Living in the Ghetto doesn’t mean you can’t have good chi By Monica Heisey, Contributor
A university student’s life can often lack in positive energy. Cramming for exams, co-existing with housemates in microscopic living spaces and balancing school work with countless extra-curriculars can make for negative influences on your life’s journey. Enter Feng Shui. An ancient Chinese practice whose name literally means “wind and water,” Feng Shui aims to create balance and harmony in your life by first achieving balance and harmony in your living space. History professor Emily Hill said the philosophy of Feng Shui is similar to being in harmony with nature. “Nature is composed of elements in a balance and interacting. That basic philosophy has ancient roots,” she said. “I think the people who believe in it, as far as I know, are confident that being in alignment with these forces … good things will flow your way.”Hill said you can find references to chi in sources from thousands of years ago, but no one really knows how Feng Shui first began. “It’s something that has roots in ancient Chinese philosophy, but it’s not the same thing as it was thousands of years ago—everything changes over thousands of years,” she said. Pat Hyduk, a Feng Shui practitioner and instructor trained at the Western School of Feng Shui and practicing in PrinceEdwardCounty, said the discipline’s basic tenets are simple. “The principle is that your home reflects who you are and that you want it to reflect the best part of you—to be an indication of who you are now and where you want to go.” According to Hyduk, getting started on the path towards inner enlightenment begins humbly: by cleaning up your room. “One of the very first things to do is clear clutter,” she said. “That is very important in improving the chi flow throughout the house.” Chi, or qi, is energy Hyduk describes as “the force which should meander through and embrace all areas of your home.” According to Hyduk, chi’s imperative to achieving inner peace, and is easily blocked by mess and unnecessary objects. “Feng Shui is very nuanced. It can be quite superficial and simply about clearing clutter or it can really be quite deep and get involved in a personal growth experience and, for some, a spiritual one.” Hyduk said Feng Shui can be simplified to fit any student’s lifestyle. “One of the ways to assist yourself is to use the bagua—that’s very much part of understanding Feng Shui. It’s sort of like a road map,” she said. The bagua, an aerial drawing of a room divided into different areas to reflect different parts of your life, provides an easy how-to for first-time Feng Shui practitioners. For example, the nearest left-hand corner upon entering your bedroom represents knowledge and self-cultivation, and can be enhanced with earth elements or blue-based colours. Through placing different elements—wood, wind, fire, water and earth—in different areas, students can theoretically improve their quality of life and sense of calm. But it’s more than just simple decorating. “It’s not just about putting a bouquet of flowers in a corner. It’s about understanding the purpose of doing that and what your desired outcome is,” Hyduk said. An object’s placement can represent your aspirations and inspire you to achieve them, she said. “When you do enhance a part of your home, as you do it, you make it very clear in your mind why you’re doing it and what your intention is. That enhancement, then, every time you look at it, is a reminder of your goal.” Ancient customs and rituals aside, Feng Shui seems to boil down to living more simply. “One of the central concepts in Feng Shui is making sure you have only those things that, a) you need and, b) you love,” Hyduk said. “If you look at something and your energy goes down, it’s not meant for you, whether it’s clothing, a painting, a piece of furniture or the colour of the walls. You need to surround yourself with things that uplift your spirit.”
Feng Shui fundamentals
• Clear your clutter. This will make way for new energy flow in your space. • Get organized and express yourself. Your closets are where you store your life. Make them an expression of who you are. • Bring nature into your space. Live plants are a symbol of abundance, harmony and healing and caring for them will represent how you treat yourself. • Add colour. Influence your mood with reds and oranges to stimulate, blues and greens to calm and relax, or whites and greys to focus the mind. • Use art to uplift. Pleasing works of art or family photos will bring positive energy. • Sounds right. Gentle background music, chimes or rippling water fountains can positively affect the space and attract good energy. —Source: Pat Hyduk, www.fengshui-makeovers.com
The Queen's Journal
190 University Ave. Kingston, ON K7L 3P4
Editorial office: (613) 533-2800
October 2006
UPFRONT Magazine page 2
http://www.athomeinkingston.com
THE ATTITUDE OF GRATITUDE
October is Thanksgiving month in Canada, an appropriate time to reflect on the blessings in our lives and to express gratitude. Focusing on what we are grateful for creates more of it, the Law of Attraction in action!
Gratitude takes many forms: a simple thank you, a list of blessings, a meditation. True, heartfelt gratitude lifts your spirit and opens your heart to connect with others on a deeper level. What you give to others is returned to you; when you appreciate others, you appreciate yourself as well.
With Feng Shui it's a good time to take inventory of what you are grateful for in your home or office. Become aware of what you would like to change to reflect where you are right now. Enhance one area at a time and notice how revitalizing your space lifts your mood and attitude. Feng Shui enhancements are regular reminders of what you wish to create and, when infused with gratitude, are a double-whammy to achieve what you want in your life.
Many Canadians are concerned about the Canadian housing market following the US into a downward spiral. Read why Canadian economists believe this is not the case below...
