Posts Tagged ‘Classical Feng Shui’

This glossary is intended provide a clear, simple reference point for most general Feng Shui terms, including the information contained in this web site, and the products and services offered.

Activate – Energy patterns are powerful potential influences. To affect us, an influence must be “activated” in a specific area by some form of stimulation such as how we use a certain door or room. It can also be activated by the movement generated by a computer, TV, fan, etc.

Audit – Often used in classical Feng Shui, this is a term for a consultation. The term emphasizes a diagnostic analysis, rather than just recommendations.

Bagua – A grid map of directions with corresponding information about each direction including color, element, number, characteristics, etc. All schools of Feng Shui use the Bagua. Most Bagua information is consistent; however some information can vary from school to school.

Black Hat Sect – A Western school of Feng Shui brought to the United States by Master Lin Yun in the early 1980s. This school uses door locations for Bagua directional orientation, with life aspirations (experiences) corresponding to each direction. This school also relies heavily on intention and symbols.

Chi – Chi is the life force energy that permeates the universe and all of nature. It represents life itself, much like breath. Feng Shui deals with the quality of Chi. The quality of Chi within a specific space determines what you will experience. The goal of Feng Shui is to identify and locate favorable Chi to help you activate or take advantage of it. At the same time, Feng Shui helps you identify and locate dangerous chi, neutralize its power, and avoid exposure to its affects.

[Note from Karen Ann: In my opinion, a major problem with some of the Feng Shui schools that rely heavily on symbolic cures is that they do not acknowledge or deal with negative chi.]

Classical Feng Shui – Classical Feng Shui is the original form of Feng Shui practiced for 4,000 years. Classical Feng Shui is diagnostic, not symbolic. It is analytical, formula driven, and based on exact compass directional readings, divided into 24 15 degree divisions (sectors), each 15 degrees of the 360 compass, much like the band width of a radio or television station. You know exactly what you will get when you “tune in”.

Direction – Direction is important in classical Feng Shui and not to be confused with position. Direction is where the energy influence, or Chi, is coming from and it is based on the directions of the compass. Most often, your facing direction (what you are facing or looking towards) is most important.

8 Mansions – This is a system of Feng Shui relating specifically to directions and locations for an individual person, based his/her birthday. Locations are personal and different for each person. The name, 8 Mansions, comes from the 8 directions of the compass. The underlying concept is that the energy of each direction hold a different experience for us. [This is the system used for the Powerful Directions Program.]

8 Aspirations – This term is used to describe the 8 life experiences (such as love, career, wealth, etc.) used in many Western schools of Feng Shui. [See Symbolic Feng Shui.]

Element – An element is describes a specific quality of chi and is fundamental to every aspect of Classical Feng Shui. There are five elements: water, wood, fire, earth and metal. For advanced Feng Shui studies, an in-depth understanding of the elements and their interactions is essential.

Energy - Feng Shui is one of many schools of practice that work on the principal that there are strong and definable patterns of influence that are not visible.

Favor – Although not a traditional Feng Shui term, Karen Ann uses the term to refer to an energy or influence that is effective for creating positive experiences.

Feng Shui – Feng Shui is a science of working with the environment and living/working space to improve one’s experience and quality of life.

Flying Star – One of the classical schools of Feng Shui, Flying Star incorporates both time and space. It identifies the dominant influence in a particular space at a particular time – and it’s based on the time you moved into that space, or the time the building was built. The other factor basic to this system is the exact facing direction, by 15-degree increments, of the house, business, etc. The Flying Star formula details the influence and possible effects of each room.

Gua - This term is derived from Bagua, as in the Bagua map of directions, characteristics and influences. A Gua is one sector, or direction, on the map.

I-Ching - Refers to The Book of Changes, which is one of the oldest and most frequently translated books in the world. Much of classical Feng Shui is based on this ancient book of divination.

Kua - In 8 Mansions, Kua is the term that relates to you and your direction. Knowing your Kua number will enable you to identify the degree of strength and weakness, as well as the type of experiences, relating to each direction. A wealth of additional information is also revealed by the identification of your Kua number. (This information is contained in Your Powerful Directions Program),

Lo Shu Grid – This is a classical term for the original patterns that formed the basis for the Bagua representing directions, numbers and elements, I-Ching information, and many characteristics used in classical Feng Shui. Lo Shu Grid does not acknowledge the 8 Aspirations of the Black Hat Sect school of Feng Shui. [See Bagua.]

Luck – Feng Shui creates the environment to attract opportunity and positive experiences, not by chance, but by design. When used within the context of Feng Shui, luck refers to a system that will attract unplanned and unexpected good to you.

Neutralize – It is contradictory to the laws of nature to actually change what is, but we can modify or weaken an energy or influence. Classical Feng Shui deals with all the influences effecting you, including the ones that create problems. Once these influences are located and identified, the goal is to calm, weaken, modify, or neutralize the influence so that it causes no harm.

Number – You have a number that relates to you based on your birthday. [See Kua.] That number will relate to a direction and provide a tremendous amount of information, including color, element, favorable and unfavorable directions, personal characteristics and much more. A number essentially relates to a quality of Chi.

Pakua - Another name for the Bagua. [See Bagua.]

Position – Position is the place where you are located within a space or room, not to be confused with direction.

Symbolic Feng Shui - Symbolic Feng Shui is practiced by schools that rely heavily on strategically placing symbolic items to attract specific life experiences. Feng Shui schools that include symbolic cures are Black Hat, Western, Intuitive, Pyramid, and others. Usually, with symbolic Feng Shui, a part of the cure is the intention of the person placing the item. Classical Feng Shui does not acknowledge the validity of these forms of Feng Shui.

Trigram – Trigrams are the I-Ching symbols of a combination of three broken and unbroken lines in the original Bagua. Each direction has a trigram.

Yin Yang – Yin Yang represents the principals of balance and change characterized by the universal opposites of active and passive energy. Both are essential. The key in Feng Shui is knowing when you need Yin and when you need Yang. Many times it is obvious what you need for balance, if you are observant. Other times, more advanced formula-driven systems are required.

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