The Productive and Destructive Cycle of Elements

Productive Cycle

The feng shui elements –  water, wood, fire, earth and metal – can be arranged in a cycle where each element is used to create the next in the cycle. By using the correct locations, objects and directions, feng shui takes account of the elemental relationships and can use one element to assist or boost the another, bring greater energy for the life area they’re placed in.

The productive cycle is as follows:
Water > produces > wood > makes > fire > produces > earth > creates > metal > makes > water and so on.

Example:
Out of all the feng shui elements, water is the strongest representative of your wealth energy, which is located in the southeast area of your home or space. Water related items should feature in your wealth area to energize it and attract more of it. In the productive cycle, metal is the elements that makes water and so metal objects can also be placed in the area to boost the wealth area. Water is the main element and so be sure it isn’t   overpowered too much by the metal.

Destructive Cycle

In the same way, if a destructive relationship of feng shui elements exists in the same location, this can bring about negative results which will harm your good intentions for the area. Most of the time, people unknowingly already have conflicting elements in the wrong locations which is why their wealth, career or any other area of life is suffering.

The destructive cycle is as follows:
Wood > devours > earth > destroys > water > extinguishes > fire > consumes > metal > demolishes > wood and so on.

Example:
As mentioned above your wealth corners main element is water. Earth destroys water in the destructive cycle shown above and so having any objects related to earth would devastate the positive effects of your water element, therefore your wealth. Things like ceramic pots, pictures of land or globes etc and will need to be removed before good wealth energy can flow freely into your life, unrestricted by the earth element.

Elemental Properties

For your reference, note the following relationships each element has with colors, locations (according to the bagua map) and objects in your home:

Wood – Green shades – East – Paper, Plants, Furniture, Pictures of Wood etc
Water – Blue or Black shades – North – Fountains, Aquariums, Pictures of Water etc
Fire – Red shades – South – Bright lights, Fireplaces, Candles, Pictures of Fire
Metal – Metallic colors, Gold, Silver, White – West – Coins, Jewelry, Wind chimes, Pictures of Metal etc
Earth – Brown shades – Center – Pots, Flowers, Ceramics, Globes, Pictures of Earth etc

Knowledge of the feng shui elements and their cycles help you too utilize the energy you need, and can balance out the destructive energy you don’t. Balance is the always the key when using the elements, they can even be used to correct any existing elemental and location problem you have in your home.

Sometimes, structural things like fireplaces can’t simply be moved. They’d naturally represent fire and if they’re in the wrong location for that particular element, you can use water based objects to destroy the fires negative effects and again, balance out the energy. A firm understanding of the feng shui elements and how they work will be key to help you benefit from all the great things that feng shui can bring you and your family. Wealth, health and happiness can soon be all yours when you combine all of your feng shui knowledge to build a life-time of well being and good fortune!

Lin Mai is a feng shui enthusiast and author. Visit Way to Feng Shui to start using feng shui elements to bring you all you desire!

Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/feng-shui-articles/feng-shui-elements-the-battle-for-balance-1586322.html

The southwest corner of your space or bedroom is your love and relationships corner according to the bagua map. Earth is the associated element here and can be activated more by using fire for optimum effect. This will come into lay a little later.

Clear the Space

Effective feng shui designs in your room, or any space for that matter start with clearing the clutter. Remove old, broke, unnecessary objects and furniture that’s been accumulating so that the chi can flow freely through your space. Any blockages will result in restrictive movements of energy which then become stagnant and negative. A thorough vacuum or mopping will finish the job, clearing your space and subsequently your mind of any problems or worries. It will allow you to prepare for the feng shui mind-set of positive thinking and visualizing your goals that will ultimately help attract that spice into your life.

Make sure you open some windows to let the fresh air come in while you change your bed sheets and pillows, airing them out and ridding them of old stagnant energy and preparing them for new vitalizing chi. Even put on some loud romantic music and help the energy circulate. Remember to remove any and all photos of past relationships, items of sentimental value and letters. Any memories that attach you to the past will keep you there, it’s time to move on up.

Decorating for Love

Decorating your bedroom using feng shui designs is easy and a lot of fun. Follow the basic guidelines here to help get yourself in the love zone.

• When choosing colors to decorate with, think pink and sexy. Pink and red are the colors of love to use so buy decorative items for your love display with this in mind. If you decide to paint your walls, red may be too overpowering so softer pink tones will be perfect, even earthly yellow tones.
• Everything needs to be balanced so don’t overdo a certain color, or item in your room. There can be too much of a good thing, balance is the key.
• You’re trying to attract love into your life, symbolized by a connection between two people. Therefore, everything in your love display area should be paired with another to reflect a two-sided relationship. More or less then two and you’re heading for trouble.
• According to love and relationship feng shui designs, earth and fire are good elements to use in your corner. Objects and pictures that resemble these elements should be used here. Wood is harmful to the overall positive effect you’re creating here and so you should remove any wood related elements like picture frames.
• Remember the elements of earth and fire are good in your love corner according to feng shui designs. Think of objects and designs that resemble these elements for full effect and remove anything resembling wood or metal as these will harm your efforts.
• Keep the energy alive in this area by frequently updating and changing around your display in the love corner.

Here are some great examples of objects that you could use to enhance your southwest love area. Try to mix and match them as best as possible to find which feng shui designs and arrangements works best for you.

• Natural quartz crystals or raw amethyst are great for attracting love. Ideally you should hang them on a string above a window in the southwest corner. Light will then be able to shine on the crystal which will reflect your intentions into the room.
• Make sure your love area is well lit at all times, with natural daylight, bright lights or candles. Light the candles every night to increase your chances of attracting love.
• Earth based materials like ceramics and pots or bowls are great for vitalizing love energy. Put artificial silk flowers or peacock feathers in them to maximize their potential.
• Use earth and sun objects and symbols in the area, a globe would be ideal.
• To target love energy in a marriage, use pictures of lovebirds, ducks or statues in twos. A Chinese love knot is another part of feng shui designs that is very useful for attracting love chi, use it to further decorate your pictures.
• Remember never to use real live flowers in your bedroom, use artificial peony flowers instead.
• Photos or pieces of art showing happy couples can be put up around the area. Never display pictures of people on their own, lonely, or this is what you’ll attract.

There’s much much more you can do to enhance your love area but these are some great starting points that will be very effective when used in the right way. You should always remember when you’re arranging the feng shui designs in your love area to visualize what you hope to achieve by doing this action.

The power of intention is extremely helpful in all aspects of feng shui, it’s just as important as the action itself. You must be positive and expecting to receive what you desire from the feng shui designs and techniques you’ve put in action. Be grateful and ready to accept the love you’ve attracted. Get started right now in your relationships area and you’ll soon be welcoming all of the wonderful love and romance you can handle!

Lin Mai is a feng shui enthusiast and author. Visit Way to Feng Shui to learn more on how to use feng shui designs to turn your house into a house of love!

Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/feng-shui-articles/feng-shui-designs-for-attracting-love-passion-and-romance-1558379.html

Image via Wikipedia

Have you ever considered that you might be able to use the ancient art of feng shui to help you attain wealth? You can, but first you have to consider some important factors that you want to keep in mind before you begin. First of all, consider what you want to accomplish when you think that feng shui will work to make you wealthy in your particular case.

Do you have some financial problems at present and think that feng shui can magically cure these problems?

Also, when considering using feng shui for wealth, do you really understand what is required of you, the user and the person applying this principle? There is no ancient practice, ritual, art or science that can be applied that will somehow instantly provide you with money and wealth without expecting you to do your part, so to speak. Assuming that you can just somehow petition feng shui for wealth and it will magically arrive on your doorstep is not how things work.

How are these things tied in with each other, then? Many believe that you can use feng shui to attain wealth, and some have said that their own experiences of this were actually successful. What did they do to bring about these results? What things did they avoid in their pursuits of wealth?

You need to remember that feng shui at its essence is all about balance, harmony and calm. You need to bring these elements into your everyday life when you consider your avenues for wealth, including work and employment.

Do you see any ways that you are bringing disharmony or a lack of balance to your career? Many offices these days stress teamwork and expect their employees to understand its importance; those who dont are often the first in line for dismissal. If you are not bringing this attitude to the office, you can soon find yourself unemployed ” and thats no way to build wealth!

In addition, when you consider using feng shui to acquire wealth, remember that feng shui encourages positive energy for accomplishment. Therefore, if you are attempting to pull together a sense of “family togetherness” or fun, think bright colors and upbeat elements for your family room. These things can make everyone in the room feel energized and alive. In turn, this can encourage closeness and energy among members of your family.

What this means in regard to wealth and feng shui, then, is that you need to apply personal and positive energy toward pursuing wealth. This means that you have to work hard, not be wasteful with money, and apply proper ambition to what you do as well. You cannot have wealth without these things.

Unfortunately for many, there is no magic cure when trying to use feng shui for wealth. Painting your front door red or hanging a crystal over a mirror is not going to be enough to fix your finances or to make you wealthy. You will still need to do the work thats necessary. But by applying the real principles of feng shui including harmony, balance, and positive energy, you may find that your circumstances vastly improve and in turn, your wealth will increase.

Feng Shui – What is it?

The simplest explanation of what feng shui is, can be said as the placement in the most ideal locations of human-built elements, so as not to disturb but rather encourage the natural energy emanating from the environment around. The main goal is to have all the elements work in harmony, including nature, the celestial bodies, and even those elements seemingly clashing with each other, such as hot and cold or female and male. Ensuring that all such elements harmonize assures you of the proper implementation of feng shui.

Nature in feng shui.

Asian cultures and especially the Chinese used nature to help understand their own place in the universe. Many also copied the many elements of nature in their own pursuits, for example, many of the movements of the different forms of martial arts are meant to mimic various animal movements. Music was often supposed to copy the sound and rhythm of the wind, and musical instruments were made from natural elements such as reeds and shells.

Nature also played a major role in everyday Chinese living, as plants were used to adorn the home indoors, herbs were used as medicines, and so on.

This respect for nature is very important in the teachings of feng shui, as its beliefs include the thought that everything in nature must be respected equally and all parts must harmonize.

The energy or qi.

The Chinese also firmly believed (and many still do today) in qi, or the natural energy created from all living things. Qi is believed to be a kind of life force or spiritual energy. It is
frequently translated as “energy flow,” or literally as “air” or “breath.” This energy is thought to flow freely from not only humans and animals, but from the earth itself.

In feng shui, not interfering with this energy is of great importance. This energy or qi mush be allowed to flow freely throughout the home and any other establishments. It will be discussed further about how qi is not interfered with and ensured that this is followed in the home. In the ancient Chinese culture, astronomy was also given a lot of importance. A majority of the structures that they designed were place around the position of the sun at the time the building was built. Importance was given so that adequate lighting was available in as many rooms as possible.

Putting All The Elements Together

To re-iterate, in the ancient Chinese culture it was of great importance to ensure that all these elements worked together so that harmony is encouraged for any individual and the environment around them. This way of thinking is indeed how the practice of feng shui began many centuries ago.

The Feng Shui design ideas discussed in this article can help Feng Shui beginners to understand some of the fundamental principles of Feng Shui as well as how they can apply for the principles and enhancing their homes and lives.
Like the positive and negative energies (yin and yang) existing in nature, every room and every home has both positive and negative areas. There are strengths that already exist, just as there are weaknesses. The Feng Shui design changes that are carried out in a house are always meant to help enhance the weak areas and decrease Chi that is too strong, ultimately yielding a balanced, harmonious feeling that is the cornerstone of a contented and successful life

Feng Shui Design And Power Areas

A concept commonly used in a Feng Shui design is the idea of ‘power’ areas. Feng Shui recognizes nine power areas inside buildings—some have excellent supportive energy, some are much less favorable.

A power spot is an area of the home which can be as big as a room or as small as a tiny little nook, but this particular area has strong associations with your life (or parts of your life) that mean a great deal to you at a particular point in a given time frame. Feng Shui power spots are unique to each person, family and home. They are determined not only by the things that are going on in a person’s life presently but also by the design and architecture of their particular living space.

According to Feng Shui, power spots are unique to each person, family and home and some of these are determined not only by the things that are going on in your life right now but also by the design and architecture of your particular living space.

The first thing to look at is the child’s room. It is not surprising that so many children have trouble focusing and concentrating when you see their rooms. Here are the most common things to look out for:

· Too many things in the room – children today have so many things: toys, computers, televisions, books, etc., in their rooms. Children are very sensitive to energy and all of these things have energy and activity associated with them. If a child is hyperactive it is important to create a very calming environment for them. This applies particularly to their room. It is best to have a separate area for play so that their bedroom is for rest and sleep only. Remove as many toys as possible and just keep a handful of their favorite things in their room. Teach them early on that this room is for sleep or perhaps for reading or any quiet activity and that play and ‘high energy’ activities are done somewhere else.

· Color – Many children have very bright color schemes in their rooms. This does not help with hyperactivity. You need to create a calm space. Use soothing, soft, earthy colors. This gives a feeling of being grounded and has a very calming effect.

· Nature – bringing nature in to the room in some way always helps the child to be grounded. Use pictures of nature (gardens, trees, flowers, a lake and so on). Nothing too active – for example you wouldn’t want a picture of a turbulent ocean or a tornado or lightening. You can use plants but it is important that they have soft, round shaped leaves – nothing pointed or spiky. Silk plants are fine – but they do accumulate dust, so make sure they are kept clean and dust-free. A small aquarium would be fine and can have a very calming effect – make sure it is not near the bed.

· Electrical equipment – there should be very little electrical equipment in the room. Electro-magnetic fields from electrical equipment have a very disruptive effect on a person’s energy, particularly when they are sleeping. If a child suffers from A.D.D. it is important to remove as much electrical equipment as possible from the room – and particularly from near the bed. Computers and Televisions should not be in the room. If there is a digital alarm clock make sure it is as far away from the child’s head as possible. If there is an electric blanket, then switch it on to warm the bed, but once the child is in bed the blanket should be unplugged.

· The bed – it is best to have a wooden bed, not a metal one. Metal conducts electricity and since our bodies are made of electro-magnetic energy it can have a disruptive effect on our energy fields. Wood is much better. Don’t store anything underneath the bed. If the bed has drawers underneath then use them only to store things like bedding and make sure they are kept well organized.

· Clutter – I know it’s difficult to keep a child’s room organized and I’m sure parents spend a lot of time trying to get their children to clean up their rooms. However, it’s even more important if the child has A.D.D. Clutter creates a feeling of chaos, which is the exact opposite of what you want to create. Remember, the room should be as calm as possible, so that means keeping it clean and organized – that goes for the closet as well. Also keep posters and artwork on the walls to a minimum. It is good to have things that represent the child’s interests – such as paintings or drawings they have done or some sports posters if they are particularly interested in a sport. But they should not be all over the room. Keep the visual distractions to a minimum.

· If the bedroom is above a garage this can have a negative effect. The energy of the garage is a chaotic kind of energy, associated with movement and travel. The bedroom needs to be as calm as possible, so, as weird as this may sound, the ideal solution from a Feng Shui perspective is to put a mirror on the floor underneath the bed with the reflective side facing down towards the garage. I know it sounds strange, but it really does help – and what have you got to lose? You can try it for a while and if you don’t think it works, you can remove it.

· Bed position – the ideal position for the bed is so that when they are sitting or lying in bed the child can see the door. It gives a much more safe, secure, in control feeling than having their back to the door. If it is not possible to put the bed in a position where they can see the door, then hang a small mirror so that they can look in the mirror and see the door.

· Desk – If possible, don’t have a desk in the room. Or if it has to be there, then make sure everything on it is cleared away before bed time. Again, the desk is associated with activity – homework, and can create anxiety over work that has to be done or simply a feeling that there is always more to do.

· Pictures – having a family photograph can help. One with that has the child and his or her parents. This helps to give the child a feeling of safety and security.

Paying attention to these things really can help. I’ve worked with people whose children were much more calm and focused after they calmed their bedrooms down. It even helps with children who don’t want to sleep in their rooms – often it’s because the room is just too ‘active’.

These principles not only apply to the child’s room, but to schools. When you see some of the school rooms it is no wonder that children have difficulty concentrating. I once worked with a school in downtown St. Louis. The principal had called me because there were some rooms where, she said no matter what students were in there they were always quiet, focused, and did good work, then there were other rooms where, again, no matter which students were in there, they could not concentrate, there was always noise and chaos and the teacher had difficulty maintaining order and control.

It’s not difficult to imagine what was different about the rooms. The rooms where students were focused and quiet were very well organized. They had plenty of storage space, a place for everything. The rooms where students were disruptive by contrast were cluttered, they did not have enough storage space, in one there was a large television in the corner. They had lots of pictures and posters and drawings on the walls and things hanging from the ceiling and in some cases, no windows.

Once I pointed this out and helped them find more storage space, remove some of the things from the walls and the ceilings, purchase a cabinet to store the television when it was not in use. They put up some nature pictures and brought in some plants. The transformation was amazing. The principal told me that she was working in her office one day shortly after they had made the changes. She had a sense that something was wrong and for a moment couldn’t figure out what it was. Then she realized – the classroom that was just down the hall from her office was one of the ‘noisy’ ones. There were supposed to be children in their having lessons, but she couldn’t hear anything. Usually, she had to go in there several times each day to try to restore order, but she couldn’t hear anything. She went down the hall to the classroom to see what was happening and was amazed to find the students quietly working away. That is the difference between a room that is calm and a room that is chaotic – children pick up on that energy right away.

Linda Binns is author of Feng Shui for Your Relationships: Changing Your Environment to Create Better Relationships. She has been a Feng Shui Practitioner, Author, Speaker and teacher for over 10 years. She has appeared internationally on television and radio and in local publications. Linda is also the founder of The Feng Shui Success Institute – which teaches in-depth Feng Shui training and practitioner certification.

Think back to the last visit you made to your doctor. The harsh lighting, stark walls and cold, bare floors of most exam rooms are the polar opposite of Feng Shui. These kinds of conditions make exam rooms feel less than inviting and contribute to feelings of anxiety and uneasiness. Balancing the principles of yin and yang equally will create harmony in your healing space and make for a much more enjoyable and relaxing experience.

Lighting is crucial in creating this comfortable Feng Shui atmosphere. Most massage rooms are softly lit, in an effort to slow brain activity and allow the body to relax. Someone seeking massage therapy for relaxation and stress-relieving purposes would not be comfortable in a harsh, brightly lit room; this type of light keeps the brain moving at such a fast pace that relaxation does not happen easily.

You may be the best massage therapist, with fantastic skills that can really help your clients with their ailments, but if your healing space isn’t exhibiting Feng Shui, not much relaxation will be taking place. Your massage room should complement your therapeutic abilities and your clients should begin to feel relaxed even before you enter the room.

Learn how to transform your healing area into a more peaceful, relaxing space by incorporating Feng Shui into your design plans. Read this entire article at: http://www.integrative-healthcare.org/mt/archives/2007/06/lighting_up_you.html

This article was prepared for HomeStudyCredits.org. Learn more about massage therapy and massage therapy continuing education programs.