Feng Shui Knowledge

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Feng Shui Knowledge

Learn more about the chinese harmony system Feng Shui. We highlight background knowledge, current trends as well as in depths articles. We also look at related topics such as green building, building biology and EMF.  Click on the heading to access this category.


Si Ling - the Four Animals in Feng Shui


The most important focus of the Feng Shui Form-School is the analysis of the surrounding landscape. This landscape can be literally the surrounding nature as well as a city-surrounding. 

Within this the analysis of the Four Animals - Si Li - is used. 

The Four Animals (4 Animals) are:

  • the Dragon
  • the Fèng Huáng (often translated as Phoenix)
  • the Tiger
  • and the Turtle

(some Feng Shui schools also mention the Snake (Five Animals / 5 Animals).

The landscape forms are arranged to the following animals as follows: 

the Dragon

The Dragon sits on the east side (left) and acts inspirational and creatively.

the Fèng Huáng (Phoenix)
The Fèng Huáng is in the South (front) and is energetically strong and dynamic.

the Tiger
The tiger is in the west (right) and shows physical strength and is collecting energy.

the Turtle
The turtle is in the north (back) and gives the structure stability, security and reliability.

The directional assignment is based on the Chinese weather-axis. In China this is a clear North-South direction.  If the Form School is being used in Germany, depending on the landscape surrounding, the direction might be adjusted to the German weather-axis which is North-East to South-West (for example in Berlin).

The four animals are symbolic and their correlation is to the landscape images like mountains, valleys and rivers. However in the city these correlations would be adjusted to buildings, gardens and streets. Even within an apartment or flat they can be used to determine the directions and functions of walls, tables/furniture and windows.

 

Assembly of the Four Animals (Si Ling):


The assembly of the four animals is always in the same order. The alignment is adjusted according to the view. In classical China the best-possible view was to the South - towards the sun and warmth. This is where the classical assignment towards the North-South direction: the turtle in the North and backside of the house, the dragon to the left, the tiger to the right and the view infront resembles the Fèng Huáng (Phönix).



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The mythology of the Four Animals:


 

The Dragon


The dragon (chin. Long 龍) is used as one of the main four animals in the Feng Shui Form school and is known as a Fu (lucky charm - lucky dragon). According to legend the mythology of the dragon goes back at least 4 thousand years BC.
 

In China as well as in the Asian countries the dragon is the highest spiritual being. It stands for wisdom, strength and energy. Unlike our culture, where the dragon is shown as a fiery fire-spitting monster, the dragon is a good-willed and wise animal in China. It is able to move elegantly and can achieve great things, think sharply and is able to take on large projects and successfully fulfill them.

The dragon stands for a female animal with strong Yang character, which is why it is representing Yang energy. 

In the landscape dragons can be found in the mountain- and hill-chains. Should there not be a natural landscape representing the dragon, then it can be adjusted by planting vegetation which ideally should be higher than the tiger.

The dragon represents the element Wood within the five element philosophy and hence represents the color green.

 

 

Der Fèng Huáng (Phoenix)



The Fèng Huáng or also called red phoenix is also an integral part of the four animals of Feng Shui Form School. 

It stands symbolically for the front-side of the house or estate. 

The chinese Phoenix does not resemble what we know as the European phoenix. The first time the Fèng Huáng was mentioned in China was ca. two thousand years BC. According to legend the Fèng Huáng then was the God of Wind, which explains the Chinese character "feng" (wind) within its name.
 

Described and depicted is the phoenix as a magical bird full of elegance and beauty. Within his feathers it combines the jewellery of peacock and pheasant as well as the holy colors green, white, red, black and yellow.
 

The presence of a Fèng Huáng always stood the presence of a good king. Together with the dragon it is the symbol for the Emperor. Often the phoenix on its own represents the Empress while the dragon on its own represents the Emperor.
 

What's more the phoenix is also used in a sexual coherence. "The two phoenix pierce the blossom" is a description for marital sexual intercourse while "false male and empty female phoenix" stands for homosexuality.


 

The Tiger


Within Chinese Mythology the tiger is calm and reserved. The tiger is a Yang animal with strong Yin attributes, which is why it resembles Yin energy.

 

The tiger is the guardian of the western paradise, which is the home of all Chinese gods, and disperses all vicious spirits.
 

Within the landscape form the tiger should be a little smaller than its opposite the dragon. If both are the same size it can lead to a stagnation of Chi. If the tiger is dominant (larger) then it might lead to a shortage of Yang energy.
 

Soft elevations of mountains and foothills are the ideal landscape form to represent the tiger. As most of us however do not live in such a natural landscape, we need to represent these patterns through neighboring buildings. Again should there not be a natural landscape in this form, these can be created by for example planting trees and vegetation.

The tiger represents the element Metal within the five elements philosophy and hence represents the color white.

 

The turtle


The turtle is the animal with the highest meaning in Asian countries. The animal stands for longevity, long life, consistency, strength, durability and wisdom.


Within Feng Shui the turtle is the solid back protection a building or a person within a house should have. This can be a protective mountain, a forest, a wall or other building structure.
 

The symbolic meaning of the turtle in figurines and pictures is still used in China, however it cannot replace a structural construction. 


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Traditional Chinese Medicine - TCM


You are probably wondering why we have a fairly dominant link to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) on our website, after all it is about Feng Shui... However, Feng Shui similar to TCM is about energy and both share a fair similar philosophies, ideas and systems. For example the flow in energy is as relevant to a room and its harmony as it is to a body and its health. Similarities for example can be found in the way energy flows through a room or flows through a body, as described and used in acupuncture.

With this in mind, here is a short summary on what Traditional Chinese Medicine is about:

TCM - Traditional Chinese Medicine


What is Chinese medicine?

Taoism is the indigenous belief system of China with a unbroken history of over 4.000 years. Taoists fulfilled roles similar to that of today's scientists, philosophers, doctors and priests today. A lot of the ancient Chinese thought has been influenced and developed by Taoism and for example found its way into medicine, feng shui and body practices like Qi Gong and Tai Chi.

 

Chinese medicine is at its core based on knowledge gained through meditiation and observation. Combining this with anatomical knowledge and philosophical concepts evolved into a comprehensive medical system today now known as Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM).


TCM includes herbal medicine, dietetics, acupuncture, massage, qi gong and meditation all which has been refined through millennia of clinical usage.

The theory behind Chinese medicines is that a living human body is imbued with energy (qi) which is fundamental for its healthy functioning.

 

The ease with which this circulates directly correlates to your sense of being fully alive. Illness and disease are considered to arise or remain because this circulation is impeded in some way. Thus Chinese medicine aims to help release these blockages in the tissues, energy flow, and mind that can cause daily life to become a burden rather than a pleasure.

 

One way to view the channel system of acupuncture is to compare it with the way rivers, streams, reservoirs and underground springs function in nature, which then become a metaphor for the functions and transportation of the vital substances (qi [chi], blood, essence, body fluids) throughout the body. 

 

Feng Shui places the same importance on unimpeded energy flows - only the focus is in the environment rather than in the body.

 

The goal of the Chinese Medical practitiioner and the feng shui consultant is to arrive at solutions to balance and harmonise a person’s “temples” i.e. their body and home; by adjusting the quality and quantity of Qi, yin/yang and the five elements to ensure a person is able to reach and maintain a complete state of full vigour and purpose enabling them to thrive in the areas of their lives that are important to them. 

 

So what we can learn from Chinese Medicine and for example the field of acupuncture is a great enhancement to the understanding of energy flows analyzed and harmonized in Feng Shui.

 


In our section "The Basics" you will find more details on subjects like:

as well as other basic concepts helpful in understanding Feng Shui.

 

This article is based on the article Traditional Chinese Medicine from the free encyclopedia Wikipedia and it licensed under the double licence of GNU Free Documentation License und Creative Commons CC-BY-SA 3.0 Unported. On Wikipedia a list of authors for this article is available. This article has been adjusted and extended for the use on this website.

Electronic Smog

There are three forms of electronic smog made up of electrical fields. These fields are also often talked about with their abbrevation EMF.  

Household wiring that, even when no electricity is consumed in the house, still emits a radiation into the building and beyond creates the first.
 

The second is created by electrical appliances like televisions, toasters, kettles and others that all emit a magnetic field up to five feet from them when switched on. Be aware that these appliances continue to emit when they are in stand-by modus. Also things like the new light bulbs continuously emit radiation which actually means that even though they are saving electricity they are actually causing a much higher concern in regards to health. The closer and longer a person is next to something electrical raises the dose taken into the body. A radio clock and electric blanket are two such items found in many households are causing bad sleep, headaches and loss of physical energy.

The third part of the smog is the radio frequency fields emitted by microwave ovens, television and radio transmitters, mobile telephone masts and even a mobile telephone held close to the head. A new addition to this is all wireless communication devices, like your wireless internet at home.
 

Scientists studying the rise in cancers have concluded to date that the smog that most of the population throughout the world are exposed to causes 30 per cent of all cancers and are possibly responsible for one in ten of all miscarriages.
 

Doctors are becoming aware that new causes of depression and even allergies to electricity are increasing rapidly causing people to make complete life changes in order to escape the electrical fields.

Things are so bad that the World Health Organisation (WHO) have estimated that three in every 100 people in the world now suffer from an allergy to electricity.
 

On a positive note there are some remedies you can take: Eliminate all electronical equipment in your bedroom, this includes an alarm clock that requires to be plugged-in, use a battery one instead. Also take out your TV. Don’t use energy saving light bulbs. They came with a special technology that when switched on emits a big spark of electronic smog.
 

Also avoid technical equipments with starters like the energy-saving bulbs mentioned above, fluorescent lighting or with separate power adapters. These emit electronical charges not only when switched on but continuously. A good idea is to use sockets with separate switch-on buttons.
 

Not only will you save energy as most technical equipment now-a-days don’t switch off completely but instead remain in standby-modus, it also reduces the electronic smog in your house and flat.
 

Another more traditional remedy are salt lamps and quartz stones which are believed to take out part of the emission in the room.

This article has been written with the kind guidance of a blog post published by The Green Ghost.

  1. Chinese Numerology: Hetu und Luoshu