Adjust Your Energy Level With Feng Shui

In our world of high speed internet, bullet trains and space travel, it is very difficult to know what our energy level should be. We are on a linear projection where new records are being set that make us and all devices go faster and faster. Western philosophy is in a forward thinking mode that endorses all futuristic endeavors and only looks back on the past as record keeping of historic data.

Eastern philosophy, which includes our tenets for feng shui, has always advocated a mode of checks and balances with a cyclical approach. Yin and yang are the algorithms that establish boundaries and limits. Lillian Too distinguishes between yin qi (chi) and yang qi. It is crucially important that the two are balanced and tailored to our needs. Too much yin qi will result in stagnation and blockages. You will find yourself stuck and unable to move forward with creative endeavors. Too much yang qi will make you hyperactive and lead to adrenal exhaustion.

We must also correlate the energy that flows through our homes with qi that circulates through our body. Sleeping, eating, exercising and breathing are all part of body qi and the energy that fuels it.

To create a check list for both types of qi, take a leisurely walk through your house and garden and record your reactions:

• Are your pathways straight, creating yang qi that will make you speed up? Your pulse might be fast.

• What about your hallways, are they narrow and make you feel like you’re being squeezed? Do you feel tightness in your chest?

• Do all your doors open all the way or are they stuck half way because of clutter stashed behind them? Do you feel constricted and is your breathing shallow? Or have you experienced joint pain?

• When you open closet doors, are you facing stuffed shelves or does the stuff come tumbling out at you? Your heart might be racing with palpitations.

• Is your desk piled high with stacks of papers and files waiting to be processed? Every time you see it, your blood pressure might go up.

• How about dirty dishes in the kitchen sink? Slight nausea might cause you to feel dizzy.

• Is your attic packed with years of accumulated possessions? Have you suffered from migraine or mood swings?

• Is your garage too full to accommodate your car comfortably? Do you feel like life issues are not moving smoothly or not getting resolved?

• Do you have dark corners or unused rooms? Have you felt blue or depressed?

Feng shui cures are designed to make us feel better. Here are our recommendations for achieving optimal well-being in your space:

• Assess your needs according to your activities. Body qi is totally interconnected with environmental qi.

• Body qi responds to colors. Blues and purples can calm our energy level, while reds and bright colors will stimulate body energy.

• Music will stimulate or sooth body qi, and fragrances can elicit all kinds of responses in our autonomous nervous system.

• Temperature and light will increase or decrease personal energy responses.

• Food has energetic qualities that can make us feel lethargic or fire up our digestive juices.

• Living and dining rooms, play rooms and media rooms are gathering areas and therefore should have a lot of yang qi. Make sure they are open and bright. Cheerful décor, uplifting art, music and pets, all create yang qi and stimulating energy responses.

• Bedrooms need to be quiet spaces designed to slow down body qi. New and vital energy is created while we sleep. Proper rest in a calm environment will recharge our batteries and prepare us for a new day of work and play.

• The best cure of all is the art of creating empty spaces. Imagine the shiny surface of an empty desktop or a clear dining room table with a fresh bouquet of flowers in the center.

• Let clear images guide you into some serious clutter clearing for a future of exciting opportunities.