Feng shui is an ancient Chinese practice that helps us live in harmony with our environments. It’s been used for over 4,000 years to create comfortable and successful homes, properties, and businesses. One of the beautiful things about feng shui is that it allows us to connect with nature. The name translates as feng, “wind” and shui, “water.” Picture sitting by a peaceful lake. A warm breeze gently blows, creating tiny ripples on the water. You feel at ease and relaxed. That peaceful, supportive feeling is what we want to create in our homes. In feng shui, nature is the foundation and inspiration for many concepts and principles. This allows practitioners to enjoy a deeper connection to the earth by bringing the balancing and nurturing energies of the outdoors into our homes. We call this energy “qi.”
The Chinese character for qi is an image of steam rising over rice. It can be used in a mundane way, meaning “air” or “breath,” but there’s no exact translation for this word in English. Most often talked about from a metaphysical point of view, qi is described as the life force energy that exists in everything: you, your home, the earth, and all the things that surround you.
Why Feng Shui is So Important
Revitalizing flow
One of the purposes of feng shui is to cultivate strong and vital qi in ourselves and our environments, and to create paths for qi to flow easily, rather than qi that is heavy, stagnant, or stuck.
Getting out of a rut
If you’re feeling drained and depleted, it’s a good idea to look at the feng shui of your home. Sometimes there are energy blocks that can affect specific areas of your life.
Rest and renewal
We spend a lot of time sleeping and recharging in our bedrooms, so the energy in that part of our homes really affects us. Feng shui can help you set up your bedroom for optimal sleep quality and relaxation.
Feng shui can seem intimidating with its many systems, principles, and concepts, but making just a few changes in your home or office can instantly uplift your qi flow.
4 Ways You Can Play With Feng Shui
1. Add a new plant
Feng shui practitioners love plants! They’re one of the best ways to introduce qi to any room, which can invite new growth and flexibility. Plants can help activate an area of your life or boost the energy in your space overall. Additionally, taking care of a living plant is a great way to cultivate loving kindness.
2. Declutter your entryway
Keeping this area clean and organized allows the qi to flow freely into your home.
3. Do a simple space clearing
Choose your favorite method. Use incense, candles, or grab a broom and dust cloth. You can make your own space clearing mist by putting 27 drops of sweet orange essential oil and some fresh water into a spray bottle. Scents can be very powerful in shifting our emotions, and using a mist is an easy way to clear and uplift the energy of a room.
4. Focus on your bedroom
Your bedroom is one of the most effective places to apply feng shui principles, especially when you want to support your health and wellbeing. Start by looking at the layout and flow of the room. Ideally, your bed will be in the command position. This means that you can see the door to your bedroom while you’re in bed, without being directly in line with the door. This will help you to feel more in control and at ease in your space, and can help you to experience more restful sleep and less anxiety. Putting your bed into command might sound like a small shift, but there’s really a lot of power behind it.
