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Chinese New Year Rituals. Attune To Prosperity.

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“Rituals are the formulas by which harmony is restored.”
– Terry Tempest Williams

You know the feelings when you’ve spruced up the house. You feel refreshed, revitalized, rejuvenated and your home beams with cleanliness. Well it’s that time again when the Chinese New Year offers the opportunity to clear last year’s dust and opens the doors to radiance and good fortune. With that spirit of inviting positive Ch’i and abundance into our homes before the year gets underway, here is your comprehensive guide to 18 Chinese New Year rituals you can easily perform on Chinese New Year eve and day (February 1) to attune to prosperity and joy in 2022.

Sweep away the old. The Chinese have long held the belief that a fresh start is essential to a successful year. The 20th day of the 12th lunar month is set aside for the annual housecleaning. January 22, 2022 brooms will come out of the closet, every corner is thoroughly cleaned and misfortune is sent flying. As you sweep imagine illness, obstacles, bad luck, negative attitudes and emotions are swept away. The meditative rhythm of sweeping draws in possibilities of a auspicious new year.

Place something at your entry that is red. Red in Feng Shui symbolism means: happiness, courtesy, respect, power and strength. Two of the front door’s attributes are your career and reputation. With that in mind visualize the red object activating Fame Ch’i.

Display a bowl of oranges in your home and money will come easily. The word for orange (Chengzi) sounds like gold (Jin) in the Chinese language.

Place a platter of tangerines on your dining room table for the saying, “Da ju da li” translates as “May you enjoy an abundance of fortune and profits.” In Asian countries it’s auspicious to place two tangerine trees at the entrance of a home or business but adding the tangerines to your dining room table stimulates your income for the table is the secondary source of your income.

Surround yourself with colorful fruit so that you will have a fruitful year is one of the well known Chinese New Year rituals. Pomelos are large pear-shaped grapefruits which mean “to have”. Pineapple sounds like wealth but its real strength is fame, promotion and excellent fortune. You can display the fruit at the front entry, the dining room, even the kitchen.

Brighten your home and your luck with narcissus (daffodils). The Chinese affirm that daffodil and Narcissus bulbs when in bloom during the New Year, bring good fortune and luck to a home. They enliven our Ch’i through the sense of smell. This adjustment calms the nervous system. With a clear mind we gain clear access to our decision making center (intuition).

Prepare a reunion dinner on Chinese Lunar New Year’s eve. This is one of the most joyful (besides setting off firecrackers) Chinese New Year rituals. The image of the circle is used in food dishes like fish balls. The circle is associated with family. This creates unity, support and continuity. This sense of family unity is called Yuan and underlies all festivals. Yuan means roundness and it suggests the attainment of the Five Fold Happiness (good luck, prosperity, happiness, wealth and longevity). Veggies embody the freshness of “evergreen” and store good fortune in their roots. Support your vitality in the Year of the Water Tiger when you include them in your first meal of the new year. Make a feast and have left overs because left overs symbolize that you’ll have money rolling into the next year. Add a little laughter! Shrimp in the Chinese language sounds like Ha, Ha, Ha and translates as merriment and well being. Joyfulness brings a future of limitless possibility. Cook a whole fish and leave some. Serve longevity noodles and eat them in one long strand (try not to break one or it will shorten your life). Add lettuce for it translates as “growing wealth”. Dumplings, jiao zi look like golden ingots. They promise wealth and prosperity. Serve nian giao, a sticky rice pudding cake which is symbolic of helping people “advance toward higher positions and prosperity step by step”. Make the evening uplifting and happy; include music and play games with your children, tell jokes and laugh.

Serve an even number of dishes (eight) to bestow “double happiness” on the family.

“Avoid cutting the luck of the year” by putting your knives and scissors away February 1. Schedule a hair trim or mani/pedi before Chinese New Year’s Eve. This admonishment is one of the most often overlooked of the Chinese New Year rituals. 

Refrain from cursing on New Year’s Day because letting your tongue fly will affect your luck for the entire year. One day of restraint could mean you’ve mastered your impulses and that can bring more opportunities than you might realize. However if you do inadvertently curse say “Tong yen woo chi!” to reverse the affect.

Slumber not before midnight on Chinese Lunar 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.

Keep the Goddess of Poverty away “Fu” means “good fortune” or “happiness” and is represented both as a Chinese ideograph and its homophone, a bat. Placing the image of a bat (Lan Su Garden in Portland, Oregon was constructed with five bats roof tiles) or the image of “Fu” at your front entry clearly sets the intention to invite good fortune into your life.

Bring one new item such as furniture, décor or art into your home and business to stimulate prosperity Ch’i and to compound your sheng Ch’i (beneficial energy). In addition give away one item or more. This leaves both physical and symbolic space for good fortune.

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

Break a cup or plate (or anything) during New Year say “Fall to the floor and burst into bloom!”

Dress in “up-beat” clothing or new clothes. Wearing red underwear creates a favorable beginning.

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

Carry the Water Tiger’s secret friend (talisman) the Pig. “When the Tiger and Pig come together, the joy of this encounter is enough to offset any evil that the moment may harbor.” (This is one of the most important of the Chinese New Year rituals.) –HH Grandmaster Lin Yun
The exception is if your Chinese animal protector is a Snake then carry Horse and Dog as a pair.

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

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

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 23, 2022 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….

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.

My apologies, due to a proliferation of spam posts, comments cannot be made.

Feng Shui Color Tips: Choosing The Right Hue For You!

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“I found I could say things with color and shapes that I couldn’t say any other way…”
–Georgia O’Keefe

Color touches upon every aspect of life and creates a meaningful impact on your surroundings. It nurtures your health, replenishes money, captures opportunities for your livelihood and strengthens your communication skills. You can broadcast your intention with color. Refresh your body, brighten your mood, remove clutter in your thoughts or find creative solutions for your questions. Harmonizing your surroundings with color aligns you with your purpose and allows you to be free to tap into your highest potential.

Feng shui color tips and the science of color help facilitate telling a coworker how you feel; asking your boss for a raise; planning a passionate night with your partner; mending a relationship; writing your memoir and sleeping peacefully. 

Basic Rainbow colors +

Red is associated with happiness, passion and prosperity. Use red to feel enthusiasm. A sensational color for your power outfit that will pull your resume and prodigious work history together is red–fire engine red, Chinese red, chili pepper red. Red in Feng shui adds courtesy, etiquette, power and strength.

Orange restores, it warms and stimulates. It is a color to help you process your ideas. If you are a writer or want to try your hand at a creative project bring some orange, tangerine or mango to the craft table or tie a scarf around your neck to stimulate your throat chakra–you will speak your truth and play more successfully with the ideas that bubble up.

Yellow boosts your self-confidence. It brightens and promotes healing. If you have had a falling out with a family member and you want to mend your relationship, wear lemon or marigold yellow. It will raise both of your spirits. It will smooth out rigidity and inflexible opinions.

Green refreshes your body and spirit. It is a common color in nature – grass, trees and vegetation – it can help you to feel grounded, creative and calm. It is easy on the eyes and you can look at green for a long time and not experience eye strain. It equalizes, relaxes and balances painful processes. Wrap yourself in a deep sage or emerald green chenille blanket. Sit quietly by candlelight in your meditation room, touch your heart with your hands, feel its pulse, and quietly focus on feeling serene.

Blue clarifies. It emits a sense of well-being. It also soothes, focuses, and cools down energy. Gums sore? That inflammation could be unexpressed anger at work. Wear a sky blue dress or blouse to get mental clarity on the underlying issue. Still need to cool down? Go to bed in a cloud of blue flannel sheets or periwinkle blue cotton pajamas.

Indigo cultivates your intuition and builds self trust. Find a world market or antique mall that carries exotic scarves from Turkey or pashminas from India. Cloak your body and enjoy the mystery of the deep inky blue. Develop your insights from the messages you receive both visible and invisible.

Purple transforms energy on a higher level. It relaxes the nervous system and has a calming mental effect (not to mention boosts sex drive). It is wonderful to adorn a space where you meditate. After a long work day, gently refocus your attention and nourish your mind, when you slip into a flowing, satin robe of deep purple hue. Feel the luxury of its abundant warmth and sensuality. And while you are contemplating your bed and bedroom, check out Under The Covers With Five Element Color to see what colors work best for your bed.

Pink inspires love and romance. Hot pink and fuchsia stimulate passion. Be playful and use your imagination. Your brain is the biggest sex organ. You can do wonders with sheer magenta fabric to lead your partner to the boudoir.

Black connects you to your wisdom. Helps access deeper thoughts. If you need to take command of a situation wear black to express your authority.

White purifies. It is recognized as innocence and cleanliness in the west.  In the east, it is the symbol of death. If you have tried everything and still cannot shed those extra pounds wear all white. You will be so concerned with keeping your clothes spotless that you will be very careful about what goes into your mouth. No spaghetti sauce or chocolate fudge sundae for dinner.

Please share Feng Shui color tips of your own. 

Feng Shui touches on every aspect of life. If you want a small taste, I invite you to try Feng Shui A La Carte.

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.