CORRECTING NEGATIVE INFLUENCES

Q. "I'm moving into a new apartment next month. Should I do a space clearing before I move in?"

A. It's always a good idea to "clear the air" when moving into a space where other people have lived before you. Some quick and easy ways to do this include sweeping out the entire space (while you do this, hold in your mind the strong intention to sweep up and remove any stale or negative energy), and opening all the doors and windows for a few minutes between 11pm and 1am, when the chi of the day is shifting.

If your new home is carpeted, a professional steam cleaning can remove a lot of stale chi from the carpet along with the dirt. Repainting the walls and washing windows also refreshes the chi of a space. These are all "elbow grease" cures that use basic housekeeping to clear out stale chi.

A formal space clearing ceremony is a specialized practice to remove old or negative energy from the space. This can be very intense energy work, and should only be done by someone with appropriate training. Some feng shui consultants offer this service to their clients, or you may wish to hire a professional space clearer.

Karen Kingston and Denise Linn are two very skilled space-clearing practitioners who offer professional training programs. Click here for links to their websites.

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Q. "My cat's litter pan is located in a closet in the health section of the [feng shui] ba gua map. I have no other place to put it as it. The problem is that my health has been 'crappy' so to speak. I put a crystal on a red string in the litter box area and was thinking of taping a couple of pieces of yellow paper to the closet wall so that the crystal reflects off of the paper. Would that help?"

A. The best thing to do would be to place a large mirror (full-length, if possible) on the outside of the closet door. I suggest removing the crystal, as it may be activating the litter box energy, rather than counteracting it.

Keep in mind also that crystals are associated with the METAL element, so they deplete EARTH energy (natural crystals come from the earth). You could hang the crystal outside the closet and empower it to prevent any negative chi from affecting the rest of the house. If you want to add yellow, I'd recommend a yellow towel or small rug underneath the litter box.

Another solution is to place the litter box in the bathtub -- the function of the bathroom is to remove waste energy, right? Then move the litter box when you need to take a shower or bath. I know several folks who live in small apartments who use this solution. I especially recommend this if the closet you are using now is close to the center of the house -- remember that anything in the tai chi area will affect the entire house and all aspects of your life.

In addition to removing the litter box, if the closet is in the center of the house I recommend doing a thorough cleaning and de-cluttering in there. Once you've removed the litter box, put the crystal back up in the closet with the intention that it activate and energize the entire home and counteract the closed/blocked energy of the closet. If the closet is in the tai chi position, the mirror on the outside of the door will also be a good idea.

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Q. "I read somewhere that a metal wind chime is a good cure for the unlucky #5 Earth Star, which is in the east this year (2002). But Lillian Too says in her book that you should NOT use this cure in the east. I'm confused. My bedroom is in the east. Should I hang a wind chime there or not?"

A. The #5 star is associated with the EARTH element, so usually a wind chime (METAL) is used as the cure because METAL depletes EARTH.

However, the EAST direction is associated with the WOOD element, and the #5 star is in the East this year. Since METAL destroys WOOD, you don't want to use the traditional wind chime cure this year -- in addition to depleting the harmful #5 energy, you will also be harming the natural WOOD energy associated with EAST.

Therefore, the best way to defuse the #5 star when it is in the EAST (or SOUTHEAST, also associated with WOOD), is to add more WOOD energy in the EAST sectors of the home. WOOD uproots and disrupts EARTH, so it will help to counteract the #5 star.

In your situation, you can add healthy, lush, green plants to the bedroom. If possible, place them in the eastern sector of the room.

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Q. "I was told that to keep money in the home, tie together 3 I Ching coins with red cotton and hang them in the money place. Can you tell me where the money place is? I have hung the coins near my back door, which is where we enter and leave our home, but money still seems to leave and quickly."

A. There are two ways to locate your money "power spots":

1) Find the southeast corner of your home or living room. (Take a look at the bedroom and kitchen, too.)

2) Use the far left corner of the home, of your living room, or of the bedroom or kitchen.

I suggest checking by both methods and seeing if there is any area of overlap. For example, if the far left corner of your living room is also in the southeast corner of the house (or apartment), then that would be a good money "power spot" to use. You will be activating the money power spot of your choice with the "cure" of the I Ching coins and red string, so look at your options according to these guidelines, and choose a place that is:

- located in a money power spot
- clean and uncluttered (or clean it up first!)
- easily accessible
- not in a bathroom.

Other things to look at include the kitchen (a dirty stove can affect prosperity), and plumbing: water leaks are symbolic of loss of resources. Your own actions and intentions are also important in feng shui, so look for "leaks" in your budget or spending. Feng Shui will not work as well for you if your own attitudes and behaviors don't support your stated intention!

Here's a bonus tip: when you go in and out the back door all the time, you may be missing out on some of life's opportunities. The front door is always the "mouth of chi" -- the primary way for chi (energy) to get into your home. Be sure to go in and out the front door regularly (at least a couple of times a week) to keep the energy in your home fresh and to make sure you are not "shutting" out opportunities by not using that door.

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Q. "My family has lived in our house for over 30 years, but no upkeep has been done in all that time. Our prosperity corner is located in the bathroom so all of our monies have flowed out rapidly. I know I need to fix the place up, but we don't have the money to do a lot at once. Where should I start?"

A. Some inexpensive things you can do for a bathroom in the wealth area are:

1) Place a large (full-length) mirror on the OUTSIDE of the bathroom door, and keep the door closed as much as possible.

2) Add lots of green plants (or pictures of green plants, or green towels, green or floral shower curtain, etc.) to the bathroom to add WOOD energy. This will help to counteract the downward flow of water (prosperity) through the plumbing system. Avoid plants such as ivy that hang down as they grow. Use purple as an accent color, as it is the color associated with this area of the ba gua. Little, inexpensive touches are fine.

3) Keep the toilet seat down, and the drains closed in the sink, tub/shower when not in use.

When you are ready to spend a little money, be sure also to place priority attention on repairing any plumbing problems anywhere in the house. Leaky plumbing is symbolic of draining resources. Also check for plumbing problems or another bathroom in the SW areas of the house, as this is the area associated with wealth based on the compass directions. If you have a yard, look for any "yucky" chi in the SW areas of the property and the back left corner.

Doing a few repairs at a time over time will be much better than doing nothing at all. If no upkeep has been done on your home in 30 years, the chi is probably low. Do what you can to clean the place up and make whatever repairs you can yourself -- even minor ones. Sometimes a minor change or improvement can have a big effect in feng shui.

Start with your prosperity power spots first, and don't do too much to activate an area until you have done some basic cleaning and clutter-clearing and have repaired whatever maintenance problems are within your budget. Start with the power spot that seems to be the most troublesome, do what you can there to correct and improve it, then add an enhancement. Move on to the next.

Remember the importance of your intention as well. Hold in your heart your intention to take good care of your home as best you can within the limits of your current resources, so that it can take good care of you.

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Q. "My boyfriend and I recently broke up, and I want to be able to move on to a new relationship. I know it's important energetically to make a fresh start, so I have cleaned out everything in my apartment that belonged to him, except for one piece of furniture that he gave me as a birthday present. I don't want to get rid of it, but am afraid that keeping it will work against my meeting someone new. What should I do?"

A. You are right that feng shui advises against keeping things that belong to or that you associate with an ex-partner - especially if you want to attract a new relationship into your life. However, this does not mean you have to get rid of something that you use and love just because it was given to you by a previous partner. Remember that this piece of furniture was a gift, given (presumably) with love at the time you received it. Even though this man is no longer with you, the quality of loving generosity is still associated with the furniture. This is especially true because you say you like it.

If, each time you look at this piece of furniture, you are filled with anger, grief, or loneliness, then you might want to think more about it. These are difficult emotions, and if you get trapped in them they can make it harder for you to let go of a relationship that has ended. On the other hand, when a relationship ends some feelings of anger, grief, or loneliness are appropriate and it is a mistake to suppress them. Keeping this piece of furniture may in some way facilitate a healing process by helping to bring these feelings to the surface.

Again, remember that this furniture came into your life with good vibrations. Perhaps you can spend some time reflecting on all the positive things you experienced in this recent relationship, and all the qualities that you liked and appreciated about that person. Write them all down on a piece of paper, and add "all these qualities and more now manifest in my perfect partner." Place this paper in a red envelope, and put it on (or in) the piece of furniture. Use the body/speech/mind empowerment method as you do this.

Only you can make the decision whether or not to keep this piece of furniture. I do recommend being thoughtful about where in your home to place it. Find a spot for it that is not in your bedroom or in another relationship Power Spot.

See my Fast Feng Shui for Singles book for more tips and advice on using feng shui to help you release old relationships and find a new and better partner.

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Q. "My office is small and I am concerned that my clients may be affected by "secret arrows" from the corners of my desk and bookcase when they meet with me. There's very little room to rearrange the furniture. What can I do?"

A. If possible, position the client's chair so it is not directly in front of (or next to) the corner of the bookcase. Even a few inches one way or the other could make a difference. Try sitting in the chair yourself, and find what spot within your limited options feels the most natural and comfortable. Your client will also feel most comfortable if they are not sitting with their back directly in line with the door (even if you close the door during meetings).

Keep in mind the client is there to consult with you and gain your expert advice! Make sure that, in placing the client's chair to avoid secret arrows, it is also in a good position for conversation. If you have to choose one over the other, go with whichever position enables you both to talk and share documents comfortably.

Take care of your own comfort, too. It is preferable for the client to be exposed to a sharp corner for a few minutes than for you to be in harm's way for the entire day. Remember, in most cases feng shui is less about creating an ideal arrangement that it is about finding the most workable solution in less-than-perfect conditions. Do the best you can given the small space you have to work with, then stop worrying about feng shui and focus on your clients.

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SEE ALSO:
Newsletter Article: What Space Clearing Can Do for You

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