler. This is subdivided into segments, or cycles. “Each cycle measures

17 in or 43 cm, and each cycle is categorized into eight segments. The cycle of lucky and

unlucky dimensions then repeats itself over and over again to infinity.”42 The ruler can be used to

measure everything. If the end of a dimension falls into a certain category it is designated as

auspicious or inauspicious. This has positive or negative effect, and the effects of the item can be

further classified. It can be determined that the ruler has not always been part of the Geomantic

System. Dimension seems unnecessary and inferior to the idea of shelter in an ideal location, and

early civilization was probably more concerned with the acquisition of shelter and its utility

rather than the metaphysical implications that ensued. It can be assumed that the ruler developed

within the parameters of auspicious theory on a per need basis. As life became more

40 Karen Kingston. Creating Sacred Space with Feng Shui. Broadway Books: New York, 1997. 21341 Ibid 21342 Lilian Too. Basic Feng Shui: An Illustrated Reference Manual. Oriental Publications: South Australia, 1997. 68

comfortable, and material possessions accumulated, the need to analyze their influence became

necessary.

When Feng Shui transcended the Pacific Ocean, and officially began being practiced in

the west, it underwent certain changes; it needed to adapt to fit its environment. These changes

were deemed necessary for the uptake of the practice, in order for it to take root in the United

States. The allocation of Feng Shui to the U.S. is accredited to His Holiness, the Late

Grandmaster, and Professor Lin Yun. Master Yun is a Master within the Black Sect of Tantric

Tibetan Buddhism. This tradition is deeply rooted in the Bon tradition, and “is the convergence

of first stage Bon with Buddhism.”43 What distinguishes this sect of Tibetan Buddhism from

others is it’s uptake of Chinese philosophy.

As the four main traditions of Tibetan Tantric Buddhism spread into China, Nyingma, Kagyu, Sakya, and Gelug still retained their religious purity by maintaining its Tantric Buddhist essence. Only the Black Sect Tantric Buddhism absorbed some of the traditional Chinese philosophies and cultures, such as Taoism, Confucianism, Ying-Yang philosophy, Eclecticism, applications of I-Ching, applications of Ba-Gua, Theory of Ch’i, Feng Shui, holistic healing, divination, folklore, esoteric and  exoteric Buddhist teachings. These were all amalgamated into the essence for the formation and development of the third stage of Black Sect Tantric Buddhist teachings.44

I had the opportunity to meet with Laurelyn Baker, a practitioner trained in the Black

Sect of Tibetan Buddhism, and a student of H.H.M. Lin Yun, in addition to being a member of

the Ojibwas tribe, where she holds a position as a Sundancer and Pipe carrier. She was kind

enough to share with me her perspectives pertaining to the development of Feng Shui in the

United States. Ms. Baker does not practice Feng Shui with a Geomantic Compass. “The compass

is in the heart. Master Yun believed that the compass would never be taken up in the west. I

think he was right.” 45 Because the system in the U.S. developed without the compass, the Bagua

43 http://www.yunlintemple.org. 2011. Introduction. 11 December, 2012.44 Ibid Introduction.45 Laurelyn Baker (Feng Shui Practitioner) in discussion with the author. 30 November, 2012.

functions to dictate spatial arrangements. Baker also described an “old way” of practice and how

hers differs from that. “The old way includes a directional ceremony where one talks to the

house and the land. This is used to set the mood and to prepare for the work ahead, by opening

the heart, and focusing the mind, body and spirit.”46 Some of the biggest contingencies of the old

system regarding practice in America are the difference of direction, energy and presence of

spirit. “[The United States aka] Turtle Island has very different energy [than main land Asia].47

She also noted fundamental differences in the energetic appearance of houses. “The spirit of the

house is not always present in the U.S.”48 In addition, directions function differently. Magnetic

north will always be magnetic north, however instead of a basic four cardinal direction format,

the directions on this continent also include above, below and center.

When asked specifically about her practice she provided me with a general frame work.

Before consultations, she generally asks for floor plans of the house, as well as information

pertaining to the residents. In addition, she asks that before her visit, that the residents acquire

nine red envelopes, and nine singular dollar bills. She asks that time is spent with each dollar bill

in meditation to generate intention pertaining to the desires for the person(s) involved. The color

red and the currency are symbolic of protection and prosperity; In this matter, life and future are

protected. She performs a ceremony upon meeting the residents of the dwelling. This is

important because of how personal Feng Shui is. It is in a sense energetic therapy, where truth

and honesty are essential. After the ceremony, she walks through the house, and will provide a

list of suggestions, ordered by importance to improve the conditions of the residence. Some

suggestions generally include modifications to the positions of items, the creation of space, or

elimination of harmful sources of energy, and color and design suggestions. I expressed to her

46 Laurelyn Baker (Feng Shui Practitioner) in discussion with the author. 30 November, 2012.47Ibid48 Ibid

that through my research I had come to the conclusion that Feng Shui was concerned with the

utilization of the energies available. Not once had I come across information speaking to a

reciprocal nature of the art. In addition, I inquired as to the intentions of her practice and

personal beliefs in it. She responded with the following thoughts. “People are where they are.

They are stuck, and have to deal with [the decisions of] city planners, architects, housing

designers, etc. Sight selection is very rare these days.”49 She feels it is her responsibility to deal

with the invisible or intention first. She feels that having a home is a big deal, and that not

everyone appreciates what is innate in the concept and materiality or a home, especially in this

culture. “Giving back is done by balancing a structure; by making it harmonious. Buildings are

situated in an energy grid. We can give back through perfection. Dedicate the spirit and harmony

to everyone.”50 She believes that by creating whole harmonious spaces, we in essence create

temples, which propagate and broadcast intention. By having good intention, positive influence

is generated. “In this way individuals can have a complete way of life by relating to space.”51

Feng Shui has come a long way since its principle commencement as site selection for

shelter. It has developed a complex mythology and an interpretive system along with tools to aid

in this analysis. Feng Shui has many admirable aspects, and although subjective in theory, in its

performance, great power is intrinsic. It will be up to the practitioners of the future, and the

people who seek a middle path in life to use its knowledge and systems and apply them to benefit

themselves and the world around them, and it will be interesting to see how the system continues

to change and adapt as it experiences different people, countries, continents, and possibly planets

and the systems inherent to them.

49 Laurelyn Baker (Feng Shui Practitioner) in discussion with the author. 30 November, 2012.50 Ibid51 Ibid

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