Dragon’s Best Friend

Posted on January 17, 2024 by bette

“Friends are great riches.”
– Unknown

Considered the Angel of the Orient, the Dragon has long been revered for its greatness, goodness and blessings for the Chinese people. A symbol of charisma, decisiveness and transformation, this wise, powerful creature brings the essence of life in the form of celestial breath, known to many as “Sheng Ch’i”. It grants its power in the form of the seasons, bringing water from rain, warmth from sunshine, wind from the seas and soil from the earth. The Dragon is the greatest divine force on earth.

The Yang Wood Dragon will embark on its hallowed voyage beginning February 10, 2024. In Dragon years we perform our hero’s work. It is through our impetus that the wheels of motivation are set with resolve, inventiveness and courage and help us realize our soul’s plan. We can carry out our intentions when we strengthen our Ch’i with Feng Shui adjustments, Chinese New Year ceremonies and carry a three dimensional talisman for the duration of the year. “Chinese folk culture believes Dragon and Cock best of flock.” (Khadro Crystal Chu) Dragon’s Best Friend is honest, brave, lucky, and trustworthy. The three dimensional image of the Rooster reminds us to focus on solutions that will raise our status in the Wood Dragon Year. This lucky fowl favors jade, boxwood or bone. Enjoy the inspiration this match brings!

For you dear folks whose animal protector is Rabbit and Dog, carry the power combo charm (preferably jade for its life force) of the Rat and Monkey as your talisman. The smart, clever Rat and the mystical Monkey are friends to the Dragon. They will harmonize any taxing energies of the Dragon and Rooster during this year.

Why is Rooster Dragon’s Best Friend? Rooster lent its beautiful horns to the Dragon so he could attend the Jade Emperor’s party in grand style is one story. Rooster is brave, motivated, proud and with a magnificent tail like a Phoenix. How could the Dragon not notice him. But there are the virtues of the Rooster that make him a holy asset for this year. The five virtues of the Rooster by Tian Rao: ‘”The Rooster dons a crimson cap, a mark of literary sophistication! It claws its enemies, what martial prowess! It calls to its cohorts when food is available, a creature of compassion! It fights to the death with its nemesis, what bravery! And it never fails to keep time, a trustworthy soul.” What is unique about rooster is its ability to keep time for humans which leads the Chinese to the conclusion there is a divine spark, like the Sun that exists in the rooster which makes it capable of this unique task.’

What other reasons to have a Dragon’s Best Friend by your side? Ceremonies of protection use rooster feathers in BSTB Feng Shui. They guard the individual against scoundrels who may be agents for spirits. They have the ability to turn them into Helpful People. This is a carry over from ancient times when roosters were used in many kinds of rituals. In Chinese folk stories, all ghosts are scared by the rooster’s crow. Ghosts can only appear at night, but the rooster’s crow means the day is coming. So all ghosts fear the rooster’s crow, for ghosts lose their power at dawn. So if scoundrels are coming into your life, this ceremony has the strength to turn the situation around.

Roosters are beautiful, with its red comb, colorful feathers and golden tail. At first they were called ji (吉, meaning luck) because it was believed this animal would bring people luck like the phoenix.

The roosters suggest prosperity. They reproduce very fast. The Chinese believed this was synonymous with prosperity in terms of both population and wealth.

If you want to enhance your Rooster talisman to receive even more good fortune and good luck email me, bette@shenmenfengshui.com for details. Nine red envelopes requested.

Etsy carries Three Dimensional Jade Roosters. Start with Marina Lighthouse, Feng Shui Shopper. She closes her shop right after the new year.

This year I am offering the BSTB ceremonies so wealth and abundant good fortune are readily available: revel in “Welcoming the Wealth Gods” into your home; feel protected peeling away bad luck during “The Golden Cicada” ceremony and jump for joy when orange peels bless your home at midnight during “Changing the Ch’i…”.

Welcome the Wealth Gods
Invite the Wealth Gods right into your home with this midnight tradition. Face the yearly direction then walk the Gods back to your front door and enjoy safety, protection, better health and prosperity throughout the year.

The Golden Cicada Sheds Its Shell
In this ceremony remove all work problems, relationship problems, financial problems and health problems when you peel the shell from the egg. Your true self, your good Ch’i emerges from the crust of life’s difficulties allowing you to magnetize what you desire with a clear heart.

Changing The Chi Of The House and Transforming The Fortunes For Individuals and Residences
Wake up the house with fragrance and invite new beginnings, wealth Ch’i, happy Ch’i, prosperity Ch’i, and healthy Ch’i.

Receive two bonus cures + the Three Secret Reinforcements, the main amplifying tool for Black Sect Tantric Buddhist Feng Shui adjustments. It is a ritual way of adding extra strength to your cure.

The Three Lucky Feng Shui Secret Traditions Packet is$27 + nine red envelopes. Email me at bette@shenmenfengshui.com for payment options. Nine red envelopes must be received by mail on or before Thursday, February 1, 2024 to ensure your mailing will arrive in time.

Xīn xiǎng shì chéng

May all your wishes come true

Allow me to help you arrange your home where you feel fully supported. I am available for a full consultation service or for an hour telephone conversation. Details are at this link Feng Shui A La Carte. Think of it as a fairy godmother for your house.

What I have discovered about our homes is that creating a heart healthy space leads to peace and contentment. The bedroom is where it begins. Start with my complimentary pdf: 27 Bedroom Concepts To Maximize Your Health, Happiness and Peace of Mind. Design your space to your best advantage. Subscribe to my blog and special offers. You’ll receive this valuable Feng Shui Guide as a thank you gift.

photo credit: Arib Neko. UnSplash.

Feng Shui Fall Decor

Posted on November 13, 2023 by bette

“When everything looks like a magical oil painting, you know you are in Autumn!”– Mehmet Murat Ildan

Spring and summer aren’t the only colorful seasons. Autumn’s story is rich with glowing crimson and vibrant amber hues. Squashes, fruit and flowers possess their summer blaze well into November endowing us with the strength to retain our radiant selves in this season of letting go. If you cherish autumn’s abundance, the following fall decor will enrich your home and your senses while promising hope and good fortune.

Pumpkin
In the tapestry of fall, pumpkins are the prosperity bearer. Align with good fortune when pumpkins are lined up at your front door. Equally you can display them in arrangements at the inside entry. The Chinese believe this edible squash creates golden opportunities. In folkloric tradition, farmer’s wives would carve out the belly and place items in them to attract wealth. You may expect to increase your prosperity, abundance, your good luck from your ancestors, insure your children will have illustrious careers and acquire an enchanting life. This fruit will even draw up the earth energy to manifest gold.

Persimmon
Round, brilliant orange, the auspicious persimmon has the same pronunciation as the word for “matters, affairs or events and also for an “official”or “gentleman”. A persimmon shown together with an apple forms the rebus “may your matters be safe”. Also known as date-palms or Chinese figs, when placed along side a mandarine orange these fruits together symbolize the following sentiment…“May you have good fortune in all your undertakings.”

In Buddhism, they are symbols of transformation. Six persimmon fruits are symbols of enlightenment. The symbolism reveals that green persimmons are acrid and bitter in their immature state, they represent ignorance. As the fruit matures, it becomes sweet and represents wisdom that comes after transformation.

Pomegranate

Pomegranates represent fertility but for the holidays their usefulness can bring happiness to the family as well as good luck for your descendants. Display pomegranates in a table arrangement either at the front entry or the dining room table. If you like the pomegranate’s color and shape, display it as art in your home to attract these qualities year round.

Orange
Filled with intriguing homonyms the Chinese language is a good romp with words. The meaning of the orange connects them with abundance. Orange is called chéngzi in Chinese which sounds like gold, (jin) and represents wealth. Place a bowl of nine oranges on your dining room table or design them into a centerpiece for Thanksgiving. They will incubate money ch’i.

Chrysanthemum
Enhance your Feng Shui Fall Decor with mums. White chrysanthemums represent nobility and elegance and attract good luck to the home and a life of ease. It is revered like the orchid, bamboo and plum. Displaying chrysanthemums in home lifts the Ch’i of, not only individuals, but families and communities too. If you want to cure for wealth, put together a flower arrangement with a lotus, chrysanthemum and plum blossom plus the peony. Together these symbolize “peace and fortune in the four seasons.”

Narcissus
Flowers are a direct path to enhancing your feelings and elevating your sense of well-being. Placing them where they are visible in your home calms the nervous system. This can carry over to your work place creating a frame of mind for happiness and enthusiasm. Narcissus is known as the “water goddess”. At Chinese New Year they bring good luck and good fortune. During other festivities such as Thanksgiving they enliven your Ch’i through the sense of smell.

I am deeply grateful for your presence and participation with Feng Shui. Sending you heartfelt wishes for a season that is bright and joyful. Have a blessed Thanksgiving!

What Feminine Energy Does For Your Home

Posted on March 8, 2023 by bette

“Nothing can dim the light that shines from within.”

– Maya Angelou

You deserve every praise for creating a thriving work life; for being the rock for your partner and for sharing your vital wisdom with your children. I am delighted this day honors you and that we women have a month to be recognized.

The women’s movement gave a voice to feminine energy and its power. Today feminine energy is a voice as a creative influence in our homes. When we design with it consciously, it empowers us and gives us freedom. Feminine energy is embedded in the Yin (represented by the dark swoosh of the Tai Chi symbol). It is a subtle, unseen, soft, yielding and receptive power. In the world we live in its importance lies in reestablishing harmony within ourselves, creating wholeness in our relationships and mindful balance in our communities. The natural world like plants, water features, light and color attune our spaces to the Yin and enables the feminine within us. I want you to have these five Feng Shui Yin cures that I love and believe will spread your shining light.

Worrying about events that are beyond your control leads to stress that may undermine family relationships. The center of your home (Yin) will help you regain inner composure. The feminine loves color. In the transcendental sense stability, focus and calm may be enhanced by adding earth tones like yellow, orange or brown to the center of your home. These colors cultivate a sense of trust in yourself, your ideas and feeling supported by those you love.

Feeling weakened by illness or lack of energy for intimacy with your partner? The feminine loves green plants. Place nine lush plants in your bedroom. They will refresh your body, brighten your mood and remove clutter from your thoughts. They help you feel grounded, creative and calm. They are easy on the eyes and you can look at them for a long time and not experience eye strain. The color green has a stress-relieving effect. In color psychology, colors of shorter wave lengths relax and cool the human body and mind. Green invests us with tranquility.

Distractions from work may spill over into the home setting, call upon the Yin. The beauty of the bell is in its feminine shape. The clapper striking the hollow cavity inside (Yin) can penetrate your mind with its clear sound. Placing it on the inside front door knob on a nine inch red cord, this blessing may help understanding arise in your heart, helping you to transcend the path of anxiety.

Water is the softest thing, yet it can penetrate mountains and earth. This shows clearly the principle of softness overcoming hardness. (Lao Tzu) The feminine loves water features like a trickling fountain near the front door or a gazing pool in the back yard. Its softness may overcome harsh thoughts. A BSTB Feng Shui wealth cure from Professor Lin. If you have a pool of water and a door or window that views the pool you can pull the water energy (money) across your bed or desk with a mirror and money will flow like water.

Restless or having trouble relaxing at home? Having a room or a certain hour where it’s all your own, you may bring forth what you are. This is the “place of creative incubation” according to Joseph Campbell. He goes on to say “at first you may find nothing happens here. But if you have a sacred place and use it, something eventually will happen. Your sacred space is where you find yourself again and again.” The feminine loves a meditation space, or simply an altar to fill its soul with beauty. Create a place to reflect and just be.

Feng Shui: Design A New Love Story

Posted on February 12, 2022 by bette

“As the wind loves to call things to dance,
May your gravity be lightened by grace…”
– John O’Donahue, To Bless The Space Between Us: A Book of Blessings

Love showers the world in February. In the northern hemisphere the return of longer days brightens dreams and invokes a renewal in the heart. Our homes are the perfect space to create new beginnings. It is especially fortuitous to design a new love story. In the place of Wind we can call things to dance; in the place of Earth we can restore who we are; and in the place of Water we can shape our futures. In this blog I share reminders and you’ll receive new insights to take your creative genius to your home and author a distinct living space with Feng Shui.

Love Yourself First
Let your personality shine in your bedroom’s decor while giving it a Feng Shui make-over. Place your bed in command. Move feet from pointing out the door. Think of color as something to savor. Reds are exciting but short lived sending you to exhaustion. What are your favorite colors and foods? Lavender, daffodil, meadow green, whipped creams, dreamy mocha and rich chocolate brown? They will soothingly stimulate your senses. Accessories with accent colors add joy. Leave the laptop out of the bedroom and relegate the TV, exercise equipment and computer to their respective places. Minimize cell phone/blue light activity. Your nervous system will relax and you will sleep better at night. Remove boxes or benches, (there is an adjustment for a foot board that is too high. Nine red envelopes requested if you ask for the cure) in front of the bed or you may find yourself in one accident after another. The space in front of your bed is your future and should be deep. Gather in good luck by placing a large rectangular mirror across from the bed. Don’t cut off anyone’s head or chin while sitting in bed and the road ahead will be bright and promising.

Invite A Partner
Now that you have a baseline of self care here are a few adjustments to attract a partner. Make sure there is a door between the bathroom and bedroom or you might not be able to find a partner. Want a variety of suitors to choose from? A convex mirror takes in a wide view so hang it in the Partnership corner of your bedroom. Not fond of pink? Design your bedroom with the Five Element colors (green, red, yellow, white and black) in balanced proportion – you will have your bases covered. Go out of the house for this one. Find a wedding and grab the rice that has been thrown onto the ground (work but worth it) insert it into a red envelope. Place this in your car or on your desk. It is not only auspicious wedding Ch’i but auspicious Ch’i of all kinds. Visualize creating the good fortune, health and abundance that shine forth on a wedding day. Select a healthy pink or purple orchid (silk might be even better because it is ever blooming) for your Partnership gua. The orchid symbolizes a partner who is refined but more important just right for you. The nuance is that pink, the color of the Relationship area, adds emphasis, you know, mojo.

Cherish Your Beloved
You’ve got this. Here’s how to keep the chemistry flowing. King size bed? Wrap the mattress in a red sheet (measure from the head to the end of the bed then down to the mattress. Double this then round up to a multiple of nine when measuring the fabric). This joins the mattresses transcendentally. Watch discord melt away. Support your relationship with strength and safety, add a headboard if your bed is missing one. It holds the two sides of the bed as one improving communication. Nine lush plants will invigorate your life force and love life. In the I-Ching the Partnership gua is about receiving, being open, surrendering and allowing. To empower your love make the trigram for “The Receptive’ (the name for the Partnership gua). Cut out three broken (two lines across and three down) lines on red paper. Adhere these to a solid piece of paper and place on your altar for nine nights. On the tenth day place between your mattress and box springs in the top right corner. If the path to the bedroom is difficult (cluttered, dark, narrow or blocked) there may be lethargy and arguments. Do what is required to open the pathway and add beautiful items along the way like rose petals or an image of a place that you both love. Adding a complete color system to your room, for example, the rainbow colors, (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet), you carry the frequencies of these seven colors. This spectrum mirrors the chakra system, the life force centers and creates homeostasis, giving you and your partner the energy to explore all possibilities in and outside the bedroom.

Quell Conflict
You love each other but have difficulty living under the same roof? Feng Shui indicates design and lot shape plus landscaping influence your love life. If the kitchen is in front of the front door, you or your partner may be away a lot or distracted by things outside the house, (soccer mom, playing golf). Or one of you might be eating in someone else’s kitchen. Place a convex mirror in the back of your home to pull the kitchen to the back. Place bamboo anywhere in the house to promote fidelity. Piercing Heart Doors are three or more doors that line up. You can recognize them as entrances to different rooms in the house. A couple may be sleeping in the same bed but dreaming their own dreams. Use color to break down the barrier, like paint the interior door frame a different color or hang two 40 mm crystals, one in each room, along the visual line created by the three doors. Plant a pear tree for it sounds like “partnership” in Chinese and symbolizes the act of sharing love. A beam over your heart crossing the bed places pressure on the heart that can lead you and your partner to argue, even over seemingly insignificant details. Move the bed if possible or hang nine 40mm crystals (either 9 or 18 inches from the bottom of the beam) to lift the beam off of the bed. Sound can be very effective where there is conflict. If your relationship has escalated to feuding, place a wind chime in the bedroom to get the “sounds” of conflict and discord out of your systems. If your home office is in Partnership, it can harm both your relationship and career. You might work too much and not pay attention to your partner. Business may suffer because, as Professor said, “others may come to tell you how pretty you are rather than concentrate on business”. Place a vase and flute (together these are a rebus for peace and prosperity) in the office. Make sure the root end is in the vase and the mouth piece at the top. Visualize that business is business and partnership is partnership. Avoid planting a weeping willow in the backyard. In Wealth money may be lost. In Fame power may dissipate. In Partnership a marriage may come apart. In Chinese weeping willow sounds like “to slip away”. Your wealth or spouse may exit the back door.

The Wind loves to call things to dance…place a windmill or large pinwheel in your yard in the Wealth gua to help get things moving. Place a bench or a lovely container with seasonal pink flowers in the Partnership gua, the Earth gua. Spend time there and you will reinforce your grace and connection to yourself. Place a fountain in Career gua (Water) in the front of the house with the water facing inward (into the fountain). Shui, water, stimulates positive Ch’i and this attracts opportunities for your you, your partner and family.

The Creative Power of the Pumpkin

Posted on October 27, 2020 by bette

“I’d say the first thing you need is … a pumpkin.”
– Cinderella

For centuries the Chinese have displayed pumpkins in their homes in the fall believing this edible squash has the alchemy to create golden opportunities. It began with a folk tale. A scanty village girl named Huang Hua lived with her sickly parents who were unable to care and feed themselves. One day searching for food she came across an oddly shaped melon in a field and took it back to her thatched cottage. She figured out how to prepare the large melon and fed it to her parents. Not long afterwards they made an inexplicable recovery. Since it was found near South Mountain they named it “south melon” or “nangua” which is the Chinese word for pumpkin.

Since that time eating pumpkins have become an integral part of the Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival that is held at the full moon (the 15th day of the eight Chinese Lunar month). The tradition started in ancient China. Poverty stricken families living south of the Yangtze River ate pumpkin because they couldn’t afford the fancy ornamental mooncakes.

In folkloric tradition, farmer’s wives would carve out the belly and place items in them to attract wealth.

Their symbolism is as generous as their size. You may expect to increase:
• Prosperity
• Abundance
• Attain good luck from your ancestors (this quality derives from the ‘flood myth’).
• Insure your children will have illustrious careers.
• Acquire an enchanting life
• Draw the earth energy to manifest gold.
No wonder they are so revered around the world.

Welcome prosperity Ch’i and good fortune with pumpkins lined at your front door or incorporate them in arrangements at the inside entry to magnetize abundance.

How did the old couple survive just eating pumpkin you ask? Pumpkin has high levels of carotenoids, proteins, antioxidants and vitamin C. It health benefits are as massive as its size: it will boost your mood, keep your eyes keen, help you repair after a work out, assist in weight loss, reduce your cholesterol and advance your immune system. Its even thought to reduce the risk of cancer.

If you are looking to build a new home, remodel, plan a wedding, purchase a home or sell one, when you begin has tremendous influence on the outcome of your event. Beginning on the right foot with an auspicious date and time will bring success to your endeavor. Contact me, bette@shenmenfengshui.com for details of how I can assist you with getting started.

Take Your Dreams To Heart

Posted on July 16, 2020 by bette

“One moment can change a day, one day can change a life and one life can change the world.”
– Buddha

You have an amazing heart and for that I have a special blog for you this month because I know it’s been a big job to hold strong, to have faith, to practice your best self when Covid-19 has pulled the rug out from under your plans and your future feels hijacked. You’ve got this and I want you to get more. I want you to know there is a benefit to the reality that is shifting before your eyes. These are fertile times for personal illumination and destiny is calling us to live our dreams through our hearts.

Recently I have been enjoying a beautiful meditation by Gregg Braden. It opens the heart to the extraordinary feeling of bliss because this is the space from which dreams come true. And I am supplementing this opportunity for expanded intuition and creativity with four Feng Shui adjustments that correct and enhance “Li” the gua related to the heart.

Gregg shares we have 40,000 brain-like cells, ‘sensory neurites’, concentrated in such a way that they are called the ‘little brain in the heart’. They can learn independently from the neurons in our brain. They can think and remember independently from the neurons in the brain. They communicate separately to us from the neurons in our brain…When we marry the heart and the brain together, when we harmonize the heart and the brain together, this extended neural network makes us different from all other forms of life. This is where our deepest empathy, compassion, intuition comes from. When we harmonize the little brain heart with the big brain in the head we can process information very quickly. Really fast information recall. Here is the reason why: when we access with our heart, using our intuition we don’t go through the logic and the fear, self esteem and all the doubt that we have in our brain which defends with ego resistance nor are we slowed down by our mental functions.

Our heart doesn’t work that way. Affirmations are powerful tools to implement change in our lives at any time. They are especially potent when we are communicating with our subconscious in a language that our subconscious recognizes. When we harmonize our heart and our brain, this is the hot line to our subconscious. Our affirmations of our perfect relationships, our healing, our dreams begins in our bodies. Extraordinary states of deep intuition are available through harmonizing the heart and the brain. There are three steps to creating this harmonious awareness that come from ancient traditions. (This can be performed just as you awake or go to sleep because these are excellent times for intention setting and opening the channel to the subconscious. Enhance the meditation with background music, lighting a candle, burning incense to clear energy, diffusing sandalwood or frankincense essentials oils. – Bette Steflik)

• Simply and gently place either one finger or your hand or your palms or the prayer mudra on the sternum of your heart. Your awareness will always go to the place in your body where you feel the touch, the sensation. Allow your awareness to move there.

• Slow your breathing. Five seconds on the inhale. Five seconds on the exhale. This sends a powerful signal to your body, from your mind to your heart that says I am turning my attention inward. You are telling your body that “I am safe”. That frees your body to let go of the stress hormones and the feelings of stress. When that happens the healing chemistry begins….Now the body is awakening to its powerful immune response and anti-aging hormones. Breathing slower you are telling your body it is safe.

• Create a feeling in your heart where you feel the touch. Feel one or some combination of the following four feelings: care for anything or for anyone. Appreciation or anything or for anyone. Gratitude or anything or for anyone. And compassion for or anything or for anyone. Researchers have found these four key words will trigger the experience between our heart and our brain to create that coherence .1 Hz. To the best of your ability feel those feelings and breathe from your heart center. Do that for 60 seconds. This ritual is ancient and primal. It is the key to the deepest truth of who you are in this world. The positive vibration you created will hold for six hours after you open your eyes.

Why do this? This is where the super learning comes from. Or when you are working to solve or create something new: a book, poetry, music. Your creativity comes from this deep space.
– Gregg Braden

In the Bagua formation, Li, the Fame gua is connected to the Fire element of the Five Elements. The heart which is known as the Emperor in Traditional Chinese Medicine is the organ that represents this phase. When standing at the front door facing into your home, the location is the central back section of your house. It rests between Hsun, the Wealth gua to the left and Kun, the Partnership gua to the right.

If this area is missing or depleted by a design feature such as a bathroom it may be difficult to excel in your career, pass examinations, receive recognition for a promotion, improve your status, and connect with networking groups that can enhance your visibility and that affects your sense of esteem and well-being. Physically you may develop eye disorders. Mentally your clarity, whether it’s your goals, being self directed or your vision of your future, may be obscured. A side note when Fame is enhanced this activates and improves your career. Want more name recognition? More heart in your relationships? More joy in your life? Here are four Fame tips to increase your influence.

Correct A bathroom in the Fame gua depletes this area (see above). Place a mirror on the outside of the door. It will reflect whatever is in front of it and the bathroom will transcendentally disappear. The nuance from Professor Lin the door may remain open and the cure still works.

Color Red is associated with Fame and Fire. Color may be used to fill in a missing area. Painting the wall red with the visualization that the color is pushing the wall out will transcendentally correct the missing area of the house. The added bonus is you’ve added your “Wall of Fame”.

Center Stage Li means “bright”. When you project yourself from a place of courtesy, professionalism and regard, you raise your esteem and others will view you as confident, considerate and connected. This place of power raises your status. Activate this area with diplomas, awards, and recognitions. The triangle shape is associated with this gua. Animals that represent Li are the tortoise, crab, pheasant (from The Form School) and shellfish. Illumination is a quality of this gua. A framed sunset or a rainbow are suitable for this gua as well.

Credit Believe in you, find your mantra and light your fire with an empowerment. Place an affirmation in this area, such as “I am so grateful and happy that I am now…(fill in the blank) or I am endlessly abundant with talent, skill, intelligence and joy that I utilize everyday.

Building Design Affects The Human Body

Posted on May 5, 2020 by bette

“Houses are like the human beings that inhabit them.”
– Victor Hugo

Our home’s building design is an active participant in our homeostasis. It affects our health and mental outlook on a daily basis. When a client comes to me with a health condition, depending on the ailment, I will look at anyone of the following systems of the house and inquire into its condition.

An example of how the mechanical, electrical, plumbing – all the building design works together. If you are sick or a family member, look at the mechanical, electrical, plumbing – all the systems of the house. Draw an outline of the body onto the house and put the head (face down) at the front door then locate the heart in the house. Where the heart lands in the house correct that system, not just the plumbing which is associated with the circulatory system. Address flooding in the house, even the basement because these will affect the circulatory system.

• Main Entrance and foyer correspond to the head.

• Electrical wiring corresponds to the nervous system.

• Plumbing corresponds to circulatory system, circulation of the blood.

• Sewage System relates to the urinary tract, guts, digestive system–stomach, large intestine.

• Respiratory corresponds air conditioning, ducts, chimneys, sky lights,

• Roof and Beams correspond to the spine.

• Four corners of the house or lot correspond to the four limbs. Front corners would be the arm, the back corners would be the legs and feet.

Free International Health and Wellness Summit, Saturday May 9, 2020
“Healthy Home. Healthy Body. Keys To A Better Mind, Body and Life.”
Sign up for my blog and you will receive an invitation link via Eventbrite.

I will throw open the doors and speak truth about health and Feng Shui. Journey with me through a home’s arrangement and discover the unfolding story of how placement can radically influence your well-being.

The International Health Summit was generated to showcase natural, leading-edge processes to grow a healthy you. Chosen from the best in their field, the presenters’ expertise include: Dowsing, Huna (ancient Hawaiian spiritual practices), Psych K (Psychological Kinesiology; methods that change your subconscious beliefs), Restorative Hypnosis, NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming improves communication skills), Aromatherapy, Nutritional Counseling, Feng Shui, Body Code (energy balancing system that uncovers root causes of discomfort, sickness and suffering), Herbs for our times, Reiki (a Japanese technique for stress reduction and relaxation that also promotes healing) and more. Check out details on Facebook

Covid-19
Thank you for stopping in. I am open during shelter-in-place. I have added via Zoom besides on-site consultations. My services are Feng Shui a La Carte, one hour or Your House Is Talking, full consultation. I wish you well and calmness during this extraordinarily difficult time. I look forward to having a conversation with you.

Photo credit: Getty Images

Diwali 2019. Bliss And The Blessings Of Light.

Posted on October 26, 2019 by bette

“A warm Diwali wish for every happiness. May the warmth and splendor, that are a part of this auspicious occasion, fill your life with happiness and bright cheer and bring to you joy and prosperity, for the whole year.”
–Diwali Blessing

The house is cleaned and the diyas (lamps) are lit. These simple rituals are the basis of good fortune in the Hindu tradition of Diwali, the Festival of Light. In tribute to Vastu Shastra, the origin of Feng Shui, I invite you to be part of the celebration of gathering in goodness, joy and heaven t0 bless you and the ones you love for celebrating the Light not only raises your energy but the vibration of humanity and cultivates eternal bliss. This year it culminates on the new moon, October 27, 2019.

Diwali is about celebrating the sweetness of life and a time of reflection too. Those who practice this festival entertain the changes they will make to improve the upcoming year. The following customs are practiced with sincerity to raise the pulse of all human beings, everywhere. Maybe all it really takes is to remove some bits of dust and light the corners in our homes to magnetize an auspicious year.

Forgive and forget Forget the wrongs done by others. It’s a cleansing process that lifts the air with festivity and friendliness.
Rise with radiance Waking up an hour before sunrise is a great blessing that promotes health, ethical discipline, efficient work habits and spiritual development.
Merge and meld Mingle with others and find your commonality. Share greetings of love to create an atmosphere pungent with kindness.
Accomplish and advance Merchants open their account books and pray for success and a prosperous year. You can do like the citizens of India: purchase new clothes. Homes are cleaned and decorated and lit with earthen oil lamps. Perform good deeds. The poor are fed in massive numbers.
Polish your inner self The Hindus believe there is a light of lights that steadily shines in the Tao of your heart. Sit quietly and focus your thoughts like a laser beam on this supreme brilliance that illuminates your soul.

A well designed space allows you to access positive energy at all times. Call upon me to help you arrange your home where you feel fully supported. I am available for a full consultation Service or for an hour telephone conversation. Details are at this link Feng Shui A La Carte. Think of it as a fairy godmother for your house.

Design Your Life Around Your Purpose

Posted on September 17, 2019 by bette

“Your life has purpose. Your story is important. Your dreams count. Your voice matters. You were born to make an impact.”
– Author unknown

When you make a decision you’re dynamic and you are powerful (thank you Abraham Hicks). This mindset immediately creates a field that surrounds you with positive intent where everything moves in cooperation with what you’ve asked for and supports your alignment with your desires.

When you are in symmetry with your desires (this is where Feng Shui comes in) the design of your home, the arrangement of your furniture, the position of your desk, bed and stove, the alignment of Ch’i and the accents to the front door maximize the wish-fulfilling energy coming into your house. This positive Ch’i creates worlds. So you may want to consider this: envision the walls in your home, the shape of your furnishings, color and lighting in your rooms, less as physical, finite objects and more as you’re composing a directive to assemble the people, places and events you desire to experience. Consciously putting your home into order yields the good fortune (luck, money, love) that blesses you.

For my September blog I am offering a secret enhancement to design your life around your purpose. This cure is from Professor Lin’s infinite body of Feng Shui wisdom. But before I give you the secret cure, consider implementing these practices, they are 99% on the mark to help you succeed.

Professor Lin recommends that meditating daily has extraordinary benefits: it calms your mind, you develop the focus to act with discernment and it broadens your inspiration, all of which help you master your life. Allow meditation to have a place in your day to access your inner voice, your intuition, it has wise messages for you. Add journaling and chanting to encourage self-esteem and self-reliance. Include a personal mantra or Buddhist mantras to transform your inner dialogue so that you recognize what you nurture, you become. Then this cure will be the most effective and powerful.

Place the bed, desk and stove in command position (you can see the door but not be in line of the door) because these areas are your command centers. You make more powerful yet meaningful Feng Shui adjustments when you understand how lack of command hinders your ability to stay aligned with your desires. The necessity for command position influences your sense of safety; you may experience lack of opportunity; anger and mood swings. In the case if the bed is out of command heart trouble, insomnia and illness along the midline (among other health issues) may arise. When your desk is out of command you may have an outdated perspective, unable to see both opportunity and trouble coming and experience lack of support. If you cannot see what is going on while you are at the stove, this suggests a downturn in finances, diminished good luck and heart trouble. Referred back to the 27 Bedroom Concepts for how to place your bed in command, it will apply to the desk too. If you have a question about command position I am happy to answer your inquiry. Please contact me bette@shenmenfengshui.com (I follow the Red Envelope Tradition). In Feng Shui Matters To Your Heart, I share a list of design features that affect your focus and clarity. The list can be useful when you are wanting to make a change.

Ba-gua Formation
Choose either your house or your lot, but do not mix and match them. Perform this sequence for either the house or the lot not both. It’s like saying you do not trust the cure’s effectiveness. These specific adjustments mentioned are meant to be suggestions. Please be mindful of the character and qualities of the gua you are enhancing. If you go your own way, your cure could be less effective and then you may conclude the cure does not work.

Perform this cure between the hours of 11 pm to 1 am (Zi hours) or 11 am to 1 pm (Wu hours). You will complete this cure in eight days. If you miss a day you must start over at Helpful People.

Day One
Begin with the Helpful People (Chien)Gua. It is located in the front right corner of the house or lot. Outside you can place a tall rock or a bird bath, a statue of a Buddha. Place something that has weight. Inside a photo of a travel destination you love. A mirror will expand this area with the proper intention.

Day Two
Move clockwise to Career (Kan). If you know a blessing ritual from the Black Sect Buddhist Feng Shui perform that. An image of water or an actual water feature or a photo of your ancestors or an affirmation for your career are appropriate.

Day Three
Next move to Knowledge (Gen). It is located in the front left corner of your home or lot). Hang a wind chime or place an image of a mountain or a pathway or archway. Something that leads you into contemplation.

Day Four
Continue clockwise to Family (Jen). Hang a wind chime to encourage good luck for the family. Or plant bamboo. It bends in the wind; it bows in the wind and implies having the flexible Ch’i to get along with family members. Or hang an image of bamboo in this area of your home.

Day Five
Move to the back left corner to Wealth (Hsun). It is related to Wind in the I-Ching and also the Wood element. Water is usually depicted here. Hang an image of grasses blowing in the wind. Or place a convex mirror to expand the various resources to receive money.

Day Six
Continue on to the back center of the house or lot. This is the Fame Gua (Li). It means Radiance or Clarity also Clinging (as Fire clings to whatever it is burning). A spot light here to shine the light on your reputation or a crystal to add radiance to your visibility in your community.

Day Seven
Move in a clockwise fashion to Partnership (Kun) which is in the right back corner of the house or lot. This is an Earth gua. Containers, pottery, a bench, or a wheelbarrow are appropriate. Add pink roses in the house or plant roses in the yard in this area.

Day Eight
The last enhancement. This area is the Children Gua (Dui). It is mistaken for Creativity, creativity belongs to all the guas. A white statue for the lot or place a metal statue of children playing. Something hand made by a child like a drawing would activate the Ch’i.

A home that is not a complete rectangle may have a missing area or in some cases like an L shape home, an extension. These need an adjustment before you begin the Bagua Formation cure.

Want to get started right away? Design your life around your purpose? Let’s get started! A well-designed space allows you to access positive energy at all times. Call me, 503-232-2543 and I will help you arrange your home where you feel fully supported. I am available for a full consultation or for an hour telephone conversation, Feng Shui A La Carte. Think of it as a fairy godmother for your house.

Feng Shui Acts of Beauty

Posted on May 15, 2019 by bette

Beautiful are those whose brokeness gives birth to transformation and wisdom.
– John Mark Green

Stress is no longer the by-product of a busy life, it’s a 24/7 affair. If you’re feeling it’s a life sentence you have the power to turn this around with a lifestyle change. Feng Shui acts of beauty create a stress free zone that allow only the good stuff in where the possibilities for something extraordinary can happen. In this blog I shed light on how design decorates our emotions in our partnerships and offer solutions that suggest a “transformational power where this power changes the feelings in our bodies” and links us to positive change in our relationships and the world.

Feng Shui Acts of Beauty
We may not see beauty as functional however it has a very important function. Creating acts of beauty eases our suffering. For couples whose love has gone sour it refreshes their relationship. It’s effective in softening conflictive opinions in the house when partners are at odds.

Pillow Talk
Minimize arguing by placing a mirror on the wall at the head of the bed. The nuance: hanging a round mirror invites soft words between partners.

Pear for a Pair
Let Nature help! If you and your partner cannot share–life, bank accounts, whatever it is, plant a pear tree in the yard. Pear in Chinese sounds like partnership, it symbolizes the act of sharing.

Stairway to Happiness
A stairway in the middle of the house can magnify differing of opinions. It’s not just health issues that slip and slide but opposing viewpoints. Solution is a Feng Shui act of beauty: hang a 50 mm crystal ball at the top of the stairs to lift the Ch’i of the fluctuating energy and lift your hearts.

Fresh Starts
If vitality is lacking in the bedroom, add the color green, place flutes above the bed at the angle of Wealth and Partnership or use plants with flowers and fruit in the bedroom. A plant that bears fruit means that the growth of the plant has seen results and your efforts will bear fruit. Flutes have an uprising force so you are taking the next step (www.yunlintemple.org). Green is associated with springtime, a fresh start, vitality and hope. It is a prevalent color in nature from grass and trees to vegetation. You can look at green for a long time and not experience eye strain. Purchase sheets, a duvet cover or curtains or all three.

Partnership Perplexity
If your partner speaks their mind and you choke on your words. If you cannot cannot speak up when you have relationship troubles, purchase the Yundrung necklace from the Yun Lin Temple in Berkeley, California. The thunderbolt releases “Choked Ch’i”.

Fire Danger
Is love is simmering outside and your partner is cooking in someone else’s kitchen? A fireplace in the center can be the suspect. Add water like a mirror (above the fireplace) to put out the fire or place water in a jug close to the fireplace. Be sure to keep it fresh and do not let it evaporate.

Love Chimes
Has your partnership gotten to the place where one of you is holding back and now you are feuding? Try an act of beauty with sound. Placing a wind chime in the house can help get the reverberation of conflict and dissonance out of your systems.

For our mental health and emotional well-being we really can no longer afford to bring more stress into our lives. If this blog has triggered an avalanche of emotions, if you are curious about more acts of beauty for you home, I am available to help you with either a full consultation or an hour telephone conversation, Feng Shui A La Carte. Think of it as a fairy godmother for your house.

Photo credit: House Beautiful

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Tag Archives: Feng Shui Bedroom Tips