2009-11-22 ~ The Feng Shui Trader

Feng Shui Bed Arrangement

>> Friday, November 27, 2009

Your bedroom is your ultimate inner sanctum where you are at your most vulnerable while you sleep and recharge your chi. From a yin yang fengshui perspective, your bedroom should be more yin, quiet and peaceful. You need to feel protected and do not want distracting and powerful chi to disturb your rest. At the same time, there is a need to have a good circulation of chi to recharge you.

Your bed is the most important part of a bedroom. You spend one third of your time sleeping on a bed therefore you must have a proper planning of feng shui bed arrangement. Bad positioning of your bed will result in restless sleep and its ensuing health problems.

Below are some of feng shui bed arrangement taboos you should read closely to ensure you have a peaceful sleep that will make you vibrant and dynamic when you wake up in the next morning.

Ideally, you will have a good feng shui bed arrangement by positioning your bed as far away as possible from your bedroom door and yet able to see the bedroom door from your bed. There are two reasons for doing so; the first reason being the farther your bed from the door, the more control you can feel over your space and your life. It is because you are not startled easily by the opening of your bedroom door and you have plenty of time to prepare for events as they unfold.

The second reason for this feng shui bed arrangement is because not being able to see who's approaching from your bedroom door can keep you uncertain and on the edge. This create imbalance and frustration.

Sleeping right is one of the easiest ways to ensure good health. The secret of good feng shui bed arrangement is to sleep facing one of the four auspicious directions;Sheng Chi for prosperity,Nien Yien for relationship and Fu Wei for harmony but the best direction to tap for sleeping is the health or 'Tien Yi' direction. Tapping into your health direction is a safeguard against illness.

The most important thing to remember when sleeping in your desired direction is that the top of your head must face the direction. Many people get confused and point their feet in their desired direction which would have their head facing their worst direction.

If sleeping in your best direction causes you to shift your bed to an awkward angle, then you had better strike off the idea. Feng Shui bed arrangement is about being practical and apply it with the conditions of your individual room. If you see that your bedroom doesn't meet these criteria, don't panic. There are other cures you can implement to dramatically enhance your feng shui bedroom arrangement situation.

Another important consideration with fengshui bed arrangement is to make sure your bed should never face the doorway directly, as this mean you are sleeping with your feet facing towards a door. This is a bad fengshui bed arrangement known as the 'coffin position'. The influx of chi or energy flowing from the rest of the house through your bedroom door are deemed too powerful to have a relaxing sleep.

The common practice in feng shui bed arrangement is to avoid having your bed pointing to a toilet directly. If it's possible, avoid even having a toilet inside your bedroom as toilets caused wealth luck to be flushed away. In truth there is no 'right' place for a toilet, however in modern homes it is often unavoidable. The best way is to ensure your toilet door is closed at all times in order not to let the chi inside the toilet into your bedroom.

In time, with some of these feng shui bed arrangement tips in place, you will see improvements in the areas where you are looking to improve.

To read more of feng shui bed arrangement and feng shui tips, go to
http://www.ResourceSecrets.com/fengshui-bedroom.htm

Article Source: http://www.articlealley.com/article_165646_27.html

Alexa Lee is a feng shui enthusiast and author.
http://www.resourcesecrets.com/fengshui-bedroom.htm

7 Feng Shui Tips For Good Luck

>> Thursday, November 26, 2009

Author: Yvone Handford

Are you looking to change your ability to attract good luck into your life? Some people seem to be able to attract good luck into their lives whilst others seem to be unable to attract any good fortune into their lives. Have you ever wondered why this is so! The Chinese art of Feng Shui reveals why this happens and how to attract good luck and fortune into your life.

Feng Shui is the placement of items in a certain manner which attracts and abundance of good or positive energy into your personal and living environment. The Chinese people believe that attracting anything into your life depends on the energy or chi which surrounds you and your environment. This includes all areas of their lives - health, wealth, money, love, relationships, happiness and good luck.

In Feng Shui there are principals which govern how to arrange the interior and exterior of you home and office to attract extra luck into your life.

7 Feng Shui Tips For Good Luck

Tips 1 - Cleanse and clear all clutter from your home or work environment. To attract good luck and fortune in your life the chi needs to be able to flow freely around your living environment. Donate to charity or throw away all old or unwanted books, clothes or unused items

Tips 2 - Spring clean your living environment so the house is sparkling clean.

Tips 3 - Place an ornament of a dragon in your home or work environment will assist in attracting good luck to you. Ensure the dragon is not facing outwards towards the door or window as this will send the luck away from you.

Tips 4 - Place Chinese gold coins on a red ribbon will assist in attracting good fortune with money into your life

Tips 5 - Especially clean out your wallet. Remove all old dockets and unnecessary items from your wallet and handbag. If the wallet is old or shabby replace it immediately.

Tips 6 - Place a healthy pot plant with shiny round green leaves in a gold pot in you home to attract positive chi into your environment

Tips 7 - Lucky bamboo is also considered in Feng Shui as a wonderful aid to attracting luck into your life.

Tips 8 - The energy or chi of your environment greatly affects your own personal energy field and consequently has a major effect on your ability to attract good luck into your life. The Chinese spend thousands of dollars perfecting the art of Feng Shui into all areas of their lives. This practice is a spiritual belief and has now spread across the world.

There are Feng Shui methods to attract good luck into all areas of your life, health, love ,wealth, prosperity and anything you wish to have;

Article Source: http://www.articlealley.com/article_1204576_23.html

About the Author:
Yvonne Handford is an Author, Speaker, Soul Healing Coach, Psychic and Healing Master trained in Reiki and many other healing modalities and alternate therapies. Yvonne is a Healer who specializes in promoting the "Golden Keys" to Healing Within and assisting others to live the life of their dreams.
http://www.universalhealingcentre.com/

Ba Zhai Feng Shui Part 2 - Ba Zhai Feng Shui and its Applications

>> Wednesday, November 25, 2009

Ba Zhai Feng Shui Free Tutorials

Part 2

Ba Zhai Feng Shui and its Applications

Ba Zhai Feng Shui is considered as an elementary Feng Shui by some practitioners. However, in my views it is not. Although, its methodology is less technical as compare to Xuan Kong. It (Ba Zhai) still requires a lot of brain storming. Many people are confused with the applications of Ba Zhai with other schools of Feng Shui. Ba Zhai is concerning directions and not locations. The direction as describe in Ba Zhai is usually referring to the direction of the bed, as we spent at least 1/3 of the time on the bed. The favorable locations for a bedroom are determined by Xuan Kong. Once you have determined the good location for the bedroom, you can further tune in to your favorable direction base on Ba Zhai Feng Shui.

Another point to take note is that, Ba Zhai Feng Shui is to assist you in finding out the compatibility between you and the property and is not a sole method to determine the Feng Shui of the property. It is an issue not to be confused, as a property with good Feng Shui might not necessary is suitable for you. A property is usually selected base on forms school Feng Shui or Water Theory. (San he Feng Shui) After you determined the properties with good Feng Shui, you can shortlisted them by matching it to your personal Ming Kua.

General guidelines and summaries

Select a property based on San He or Form School Feng Shui. Determined whether the property is suitable for you base on Ba Zhai and then work out the floor plan base on Xuan Kong. Applying the practical of Ba Zhai again, position your bed facing a direction that is favorable for you. On top of that, apply Ba Zhai with all the standard Feng Shui taboos, advices and tips available online.

(E.g. based on Ba Zhai, you had determined that to sleep heading west is good for you. However, due to physical constraints, you will be sleeping directly under an air conditioner which is not good for your health. Since everyone is tag with 4 good directions depending on their Ming Kua. So let’s just work out again the other possible directions)

The next article will provide with the tables and charts.

The 7 Schools Of Feng Shui

>> Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Source: Ron King

Everyone has heard of Feng Shui, but what exactly is it? Feng Shui is an ancient Chinese belief that involves the study of both the natural and the created environments. To achieve a balance between the 2 affects the energy of a room.

7 Schools Of Feng Shui

There are many different versions of Feng Shui, each influenced by culture, geography, and religion. There are 7 predominant types or schools of Feng Shui:

1. The Compass School uses the 8 trigrams of the I-Ching. They are known collectively as Pa Kua, which is based on the 8 main directions of a compass. Each direction is associated with a specific chi. For example, southern is vibrant energy.

2. The Form School, based on the landscape's shape, uses 4 symbolic animals to identify the landscape. Easy to use, the Form School (along with the Compass School) increases chi both in and out of the home.

3. The Black Hat Sect uses a fixed entry point to determine the area. Although similar to the Compass School philosophy, it has differences. The Black Hat Sect also consists of psychology, Buddhism and basic design principles.

4. 8 Mansion School, also known as the 8 House Feng Shui, is based on the individual number of the person living in the home. That number is used to bring harmony and balance to the home. People who use this system have both lucky and unlucky numbers, with the west numbers being 2, 6, 7, and 8 and the east numbers being 1, 3, 4, and 9.

5. The 9 Star Key School uses stars to help identify lucky and unlucky days. This school of thought uses complicated math formulas to pinpoint when a person will get married and the astrological sign of the future marriage partners. It will also tell the practitioner how to live based on his house.

6. The most common form of Feng Shui, based on astrology and numerology, is the Flying Star Philosophy. Difficult to understand and learn, it is also based on mathematical principals and is used to determine a person's fate.

7. Four Pillars, the final school of thought, is not very common. Based on astrology tied to the person's date of birth right down to the minutes, this form of Feng Shui is also used to determine a person's fate.

5 Elements Of Feng Shui
After determining which school of thought is best for an individual, it is important to understand the 5 elements of Feng Shui. They are: Earth, Fire, Water, Metal, and Wood. Balance and harmony can be created in a home through the use of these elements. If used incorrectly, however, the energy can be lessened or even destroyed.

Each of the 5 elements is also associated with a direction:
Earth -- Southwest
Fire -- South
Water -- North
Metal -- West
Wood -- East

Beauty And Balance
In a Feng Shui home, all rooms should achieve a balance of these elements, although some items may weigh heavier than others. A chair might score 3 times more than a throw pillow, for example, because of the size difference.

Properly applied, Feng Shui brings both beauty and balance to the home or office.
Published At: Isnare Free Articles Directory http://www.isnare.com/
Permanent Link: http://www.isnare.com/?aid=27961&ca=Arts+and+Crafts

About Ron King Visit http://www.fengshui4u.info/ to learn more. Ron King is a full-time researcher, writer, and web developer, visit his website at http://www.ronxking.com/

Copyright 2005 Ron King.

This article may be reprinted if the resource box is left intact and the links live.

The Five Feng Shui Elements and Their Characteristics

Feng shui handles five main elements in order to achieve harmony and balance in any space. These five feng shui elements are: wood, fire, earth, metal and water. Each one of them has its own characteristics and properties, and we will detail them in the following lines.

According to Chinese traditions, everything is constantly changing and interacting and that happens through these five main elements. Feng shui traditional knowledge and all its guidelines are based on these five feng shui elements. Therefore, when wishing to harmonize a place according to feng shui, these elements must be properly employed according to their characteristics and effects.

Click here to read full article...

Chinese Superstitions Versus the West

Author: Michael Song

Those who are familiar with Western cultures know how many things are treated as taboo. Superstitious people will go to any length to avoid certain things that their culture considers as harbingers of bad luck. It is the same all over the world. Go to any part of the world and you will find, irrespective of caste & creed, there are certain things that are considered unlucky and certain things that are considered as lucky. It is the same with the Chinese too, but the difference between the Chinese and Western culture, especially with regards to their culture and the superstitions based thereon, are revealed starkly when it comes to number 13.

You will be amazed, if you are a European, to know that the Chinese consider the number 13 as lucky. It is widely known that Europeans treat Fridays and the number 13 as accursed, and if these two happen to come together like `Friday the 13th' it is treated as a very bad omen. On this particular day, people tend not to start any new work or not to embark on any journey. It is just the opposite with the Chinese people and this is due to the difference of culture. It is not that the Chinese do not have preferences for certain numerals. They love the numerical 8 and it is rumored that a phone number 8888-8888 fetched $300,000. This occurred in Chengdu, a Chinese city.

Do you recall the date of opening of the Beijing Olympics? It was on the 8th of August 2008 (08-08-08). If you thing that this was just a fluke and has nothing to do with the Chinese culture and its affection for certain numbers, you should check out the inauguration time of the Beijing Olympics. It was inaugurated at 8:08pm. This obsession for numbers is not prevalent in China only and one can also observe it in Singapore and Hong Kong and both these countries have a majority of Chinese people. Those who know about Chinese culture will tell you that these numbers are linked according to their pronunciation. They observe how a number sounds and then try to associate it with words that have a similar pronunciation.

The number 8 is pronounced as `"fa", which is how words like fortune and prosperity sound in the Chinese language. But what about number 13 which is considered unlucky by Europeans and why do the Chinese consider it as lucky? The number "1" when put in the "tens" sounds like "shi" which means definite in Mandarin. The digit "3" sounds like living, life or birth. Hence the number "13", the pronunciation of which is "shisan" in Mandarin, might mean, according to Chinese culture and traditions as "assured growth" or "definitely vibrant". This is the reason why Chinese people consider the number 13 as lucky. There are some other numbers too which are considered lucky by the Chinese because of they way they are pronounced in the Mandarin language，such as six,sixty,ninety-nine,nine,eighteen.

If you want more about this topic, please let me know!

About the Author:
Michael Song is a professional chinese translator working for VERY TRANSLATION which provides chinese translation services . Here are some useful free chinese translation tools Free Chinese Name Translation,Free Chinese Translation

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com - Chinese Superstitions Versus the West

Haunted Hotel for the unwary

Article from Ms. Ching

In Asia countries, many ghostly sightings have been reported regarding hotel rooms. The people in Asia are very particular about choosing a hotel room. Genting Highland Pahang in Malaysia, an entertainment resort is regard as one of the most haunted place in Asia. Several people have committed suicide here either by hanging in their room or jumping down from the window of their room. Some rooms are not for rent no matter how much you willing to pay for. Another phenomenon is that a lot of hotels does not have the 13th floor, they will replace with it with the 14th floor. The 13th floor is considered to be the portal to the underworld. Spiritual entities could gain access into our world thru the 13th floor. I will avoid both floors because I knew that the 14th floor is actually the 13th floor in disguise. These phenomenons are not just across Asia but also in hotels in Las Vegas. According to my friends in Singapore, Singapore Polytechnics, a tertiary campus had their block 13 removed as it was rumor that many strange occurrences had happened in this block in the past. Below is some guidelines and taboos I have compile, it serve to educate the unwary.

Banana Tree Spirit

Article from Ms. Ching

A lot of stories had been written about the Banana Tree Spirit. I am sharing my personnal encounters. The spirit of banana tree is well known in countries of South East Asia such as China, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Taiwan and especially among the Chinese communities. The myth originated from old villages during our grandfather generations from the 1930s. What is the banana tree spirit? Banana tree spirit is believed to be supernatural beings that possess magical attributes. The banana tree spirit is different from the common Chinese folklore spirit where the soul leave the body of a decessed and remains to roam the land. Banana tree spirits are special beings that can reside in any creation of nature, particularly in deep forest. It is not transform from a soul of a dead person. It is a natural spirit with higher level of inteligence. The spirit of banana tree is usually more sinister and evil compare to a common spirit.

It was told to me by a Bomoh (A Malay priest) that beside banana trees, there is spirits in rocks, water and soil. The banana tree spirit is believed to take form as a young attractive female girl. The bomoh does not quite agree with this but he couldn’t conclude any answer either. These spirits are usually not harmful but certain taboos we must follow when hiking the jungle to avoid agitate these spirits.

When I was a kid in the 60s, I used to live in a Kampong (Malay term for village) in Kluang JB. There were dozens of banana trees near the loo. In those days, we do not have the convenient of toilet facilities, the toilet is shared among neighbors in the same kampong. We have to travelled pass a distance from our home to the loo to carry out our business. The proximity of street lamps was about 50m apart. The path will be in almost darkness as early as 7 pm in the evening. When we do our business, especially the big one, we have to endure the 15mins in that confining wooden hut. The leaf of the banana tree will keep flapping on the openings on the top of the toilet with its shadows flickering in the half lit environment as if it has a life of its own. We had become used to it. I have heard legends about communicating with the spirit inside banana trees.

The next unbelievable thing that came across my mind is that I would try it. I was still afraid though so I find a friend in the same kampong to accompanied me; his name was Ah Leng in short. We seek a bomoh from other village for directions as we knew that the bomoh here would have discouraged us from communicating with the unknown. We get red threads and tie a needle to it at one end. We coiled the thread on the flower bud of the banana tree and piece the needle into the bud. The other end we would tie it to our toe. The bomoh described that, a young women would appear in our dreams and seek out the owner of the thread; she would ask to remove the thread as it is causing her pain. In return she could grant us our wishes. We do not have any specified goals in mind but just to seek out the thrills due to curiosity. Ah Leng and me each tie to different banana tree as we believe the chances of succeed would be higher. Soon we map out the ground and fell asleep. I woke up in the middle of the night. Ah Leng soon woke up when I called out to him. Neither one of us had experienced anything unusual It was getting very chill and uneasy for me. We thought that it was rather foolish to experiment with this kind of thing so we call it quit. Ah Leng accidently pin himself with the needle when trying to release it from the tree. He makes use of the leaf on the tree to wipe his wound for the substitute of tissue paper. We leave the place and returned home.

One week had passed, I thought it was a fail experiment in which I would never consider trying again. I was suddenly shocked to learn that Ah Leng had passed away yesterday. It was caused by a heart failure diagnosed by the doctor. Though it was a scientific conclusion, I was feeling very uncomfortable.

I was petrified and seek help from the bomoh here. It was upon my arrival, the bomoh started to ask me questions as if he knew why I came here for and insisted that I speak the truth in details. The bomoh soon provided me with the answer that I have been expecting. The death of Ah Leng is caused by something else. He told me that we did not successfully engage in communicating with the spirit. However, Ah Leng’s death was caused by a spirit residing in the forest. The bomoh woudn’t tells me what it is but only described to me that Ah Leng had offended the spirit when he wipe his blood open wound onto the tree. He told me that I was not in danger but he offer to recite some chant to shield me.

I have lived till today but I couldn’t come out with solid conclusions for the death of Ah Leng 30 years ago. I believe it is the banana tree spirit. There is some taboo that I would like to offer for jungle tracking. I have being following these taboos closely because I would rather show my respect to the nature and not offend them. Who know what the consequences might be?

Taboos
Taboo 1

Do not litter especially expandable items that you have used before. Show some respects.

Taboo 2

Do not pick up anything either. If you pick out anything from the forest, bring it to a Feng Shui shop or Monastery. There will cleanse the memories of your new founding.

Taboo 3

Never answer to a call from behind your back by turning your head. Turn your whole body around to answer in full swing if you have to.

Taboo 4

Always carries a stick with you. This serve two purposes, first is to protect you against stray dogs. Secondly, there is a cultural myth on tall dark trees, when you see shadows moving that is very tall resembling trees. Break the sticks and shorten it gradually as you journey.

Taboo 5

When lost in the forest even you are sure of the way, use your undies to cover your head leaving the holes to see. Your vision then will be “uncovered”.

Taboo 6

Never shine your torch light directly onto trees.

Taboo 7

Don’t use real names when calling to each others in the forest. Use a simple code like “Oei, Halo” Your partners should response the same way. If he response in “Hey” when you shout “Oei”, head towards the direction where the source of sound came from immediately.

Taboo 8

Never pee onto trees or ground, ask for permission like as if asking permission from a living person before doing so.

Taboo 9

Do not rests under a tree because it looks a great shade or especially stands out among the rest; ask to excuse you to the tree if you have to.

Feng Shui Horror Movie

>> Sunday, November 22, 2009

Feng Shui Movie

This is a blockbuster horror from Philippine, directed by Chito Rono in 2004. The story revolves around Kris Aquino’s character, Joy Ramirez, who brings home a Ba Kua, a Feng Shui mirror left by a mysterious stranger on a bus. Joy hangs it on the wall of their new house and soon realizes that it brings her and her family unexpected guests into the house. Despite the title, this show actually does not have many things to do with Feng Shui besides the Ba Kua. Below are the embedded videos from YouTube.