Tag Archives: sacred space

Manifest A Golden Year of the Metal Rat

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“Wealth is not just money, it embodies five key factors: financial wealth, relational wealth, intellectual wealth, physical wealth and spiritual wealth.”
– Tony Robbins, Motivational Guru

I receive multiple emails on Feng Shui and Chinese money bags/lucky days. While they are entertaining, they don’t hold a candle to the Feng Shui lucky customs and good fortune cures of the Chinese Lunar New Year. Celebrated for over 4,000 years, The Spring Festival is the perfect opportunity to summon your goals. January 24-25, two billion like-minded families and friends pool their goodwill and good intentions into a collective energy of newness, unity, prosperity, abundance and good fortune. The synergy becomes an avalanche of manifestation. The Year of the Metal Rat is two weeks away. Start your avalanche of golden good luck with these Feng Shui prosperity tips:

Improve the Feng Shui in your home and office.
Start with placing your bed and desk in command position. You want to see the door but not be in line of the door.. Next look at the position of your stove. Is it against the wall? If so you cannot see what is behind you and that will influence the quality of the food you eat, the amount of money you have in your bank account, how well you get along with your family and winning legal disputes. Make sure you know what is going on behind you or you will be blind sided. If you need clarification, send me an email: bette@shenmenfengshui.com

Upgrade your karma. Pay It Forward.
Abundance and charity are at the same vibration. When you perform good deeds everyday (nine is even better) it actually improves your good luck. For humanity’s sake the world needs your kindness and compassion. And the upside, well it just feels good. Whenever you receive a kind deed, pay it forward.

Act consciously. Set intention.
Renew your connection with your inner self. This is where all your inspired ideas come from. Begin with a meditation space, even if it’s a corner of a room. A daily meditation practice will help you stay present when life pulls you off course. This space will soothe your senses and nourish your soul. 2020 is a pivotal year. Meditation is the link to staying grounded through change. If you don’t have a space and want to learn how to create one, I share how to create a sacred space with lighting, sound, decor and color at “Sacred Space Is Where You Will Find Yourself Again and Again”.  

Perform New Year Rituals.
In my 20 years of consulting, ritual and ceremony are equal in artistry and power to decorating with Feng Shui. Build momentum for luck to soar during the Year of the Metal Rat.

Start January 14, 2020 with “Sweep away the old”  to rid your home of last year’s energy. Imagine you’re sweeping away any illness, obstacles, bad luck, negative attitudes and emotions.

Money comes easily when a bowl of oranges is displayed in your home. The word for orange (Chengzi) sounds like gold (Jin) in the Chinese language.

Chinese Lunar New Year’s eve prepare a “lucky eight” foods dinner. Make the evening uplifting and happy; include music and play games with your children, tell jokes and laugh.

Place your knives and scissors in a drawer January 25, 2020. Schedule a hair trim or mani/pedi before Chinese New Year’s Eve “to avoid cutting the luck of the year”.

Keep your peepers open past midnight on Chinese New Year’s eve to ensure good luck will cross your threshold. The sound of sleepiness in Chinese is similar to trouble. Sleepless means no trouble in the coming year.

Bring one new item such as furniture, décor or art into your home and business to stimulate prosperity chi and to increase your sheng chi. In addition give away one item or more. This creates both physical and symbolic space for new blessings. Taoist monks execute these practices every year.

Throw away china, crockery or glassware that are broken, chipped or have hairline cracks, these augur bad luck.

Make amends with anyone with whom you’ve had a row or falling-out.

Receive a handout of these Chinese Lunar New Year customs and more when you book a consultation…

After you have played games and eaten foods that attract fame and fortune, perform BSTB ceremonies to invite bountiful blessings. Want to receive the “Three Lucky Feng Shui Secret Traditions Packet”? See below.

Carry the Golden Rat’s secret friend (talisman) the Ox
“When the Rat and the Ox come together, the joy of this encounter is enough to offset any evil that the moment may harbor.”
–HH Grandmaster Lin Yun

Carry a three dimensional Ox made of bone, boxwood or jade. The exception is if your Chinese animal protector is a Horse or Ram, then carry the Monkey and the Dragon as a pair.

Enjoy A Year of Good Fortune!
The “Three Lucky Feng Shui Secret Traditions Packet” is back! $27 + nine red envelopes. Email me at bette@shenmenfengshui.com for payment options. Nine red envelopes must be received by mail on or before January 20, 2020 to ensure your mailing will arrive in time. Revel in “Welcoming the Wealth Gods” into your home. Delight in peeling away bad luck during “the Golden Cicada” ceremony and jump up for joy when you throw the orange peel as the clock strikes 12:00 during “Changing the Ch’i….

Receive the Three Lucky Feng Shui Secret Traditions Packet and the Five Fold Happiness New Year list when you schedule your on site consultation before January 25, 2020.

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.

Plant. Love. Pray. Coping With Eclipse Energies.

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“If you adjust your ch’i well, your good ch’i will influence your heart. If your ch’i is good, love is created. And, love develops good ch’i.”
– H.H. “Professor” Lin Yun

The summer sky is ablaze with change. Eclipses and retrogrades activate profound advancement in humanity. But if all we experience is chaos and conflict while they transit, can we ever imagine we could live in grace under fire and find a softer, easier way to evolve? Yes! There is sacred way and your home is the key player.

If you are new to my blogs and presentations, I decorate interiors for the soul. Calmly arranging your space depopulates stress. Adjusting design details that cause conflict opens each room to love, beauty and abundance, waking up the spirit in your home and helping you cope with heavy energies, especially the current eclipses.

You can deflect those curve balls the cosmos has thrown at us by implementing a firewall of peace with good luck adjustments. I have selected six to help you get started living in grace under fire and finding your way home to love.

Shift If your luck is not good, every 9, 18 or 27 days, change some aspect of your furniture arrangement. You are changing the ch’i using the sense of touch. Your life force will be adjusted and awakened.

The best approach is move items that have not been moved recently. For example: your bed, the dining room table, the couch or the crock pot. You only need to lift the bed or table and then put it down in the same spot. The same holds true for objects that have been stored. At the moment the item is moved, the area beneath begins to breathe and shift. The space is revitalized, and the auspicious Ch’i begins to fill your home.

Alleviate If you or a family member or friend are suffering from an intangible stress. If you feel the weight of the world but you can’t quite put your finger on what’s causing it, make an adjustment in Helpful People. Nuance: in the office, the bedroom and the yard strengthens the effect.

Stabilize One of the best cures for calming the heart and mind:
Materials:
A circle of red paper
A brand new black pen
Tape

Procedure:
• Hold your breath and write “security” (with the new black pen) on one side of the red circle.
• In the same breath, write your name on the other side.
• Place the circle under your bed or chair, with “security” side facing the floor (adhere with tape)
• Visualize security and/or stability in your career, marriage, health, finances etc. You can also extend your visualization to include the stability of your family, your neighbors and everyone around the world. You might even wish for the stabilization of an unsettled, national or worldly, financial, social or political situation.
• Reinforce with the Three Secrets, using the Expelling Mudra to eliminate all obstacles (If you want to details I request nine red envelopes for this section, email me bette@shenmenfengshui.com).

Nuances:
If you write “stability”, you also may be able to help:
A child who cannot concentrate.
A parent whose child cannot manage time.
A wife whose husband frequently spends time away from home.
An employer whose employees quit again and again.

Plant Professor Lin was asked what to do when we live in an area that is vulnerable to floods, hurricanes, avalanches, earthquakes and natural disasters. He said planting trees will help vulnerable areas. He said, “Plant bamboo in every gua of a vulnerable area. You can also place bamboo in your home. It can be a picture of bamboo, a wall hanging, a flute from the Yun Lin Temple or a bamboo curtain. Bamboo is hollow, it bows in the wind. It provides peace, safety and support and drives away negative forces.

Love The secret to a successful life is performing a good deed daily.
Do these without expectation. Helping another person you shift not only their reality but yours as well. A kind deed improves your luck, circumstances and income. For emphasis do nine good deeds a day. But if karma has eclipsed your good luck, perform twenty seven good deeds in one day. Your sincerity is the most important part. Performing good deeds will strengthen your cures.

Pray Creating an altar in your home invests your home with an illuminating focus. It can contain a candle, incense, flowers, a crystal, a holy icon such as a Buddha and an object of personal meaning. Visiting the altar daily infuses your home with grace and your endeavors with a positive influence.

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 or for an hour telephone conversation, 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.

Sacred Space Is Where You Find Yourself

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“Your sacred space is where you can find yourself again and again.”
– Joseph Campbell

Beginning of June I made a reentry into the world of pigment, canvas and brush and I love it! It’s an online course from a remarkable painter. Listening to her I feel my excitement mount over the possibilities that lay before me as she extolled in her video, “The best painting, no, the most joyful painting, comes from a soul that is nurtured from the inside.” Her gentle encouragement has blown confidence into my heart and I feel a release of trepidation. In one short week I have learned, painting is not just what you put on the canvas but what you surround yourself with too. Who you are and what you love is right there in your composition of discovery, “Before you even pick up a brush, welcome what nourishes your soul into your space and you will find this nurtures your ideas and what flows from your brush onto the canvas.” Sounds a lot like Feng Shui? We are all creative, it’s what we have come here to enjoy. In a space that expresses all that you love, you foster your creative impulse. Your space is the threshold to your inner sanctum. Assigning time to cultivate what your soul desires, you champion what you came here to be.

You are the creator of your life, however life does not come without challenges. Oftentimes life changing events obscure your heart, your desires and what you love. They pull you off course and off balance: the death of a beloved; losing a pet; moving to another state; missing a promotion….These will and do come to you in life yet they need not define how you live the rest of your life.

Upon first meeting some of my clients they inform me they cannot let go of life changing events and are puzzled when they find clutter piling up when before there was none. Or they find they argue with their spouse, children, friends and coworkers for no apparent reason. Opportunities for career advancement passes them by. They may spiral into depression, lethargy and illness. If any of these resonate with you, if you are feeling disappointed, disconnected and distressed, it may be your soul’s S.O.S. to find yourself again.

I urge you to create a sacred space to renew your connection with your inner self, especially if your life is chaotic. Claim an area of your home, make it just for you. Size does not matter, it can be a room, a nook, even a chair in the corner of your bedroom. This space is for you to explore, to write, draw, paint, chant, sing or listen to Nature. It is your time to connect to the sacred and in doing so imagine a clear vision of your future. I encourage you to get started. To make it easy here are six insights for creating a sacred space.

Lighting The choice of lighting can set the tone for a room. More light is energizing, lower light is relaxing.

Mood This is your special area to invite stillness, to be silent, to be contemplative, meditate and pray. These methods engage an inner dialogue with your soul. Add pillows or a comfortable chair. Your body needs to be supported.

Decor Plants’ life force bring you into balance in an natural way. Flowers invite beauty. They add color, Ch’i and oxygen. Choose soft fabrics to hang or drape. Create an altar with candles, incense burner, essential oil diffuser and natural objects like feathers, rocks and shells. Choose what is meaningful to you. Consider placing an object that is related to your spiritual practice.

Color Purple transforms on a higher level. It relaxes the nervous system and has a calming mental effect. Pink opens the heart. Green refreshes your body and spirit. It can help you feel grounded, creative and calm. Yellow enlivens your health. 

Wall Art Display an image or images of the ocean, mountains, lakes, meadows, gardens, spiritual teachers, mentors, deities or angels and you’ll create an ambiance for harmony and reverence during this time of inner engagement.

Music Choose whatever inspires you. You want it to be soft and low, in the background so it is supportive of going inward. Select authors who arouse a sense of mystery such as Rumi, Hafiz and Emerson. Their words invite transcendence. And remember be selective with the words that live in your sacred space. You want them to summon contemplation and divine connection. 

“We must be willing to get rid of the life we’ve planned so as to have the life that is waiting for us.” (Joseph Campbell) Each opportunity to create reciprocity with your soul bathes your mind in clarity and rallies you to live the life you were meant to live.

Have you decided this will be your year? “Boldness has genius”… start with one hour of 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.

Sacred Space: Incubate Your Dreams In 2016

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“Sacred space is an absolute necessity for anybody today. You must have a room, or a certain hour or so a day, where you don’t know what was in the newspapers that morning, you don’t know who your friends are, you don’t know what you owe anybody, you don’t know what anybody owes to you. This is a place where you can simply experience and bring forth what you are and what you might be. This is the place of creative incubation. At first you may find that nothing happens there. But if you have a sacred place and use it, something eventually will happen.”
– Joseph Campbell

Contrary to belief that winter is a season of sleep, there is evidence it is a transformative time. While plants and wildlife slumber in dormant bliss, celestial events conspire to help us prepare for the deep well of opportunities coming this year. Winter Solstice the light returns to the Northern hemisphere. The days lengthen and swell with the increasing light. January 1, our inner light is ignited with the entrance of the a new year. Midpoint between Winter Solstice and the Vernal Equinox, February 4, “Lichun”, the light of Spring arrives. Bursting through the frost, the hearty, winter plum blossom exemplifies forging ahead and so we tackle our plans. The timed cues between Heaven and Earth remind our spirit to renew our vow to ourself and the year ahead. 

Our spirit is the mystical, intangible part of our nature and important because it knows precisely when to act and what makes us happy. If we fail to recognize its value, joy remains beyond our grasp. This is reason alone to honor its place within us and create a space of its own. The highly respected Joseph Campbell, The Power of Myth, says of sacred space, “To live in a sacred space is to live in a symbolic environment where spiritual life is possible, where everything around you speaks of the exaltation of the spirit….This is the place of creative incubation…Your sacred space is where you find yourself again and again.”

If you’ve always written out your resolutions it might time to blend them with a spatial solution. Here are some basics to help you create a sacred space that will give you the support you need to incubate your dreams in 2016. You want it to be comfortable and away from noise. It can be a bedroom, study, workspace, a corner of a room, chair or your backyard. Keep in mind it is an intentional space that quiets your mind, frees you from stress and provides peace and healing. 

Create an altar or area where you can place special items to heightened your awareness of withdrawing from the world and honoring time alone. You may place fresh cut flowers, life force such as a plant or plants, an aquarium or a water fountain. Sights and sounds should be pleasing and meaningful. Scent is also a powerful tool to follow a path of awakening. A diffuser or dish of orange or lemon essential oil bring clarity or place a bowl of nine oranges. These add color and good fortune. Burning incense is a form of prayer. These methods engage your five senses and enhance the purification of your mind. If your space only has room for a table with a candle, add natural elements such as a shell from a favorite beach, a rock from a lakeshore or a special piece of wood that you picked up from the mountains. If there is a deity that is near to your heart, a statue or a painting is appropriate. If it is a Buddha statue like Quan Yin, Green Tara or Amitabha Buddha honor it with water offerings, food offerings, incense and candles that are placed on a tier below. Devote 5-30 minutes a day to meditate, journal, read or draw. At first you might feel resistance to getting started but if you select a time each day you can commit to, the demands of the world will vanish as you fall in love with this quiet, still time in your day. And when you leave give gratitude to your space for giving you sustenance and joy.

Have questions about your home? Want to feel more vitality and joy?. There are tried and true Feng Shui design principles that my clients share have garnered them success. I want you too to receive the same opportunity so I created Feng Shui A La Carte to get you there.

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.