Feature

Feng Shui: Cultivating Your Creativity

Charlene Weaver, director of the Feng Shui Academe in Seattle, president of the Feng Shui Design Group, and president of the Washington chapter of the Feng Shui Guild, gave a lively presentation to a group of about 35 Seattle Writergrrls. The presentation was titled "Feng Shui: Cultivating Your Creativity."

A Brief History
Time did not, of course, permit Charlene to give a thorough historical summary of this ancient art. The principles of feng shui were developed thousands of years ago, and were based on the energy of the earth and the atmosphere. The Chinese geomancers' duty was to look at the land in such a way as to maximize the beneficial effect of the natural environment. Buildings would not be constructed until the land was evaluated using these principles. The Chinese believed that the energy from the natural environment had effects on the building, and thus on the occupants of the building.

As feng shui was brought to the western world, the principles evolved to become more easily used here. The Compass method, an older and seldom-used approach for today's world, uses the directions of the compass as the basis for orientation. Using the Compass method makes more sense for new construction as these techniques derive directly from the ancient art of geomancy.

From this evolved the Three Door Black Sect Tantric method, which uses the entrance to a lot or building as the orientation. Charlene dedicated the majority of her presentation discussing this approach. It is the most commonly used method in the United States.

The Bagua Basics
Charlene showed us an illustration of the bagua. The bagua is an octagonal shape, with each side, or gua, representing an area of life. The center represents the life force, or Tai Chi. She showed how to lay the bagua over an outline of a home or cubicle to determine what areas correspond to areas of the bagua.

The presentation addressed how to improve your creativity by focusing on the creativity area of your home, office, cubicle, or desk. However, it is important to remember that the principles of the Three Door method of feng shui can be applied to any space.

Since most of us work in cubicles, I'll use that term in this explanation. If you have some other situation, just replace "cubicle" with the term that makes the most sense for the space you write in--home, office, room, or desk. If you share an office, then you should look at your space only--your desk, with the "entrance" being where you sit at the desk.

To connect to the creativity corner of your cubicle, you must determine where the entrance is. The entrance is the mouth of chi, or where the energy comes in. Once you've determined this, imagine taking the bagua and laying it over an outline of the cubicle. The entrance to the cubicle will be in the Knowledge, Career/Life Journey, or Benefactors/Travel area. Charlene fielded many questions about how to know which area corresponds to the entrance to your space. Suffice it to say that the answer to this question varies greatly depending on the space in question. For our purposes, simply imagine standing in the entrance, and look to your right. The middle of the wall to your right is the creativity area. This approach works for the majority of square or rectangular spaces.

Cubicle Command Position Cure
Once you know where the creativity gua is, take a moment to really look at it. Is it piled with papers? Is this where your computer sits? When you sit at your computer is your back to the entrance? One of the most basic cures to do for a work space is to be sure that when you sit at your desk or computer, you are sitting in the "command position." The command position is a place where you can see the majority of the cubicle, including the entrance, and you are out of line with the flow of chi.

If your back is to the entrance, and someone comes up behind you, they will likely startle you, dispersing the energy and breaking your concentration. It takes a while to bring that energy and concentration back. Unfortunately, in this age of cubicles, we often cannot move our desk since it's bolted to the wall of the cubicle. If you can't move your computer so that you sit in the command position, place a small mirror or other reflective object on or over your computer. This way, when someone walks into your cubicle, you can see them and they won't startle you.

Color and Object Cures
Each area of the bagua has an element and colors associated with it. The creativity gua is associated with the element metal and the colors white, black, and green. A simple cure for your creativity area is to place an object made of metal containing one or more of the colors in the creativity area.

Another way to stimulate creativity is to clear the air around. Place a brass bell in your workspace, and when you feel creatively blocked, tinkle the bell. You can spritz a bit of essential oil in your workspace to clear the air.

The Three Secrets Revealed
Your physical and mental state at the time you place the objects or cures is important. At the most basic, you should think about what you are trying to accomplish as you place the object. For a stronger effect you would use the Three Secrets Reinforcement--body, speech, and mind. These three together increase your own awareness about what you are doing, as well as send the intention, or energy, out into the universe, that you are serious about wanting whatever it is that you have in mind. Suppose what you really want is to write a novel, but just can't seem to get it started. You determine where the creativity gua is. You then decide on a small metal figurine that represents to you a creative energy. You could use the Three Secrets Reinforcement in the following way:

• Body - You place the cure using hand gestures. For example, carefully placing the object, maybe putting your hands together in a praying position. Or using some other meditative gesture that feels right to you.



• Speech - When you place the cure, you vocalize the intention. For example, "I will write a novel."



• Mind - You visualize yourself doing what you intend. For example, you see yourself sitting at the computer with your fingers flying across the keyboard writing that novel.

Simple, But Not Easy
Feng shui is both a simple concept and a complex system, and a thousand words cannot possibly give a complete description. For more information about feng shui, there are many books and web sites available, as well as classes and workshops.

By Terry Monaghan.
Terry is a Steering Committee Member and also acts as Co-Facilitating Editor.