zonie
March 17th, 2005, 11:04 AM
This comes from an old presentation/informal report of mine. I thought I'd dust it off and share it with you all. I'll copy & paste some excerpts, but make the more interesting parts bold for you.
Intro to Feng Shui
At its most basic, Feng Shui is a geomantic practice (or as some put it: an art, science, or philosophy) that is concerned with the placement of objects in relation to each other, for the purpose of tuning spiritual energy flows to one’s advantage. Those flowing energies are known as chi and sha.
Chi is a benevolent energy that is characterized by its wavy flow patterns. Absorbing chi is good for a person, bringing much fortuitousness. Sha is the opposite of chi – with it come negative effects such as illness and financial trouble. Sha is characterized by its straight and angular flow patterns.
Accordingly, Feng Shui’s purpose is to achieve a balance between a person, his or her environment, and the spiritual energies that flow throughout the world. Achieving this balance is valuable in bringing you the advantageous effects of absorbing chi, such as health, wealth, and happiness.
In keeping with Feng Shui’s emphasis on controlling flows, the Chinese characters that make up the term “Feng Shui” are literally translated as ‘wind’ and ‘water’. It is thought that Feng Shui originally came about from the observation that wind and water’s flows could be affected by changes in the shape of the landscape. For example, the presence of tall structures creates gusting winds, and the digging of a well might dry up a stream. This observatory system seems congruent with many of Feng Shui’s principles. For instance, Feng Shui recommends south-facing buildings. This makes sense because more sunlight can be absorbed this way (so long as you live in the Northern hemisphere).
History
The ancient Taoists created Feng Shui thousands of years ago. Much of Feng Shui is derived from the I Ching (Sacred Book of Changes) and Li Shu (Sacred Book of Rites). It is thought that the first Feng Shui masters were actually the successors of the Fang-Shih, who were the tribal shaman-kings of ancient China. The Fang-Shih had power over water and wind.
One of the most important Fang-Shih was Fu Hsi. He is the one whom credit is given for bringing civilization to the then-barbaric humans. Based on a pattern that he saw on the back of a tortoise shell, he created a mystic diagram known as the Lo Shu. This diagram is equivalent to the magic square in math – an arrangement of the numbers 1 through 9 in a 3 3 table such that the sum of each row, column, and diagonal adds up to the number 15. Using the earliest known form of binary representation with sets of broken and unbroken lines denoting numbers, this diagram forms the basis of the Pa K’ua – the 8 trigrams of the I Ching. In turn, this diagram further expands to the 64 hexagrams of the Chou I.
The Pa K’ua is used with reference to a special type of geomantic compass known as the Lo P’an for such purposes as determining the best usage of a particular room. The Lo P’an has 24 basic directions that relate to a site’s Feng Shui. There are many rules in determining a building’s orientation that need to be checked with both the Lo P’an and Pa K’ua. In fact, even a building’s ‘front’ need not be where the main entrance is.
There are two kinds of Feng Shui – one represented by each side of the T’ai Chi T’u symbol. On the dark side, we have Yin Feng Shui, which concerns graves and tombs. It receives no further emphasis in this report. On the light side, Yang Feng Shui concerns the shape and orientation of buildings and objects. It is also the major focus of all the books on Feng Shui that I have seen.
Furthermore, for Yang Feng Shui, there are two schools. The “form school” was first described in a 9th century A.D. book, which systemized the Feng Shui analysis of land formations. In the 10th century A.D., a book on the “compass school”, a system for analyzing Feng Shui in mountainless regions, was written. Today, we combine both schools; first, looking at Feng Shui in the surrounding land formations, and secondly, looking at the Lo P’an compass to determine what the best directions for our objects and buildings are.
Concepts & Fundamentals
An important Feng Shui concept to consider when choosing a site to build upon is that of the four celestial animal protectors. Different types of chi flow from each one. They are the red raven (energetic chi), white tiger (erratic and unpredictable chi), black tortoise (listless chi), and green dragon (nurturing and protective chi). One protector guards each of a building’s four walls. The raven is always at the building’s front. If the building’s front is facing south, as favoured, then the dragon will be to the east, the tiger to the west, and the tortoise to the north. These positions are not tied to compass direction, but building orientation. The best Feng Shui sites are those where all four animals are easily identifiable in the surrounding environment, however, it is most important that the dragon is present. The animals may be represented by land formations, or alternatively, other nearby buildings. There are a number of criteria for properly identifying these animals, which are beyond the scope of this project.
There are five elements, according to Taoism: earth, metal, water, wood, and fire. Any objects such as buildings, hills, etc. are all associated with one of these elements. These objects are primarily identified by shape before such attributes as colour or actual material. In certain combinations, these elements affect each other. There are two important orders of combinations to keep in mind. In the Generative Order, one element helps another, and in the Destructive Order, one element harms another. As an example, fire-element environments would harm metal-environment sites, while helping earth-element sites. Either being a destroying element, or being a generated element, yield positive effects. However, the positive effects to destroying elements are shorter-lived, as eventually the other element is destroyed, leaving no energy left to take.
There are a few basic principles that one should adhere to in designing buildings. Chi should be able to flow through a house, entering on one side, and exiting the other. A room with only one door and no windows does not provide sufficient means for chi to flow. Also, mirrors are generally considered to be good enhancers of chi, and deflectors of sha. Additionally, sharp angles and straight lines should be avoided, as those are characteristic of sha.
Moreover, there are three fundamental architecture principles in Feng Shui. The first is stability. Upper floors should have a solid-looking base to rest upon. This means no “top-heavy” or pillar-supported buildings. This has nothing to do with whether the building is sound from an engineering standpoint. Also, none of the lower levels should be disproportionately large either – so no cascading buildings. Adhering to this fundamental ensures the stability of the building occupants’ health and livelihood.
A second fundamental is balance. No irregular shapes should be used. In Feng Shui, this means that we should not build an L-, H-, triangle-, or pyramid-shaped building. Instead, we should build square, rectangular, or circular buildings. Adhering to this fundamental ensures harmony amongst a building’s occupants.
The final fundamental is smoothness. Therefore, protruding structures or harsh surfaces should not be put into a building’s design. A smooth building is better for deflecting sha. Protrusions create irregular energy flows, and even direct sha in the direction they protrude at.
Example 1: Harbour Centre, Vancouver
http://s87383322.onlinehome.us/fs/harbour-centre.jpg
The major problem with the Harbour Centre is its post-mounted upper levels, which can signify a very oppressive upper management. Another potential problem is the visible, straight, external elevator shaft, which may convey sha up and down the building. One good thing about the Harbour Centre though is that the shapes used, such as the main block’s rectangular shape, are well balanced, which keeps energy flows regular.
Example 2: Telus Centre
http://s87383322.onlinehome.us/fs/1telus.jpg
It features a cascading design, which happens to be its downfall in terms of Feng Shui. The cascade indicates many business-related problems: fortunes rolling down the building’s slopes, high employee turnover, and stalled projects.
Example 3: One Wall Centre
http://s87383322.onlinehome.us/fs/wall.jpg
A form of Feng Shui called aggressive Feng Shui typifies the One Wall Centre’s design. Eva Wong, author of A Master Course in Feng Shui (2001), calls this form of Feng Shui “antithetical to the practice of feng-shui, because feng-shui is an art of living in harmony with the environment and those who inhabit it.” In aggressive Feng Shui, a building works on the principle of directing sha at its neighbours to destroy them, and thus gain wealth at the expense of others. The One Wall Centre directs sha in three main ways: 1. It has sharp, knife-like edges that ‘cut’ into any buildings that lie in the path in front of them. 2. It is covered in reflective glass that reflects the images of some buildings at other buildings, directing sha at them in the process. This building is especially effective in doing this because it has the shape of a convex lens, which means that it will reflect in all directions. 3. It has protruding structures near the bottom, which direct sha in the direction they protrude in. Now, not only does this building have aggressive properties, but also it is well defended against sha by virtue of its smooth, and rounded walls, which deflect sha away. Note: This type of Feng Shui is more commonly practiced in Hong Kong, where rival companies attack each other. It's not clear what Wall Centre is attacking though. Where do its two edges point at?
Example 4: SFU Campus
First of all, the school’s mountaintop location leaves it entirely exposed to sha. This is the case because the four animal protectors (especially the dragon and tiger) are supposed to be taller than the site. However, being on a mountaintop, there is nothing above the school. A further problem with the mountaintop is that there is a pointy structure on it – a communications tower on the eastern part of the school, which serves to turn chi into sha.
There are also elemental problems between the school’s site and environment. The surrounding forests, and gentle slopes are characteristic of the wood element, while the concrete material, and flat-topped design of most of the school’s buildings are characteristic of the earth element. This combination is part of the Destructive Order – wood destroys earth – so it is not conducive to success. In a few cases, the destruction is somewhat alleviated though. The red (fire-element) fish in the Academic Quadrangle (AQ) pond, for example, are beneficial since fire generates earth. Also, the metal statue of Terry Fox works to destroy wood, and less wood means less destruction of earth. Hypothetically, if SFU’s buildings were not concrete, and were instead painted red to coincide with the fire-element, SFU’s elemental combination would be perfect for a place of learning because wood fosters creativity, and generates fire, which itself represents intellect.
And lastly, we have the architectural problems with Simon Fraser University.
http://s87383322.onlinehome.us/fs/SFU1.JPG
The library is “top-heavy”, and has a protruding structure – characteristics of bad stability, and a lack of smoothness, respectively.
http://s87383322.onlinehome.us/fs/AQ.JPG
The AQ is pillar-supported, characteristic of very bad stability (pillars exaggerate the effects of an already top-heavy design).
http://s87383322.onlinehome.us/fs/sfu-mbc.jpg
And the Maggie Benston Centre has both bad stability with its cascading design, and poor balance with its irregular shape.
Of course, while SFU may not have been designed with Feng Shui in mind, there are many buildings around the world that are. This is especially true for Asia, where developers regularly hire geomancers, but Feng Shui is increasingly gaining popularity in North America as well.
Anyone have any requests? Disclaimer: I'm no expert, but I researched a few experts' books... or at least I read a few sentences in them a few years ago. That should qualify me as a master. Hope you found the preceding interesting in some way. :)
Intro to Feng Shui
At its most basic, Feng Shui is a geomantic practice (or as some put it: an art, science, or philosophy) that is concerned with the placement of objects in relation to each other, for the purpose of tuning spiritual energy flows to one’s advantage. Those flowing energies are known as chi and sha.
Chi is a benevolent energy that is characterized by its wavy flow patterns. Absorbing chi is good for a person, bringing much fortuitousness. Sha is the opposite of chi – with it come negative effects such as illness and financial trouble. Sha is characterized by its straight and angular flow patterns.
Accordingly, Feng Shui’s purpose is to achieve a balance between a person, his or her environment, and the spiritual energies that flow throughout the world. Achieving this balance is valuable in bringing you the advantageous effects of absorbing chi, such as health, wealth, and happiness.
In keeping with Feng Shui’s emphasis on controlling flows, the Chinese characters that make up the term “Feng Shui” are literally translated as ‘wind’ and ‘water’. It is thought that Feng Shui originally came about from the observation that wind and water’s flows could be affected by changes in the shape of the landscape. For example, the presence of tall structures creates gusting winds, and the digging of a well might dry up a stream. This observatory system seems congruent with many of Feng Shui’s principles. For instance, Feng Shui recommends south-facing buildings. This makes sense because more sunlight can be absorbed this way (so long as you live in the Northern hemisphere).
History
The ancient Taoists created Feng Shui thousands of years ago. Much of Feng Shui is derived from the I Ching (Sacred Book of Changes) and Li Shu (Sacred Book of Rites). It is thought that the first Feng Shui masters were actually the successors of the Fang-Shih, who were the tribal shaman-kings of ancient China. The Fang-Shih had power over water and wind.
One of the most important Fang-Shih was Fu Hsi. He is the one whom credit is given for bringing civilization to the then-barbaric humans. Based on a pattern that he saw on the back of a tortoise shell, he created a mystic diagram known as the Lo Shu. This diagram is equivalent to the magic square in math – an arrangement of the numbers 1 through 9 in a 3 3 table such that the sum of each row, column, and diagonal adds up to the number 15. Using the earliest known form of binary representation with sets of broken and unbroken lines denoting numbers, this diagram forms the basis of the Pa K’ua – the 8 trigrams of the I Ching. In turn, this diagram further expands to the 64 hexagrams of the Chou I.
The Pa K’ua is used with reference to a special type of geomantic compass known as the Lo P’an for such purposes as determining the best usage of a particular room. The Lo P’an has 24 basic directions that relate to a site’s Feng Shui. There are many rules in determining a building’s orientation that need to be checked with both the Lo P’an and Pa K’ua. In fact, even a building’s ‘front’ need not be where the main entrance is.
There are two kinds of Feng Shui – one represented by each side of the T’ai Chi T’u symbol. On the dark side, we have Yin Feng Shui, which concerns graves and tombs. It receives no further emphasis in this report. On the light side, Yang Feng Shui concerns the shape and orientation of buildings and objects. It is also the major focus of all the books on Feng Shui that I have seen.
Furthermore, for Yang Feng Shui, there are two schools. The “form school” was first described in a 9th century A.D. book, which systemized the Feng Shui analysis of land formations. In the 10th century A.D., a book on the “compass school”, a system for analyzing Feng Shui in mountainless regions, was written. Today, we combine both schools; first, looking at Feng Shui in the surrounding land formations, and secondly, looking at the Lo P’an compass to determine what the best directions for our objects and buildings are.
Concepts & Fundamentals
An important Feng Shui concept to consider when choosing a site to build upon is that of the four celestial animal protectors. Different types of chi flow from each one. They are the red raven (energetic chi), white tiger (erratic and unpredictable chi), black tortoise (listless chi), and green dragon (nurturing and protective chi). One protector guards each of a building’s four walls. The raven is always at the building’s front. If the building’s front is facing south, as favoured, then the dragon will be to the east, the tiger to the west, and the tortoise to the north. These positions are not tied to compass direction, but building orientation. The best Feng Shui sites are those where all four animals are easily identifiable in the surrounding environment, however, it is most important that the dragon is present. The animals may be represented by land formations, or alternatively, other nearby buildings. There are a number of criteria for properly identifying these animals, which are beyond the scope of this project.
There are five elements, according to Taoism: earth, metal, water, wood, and fire. Any objects such as buildings, hills, etc. are all associated with one of these elements. These objects are primarily identified by shape before such attributes as colour or actual material. In certain combinations, these elements affect each other. There are two important orders of combinations to keep in mind. In the Generative Order, one element helps another, and in the Destructive Order, one element harms another. As an example, fire-element environments would harm metal-environment sites, while helping earth-element sites. Either being a destroying element, or being a generated element, yield positive effects. However, the positive effects to destroying elements are shorter-lived, as eventually the other element is destroyed, leaving no energy left to take.
There are a few basic principles that one should adhere to in designing buildings. Chi should be able to flow through a house, entering on one side, and exiting the other. A room with only one door and no windows does not provide sufficient means for chi to flow. Also, mirrors are generally considered to be good enhancers of chi, and deflectors of sha. Additionally, sharp angles and straight lines should be avoided, as those are characteristic of sha.
Moreover, there are three fundamental architecture principles in Feng Shui. The first is stability. Upper floors should have a solid-looking base to rest upon. This means no “top-heavy” or pillar-supported buildings. This has nothing to do with whether the building is sound from an engineering standpoint. Also, none of the lower levels should be disproportionately large either – so no cascading buildings. Adhering to this fundamental ensures the stability of the building occupants’ health and livelihood.
A second fundamental is balance. No irregular shapes should be used. In Feng Shui, this means that we should not build an L-, H-, triangle-, or pyramid-shaped building. Instead, we should build square, rectangular, or circular buildings. Adhering to this fundamental ensures harmony amongst a building’s occupants.
The final fundamental is smoothness. Therefore, protruding structures or harsh surfaces should not be put into a building’s design. A smooth building is better for deflecting sha. Protrusions create irregular energy flows, and even direct sha in the direction they protrude at.
Example 1: Harbour Centre, Vancouver
http://s87383322.onlinehome.us/fs/harbour-centre.jpg
The major problem with the Harbour Centre is its post-mounted upper levels, which can signify a very oppressive upper management. Another potential problem is the visible, straight, external elevator shaft, which may convey sha up and down the building. One good thing about the Harbour Centre though is that the shapes used, such as the main block’s rectangular shape, are well balanced, which keeps energy flows regular.
Example 2: Telus Centre
http://s87383322.onlinehome.us/fs/1telus.jpg
It features a cascading design, which happens to be its downfall in terms of Feng Shui. The cascade indicates many business-related problems: fortunes rolling down the building’s slopes, high employee turnover, and stalled projects.
Example 3: One Wall Centre
http://s87383322.onlinehome.us/fs/wall.jpg
A form of Feng Shui called aggressive Feng Shui typifies the One Wall Centre’s design. Eva Wong, author of A Master Course in Feng Shui (2001), calls this form of Feng Shui “antithetical to the practice of feng-shui, because feng-shui is an art of living in harmony with the environment and those who inhabit it.” In aggressive Feng Shui, a building works on the principle of directing sha at its neighbours to destroy them, and thus gain wealth at the expense of others. The One Wall Centre directs sha in three main ways: 1. It has sharp, knife-like edges that ‘cut’ into any buildings that lie in the path in front of them. 2. It is covered in reflective glass that reflects the images of some buildings at other buildings, directing sha at them in the process. This building is especially effective in doing this because it has the shape of a convex lens, which means that it will reflect in all directions. 3. It has protruding structures near the bottom, which direct sha in the direction they protrude in. Now, not only does this building have aggressive properties, but also it is well defended against sha by virtue of its smooth, and rounded walls, which deflect sha away. Note: This type of Feng Shui is more commonly practiced in Hong Kong, where rival companies attack each other. It's not clear what Wall Centre is attacking though. Where do its two edges point at?
Example 4: SFU Campus
First of all, the school’s mountaintop location leaves it entirely exposed to sha. This is the case because the four animal protectors (especially the dragon and tiger) are supposed to be taller than the site. However, being on a mountaintop, there is nothing above the school. A further problem with the mountaintop is that there is a pointy structure on it – a communications tower on the eastern part of the school, which serves to turn chi into sha.
There are also elemental problems between the school’s site and environment. The surrounding forests, and gentle slopes are characteristic of the wood element, while the concrete material, and flat-topped design of most of the school’s buildings are characteristic of the earth element. This combination is part of the Destructive Order – wood destroys earth – so it is not conducive to success. In a few cases, the destruction is somewhat alleviated though. The red (fire-element) fish in the Academic Quadrangle (AQ) pond, for example, are beneficial since fire generates earth. Also, the metal statue of Terry Fox works to destroy wood, and less wood means less destruction of earth. Hypothetically, if SFU’s buildings were not concrete, and were instead painted red to coincide with the fire-element, SFU’s elemental combination would be perfect for a place of learning because wood fosters creativity, and generates fire, which itself represents intellect.
And lastly, we have the architectural problems with Simon Fraser University.
http://s87383322.onlinehome.us/fs/SFU1.JPG
The library is “top-heavy”, and has a protruding structure – characteristics of bad stability, and a lack of smoothness, respectively.
http://s87383322.onlinehome.us/fs/AQ.JPG
The AQ is pillar-supported, characteristic of very bad stability (pillars exaggerate the effects of an already top-heavy design).
http://s87383322.onlinehome.us/fs/sfu-mbc.jpg
And the Maggie Benston Centre has both bad stability with its cascading design, and poor balance with its irregular shape.
Of course, while SFU may not have been designed with Feng Shui in mind, there are many buildings around the world that are. This is especially true for Asia, where developers regularly hire geomancers, but Feng Shui is increasingly gaining popularity in North America as well.
Anyone have any requests? Disclaimer: I'm no expert, but I researched a few experts' books... or at least I read a few sentences in them a few years ago. That should qualify me as a master. Hope you found the preceding interesting in some way. :)