Home   >   Feng Shui for living   >   Your home is your sanctuary. Keep everything in it working harmoniously.

Your home is your sanctuary. Keep everything in it working harmoniously.

By on September 6, 2017

People are continually being influenced by their surroundings. The ancient Chinese art of Feng Shui is a way to understand the language of the environment. There are a number of ways to bring a sense of balance and harmony to man-made settings. Captivating artwork and objects, a balanced palette of colors, and a range of natural elements can stimulate and inspire inhabitants and their guests.

What you see is what you get. If advertising works, it is because the images shown bring about a certain mindset. The same can be said of everything in the home and workplace. What you choose to have in your space reflects an aspect of who you are. Each object and image draws out of you qualities, emotions, and responses on conscious and subconscious levels. Take a look around you. Are you selling yourself short?

Broken and out-of-date items should be discarded and pictures ought to be updated. Anything that no longer reflects your current aspirations does not belong in your space. A bed from a previous relationship, pictures of ex-lovers, a memento from a past job you didn’t like, can all send subtle messages that keep past experiences front and center rather than in an appropriate context. To feel more at ease and content, surround yourself with things you love and that are in alignment with your desired state of mind.

Colors have a huge impact on psychological states. Balance is important, and dominant tones should be chosen with care. Blue and other cool colors can create an ambience that is not very supportive of warm relationships. Blues and dark tones are particularly inappropriate for bedrooms, where a warm (if not ‘hot’) mood is desirable. Reds, pinks, oranges, and lighter earth tones bring a warm glow to the skin and encourage circulation and passion.

A variety of elements can serve to balance a space. Nature consists of five elements in Chinese healing practices: Fire, Earth, Metal, Water, and Wood. Having objects that represent each of these elements in every room throughout your space will help to bring it into natural alignment. Each space needs a minimum of three elements to be balanced. Most design magazines focus on two, with a small splash of a third to create a “statement.” However attractive that might be, such a “statement” is not a balanced living environment. You can feature natural elements through pictures, objects made of that element, its related colors, or other symbolic representations.
Your home or office does not need to look like a Chinese restaurant to have good Feng Shui. Whatever your preferred style of décor, you can achieve greater harmony by adjusting the conditions in your space. Using the suggestions above will help you to subtly shift your mind’s own inner climate to your desired settings.

Mark Ainley is a contemporary Feng Shui consultant based in Vancouver, Canada.
A former resident of Tokyo, he consults
internationally for home and business
owners.
www.markainley.com

About Mark Ainley

Mark Ainley is a Contemporary Feng Shui Consultant and Emotional Stress Consultant living in Vancouver. A former 5-year resident of Tokyo, Mark consults with clients internationally to help them design living and work spaces in alignment with their goals. He also provides consulting in emotional stress management, as well as in the connection between facial structure and innate behavioural and communication patterns. He can be reached through his website: www.senseofspace.com and www.markainley.com.