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Harmonizing Home and Self: An Introduction to the Power of Feng Shui

Posted on July 09, 2023 by Derelle Ball

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Feng Shui and Your Main Door

Posted on March 26, 2014 by Derelle Ball

When I decided to write about the topic of feng shui and your main door I soon realised there is so much to cover just on this one topic alone, so I’ve broken up this article into a series of sub sections discussing the main feng shui considerations when it comes to assessing the quality of qi (transformative energy) at your main door.  

What Do You First See When Entering Your Home?

When a visitor to your home first enters via the main door, what do they see upon entering your home?  This first initial visual inside your home tells us a lot about the occupants.  Is a visitor confronted with a blank wall, a dark or well-lit entry, a beautiful artwork, a large mirror reflecting energy back towards the door, fearsome statues, a stairway pointing directly towards the door, or perhaps a clear unobstructed view directly towards the back door?

Psychologically, the entry foyer conveys a lot about the occupants of your home, so it pays to keep the entry foyer (and main door) well maintained, clutter free, aesthetically pleasing to the senses and decorated in such a way as to tie in with your personal character and values as well as addressing the inherent Fei Xing (Flying Star) Feng Shui energy flow affecting the main ‘water mouth’ entry into your home. 

The quality and character of qi in regard to the water star energy at your main door tells us a lot about the abundance potential of the home and ways in which you can attract and accumulate this energy, or if necessary, harmonise, drain or reduce qi. 

If you regularly keep both the main door and rear door open at the same time and there is no furniture positioned between the 2 doorways, then energy is being regularly pulled into and out of your home between the open doorways too quickly before it has time to accumulate and meander into the rest of your home. 

If there is a long straight stairway directly confronting you as you stand in the main doorway looking in, then energy is pushing towards you as you enter and thus unbalancing the qi flow.  There are various ways in which to partially ground the energy at the base of the stairs, depending on the inherent energy and how far away the base of the stairway is from the main door.  

For some homes, there is great potential to attract very fortunate energy via the strategic placement of an external water feature such as a pond or fountain which has the capability of communicating abundance energy directly towards the door which (if properly activated) can become a perpetual transmitter/receiver of the positive energy.  Various Xuan Kong Water Formulae and Da Gua methodologies, when correctly applied, can help you tap into the purest and most potent source of qi at your main door and direct it into your home where it can quickly benefit the occupants. 

Of course, not all main doors should automatically have ponds or fountains positioned nearby.  In many cases, this is actually the worst thing you could do for the financial ‘luck’ of your home.  Now when I say luck, I’m really referring to Labour Under Correct Knowledge.  When you apply authentic Xuan Kong Feng Shui to your home and surrounding landform, it’s possible to ascertain an inherent energy blue print indicating the directional flow of energy that converges towards the centre of your home (in conjunction with surrounding landform).  This indicates the potential strengths and weaknesses and probability factors more likely to affect the occupants of your home, and the correct application of various Xuan Kong methodologies in connection to the 4 Pillars astrology of each individual living in your home, can help you make the most of the energy in that location. 

And unfortunately there is no such thing as a ‘one size fits all’ scenario that can automatically be applied to every building around the world no matter where it’s located or when it was constructed.  I wish!  Do not assume the Southeast Sector or far left hand corner of your home is automatically your ‘wealth’ corner and so on.  This is bogus and gets a lot of people into real trouble when they install large water features or paint walls red on the assumption that this cookie cutter approach automatically applies to every building.

If you place a dragon headed tortoise near your main door, you cannot assume this figurine will magically attract good fortune to your home while you, meanwhile sit on your butt and do nothing.  This is like the ridiculous belief that, “when I grow up I will not have to attain any education or need to work, learn or grow in real life experience in order to make make a living and find my life’s purpose.  I just have to win lotto or wait for my Prince or Princess to magically find me and solve all my problems”.  

Good fortune symbols connect to your personal goals and aspirations via their symbolic meaning and help serve as positive reminders of the path you aim to take.  They are symbolic - not magic!

Main Door on Different Side to the Facing Side of Your Home

Some people wrongly assume the main door to your home automatically equates to the ‘facing side’ when determining the Fei Xing Feng Shui orientation and subsequent Natal Chart of energy flow affecting the building.  For some this is certainly the case, however there are many cases where the main door is located on the side of the home or (depending on the surrounding landform) what would be considered the rear or 'sitting/yin side' of the home.  This can occur (for example) in regard to a home with a road, main door and garage on one side and an expansive view of the ocean or a lake on the other side.  

Another example is apartments with an internal main door accessed from inside the building.  Often the facing side of the apartment is the side where you have a large balcony attached to a main living area.

Ming Tang

When you stand in your main doorway looking out, what do you see?  Is the view pleasing to the senses?  One thing I’ve learnt over the 20+ years I’ve been practicing feng shui professionally is that qi responds very well to beauty and aesthetics.  If you take pride in your front yard and look after it and make an effort to ensure it is visually pleasing to the eye, then it will be less problematic for you in the long run.

The Ming Tang is the area outside the main door.  This is a very important location because the energy generated and retained in this location can be positive or negative for the occupants of the home and should be addressed accordingly. 

If you have a water star 5 qi entering your property from the South and your main door also faces towards South, this can indicate potential financial stress and misfortune for the occupants unless, for example, they are associated with the military career-wise or run a morgue as a business attached to their home, in which case it can actually be quite positive for generating income for their business and occupation.

If the water star energy in the Ming Tang is deemed unsuitable for the occupants of the home, then consideration needs to be put into deciding whether or not to mainly use an alternative door and how to make use of the character of the qi and re-balance the energy in the Ming Tang via strategic use of harmonising elements.  For example, if you have a water star 5 qi at your main door and you are not able to make positive use of its inherent character, then metal element can be useful (via colour, sound and form) as well as higher ground in the Ming Tang and screening of the main door.

If there is negative landform affecting your main door (eg via a poison arrow feature from a pole directly opposite the main door) then it is a good idea to screen the view of the offending feature from the main door and redirect and/or calm the energy using the right elements in the surrounding landform. 

I’m personally not a big fan of Bagua Mirrors.  In many cases I don’t think the tiny mirror is really big enough or able to be correctly angled to properly reflect and disperse enough qi from a landform poison arrow feature aimed towards a main door.  I’ve also come across quite a few with the hook at the back incorrectly attached which means the Qian Trigram (ie the Trigram with 3 straight lines) is not at the top of the Bagua. 

I also think Bagua mirrors can psychologically convey to the outside world that there is something inherently wrong with  or threatening this house, and therefore strongly recommend you remove a Bagua mirror if trying to sell your home.  Some neighbours living across the road may also become offended if they realise a Bagua has been hung opposite and facing towards their home.  Larger reflective surfaces designed into the main entry facade and/or careful screening can often produce much better and less threatening results.

That being said, it always makes me smile when I see stall holders selling feng shui trinkets with lots of Bagua Mirrors hanging around the exterior perimeter of their stall.  Are they trying to repel their customers?

If you have a favourable water star qi in the Ming Tang outside your main door, this does not automatically mean you will enjoy excellent wealth luck in your home.  You need to assess the character and element of the water star energy, how it interacts with the surrounding landform and work out the best way to attract and accumulate the qi with water.  The Xuan Kong Feng Shui energy blue print (also known as the Fei Xing Natal Chart) is a guide as to potential qi flow, however it does not indicate the qi is automatically there or tell you about the quality of the qi in relation to the surrounding landform.  You must carefully observe all these factors in order to work out the best use for activation or reduction of energy.

If your front yard attracts a water star 9 qi and you also have land sloping down away from the main door and towards the road, with no fence or hedge along the front border and no water feature in the water star 9 location, then you have the potential for attracting positive abundance qi here however you are not currently gaining anything from the potential.

Facing a Line of Emptiness

Sometimes we come across homes that face towards a line of emptiness on the Luo Pan compass.  When this happens, the energy tends to become confused and can create a stagnant type of qi which connects to hoarders, clutter and/or confusion.  In the property investing world, these are the types of homes known as ‘rogue homes’ – ie they are continually back on the market and often experience recurring problematic rental occupants. 

Sometimes we need to work out a replacement chart reflecting the irregular energy flow for this type of home and many of these configurations generate quite stagnant energy that is not conducive to good health and harmony and is reflected in the ongoing health and/or relationship issues experienced by the occupants.

When assessing the overall quality of qi flow affecting a home, a lot depends on the actual facing orientation of the building and the facing orientation of external doors.  If the facing orientation of your main door taps into a Zheng Shen orientation (according to Xuan Kong Da Gua) with access to favourable flying star energies, then we can stimulate very positive feng shui for the occupants with clever Ling Shen communication via strategically placed water and/or harmonising element forms during specific timing that further communicates with Hexagrams associated with location, direction and the owner of the home when measured from the centre of the main door.

If you have a main door that faces towards your personal Hexagram (according to your day or year of birth in 4 Pillars astrology), it’s possible to add yet another layer of support so the energy affecting your home can be communicated to you even when you are not physically there.  This is especially helpful for households where one of the occupants is often travelling for work.  In some cases you can even tilt a door in order to tap into a better facing orientation that connects the Hexagram of the direction the door faces towards, with the owner's Tai Sui Hexagram of birth.

Colour and Symbolic Objects for Your Main Door

Some feng shui writers would have you believe a red main door is always lucky for you.  Well, sorry to dispel that myth, but seriously, as I said before, there is no ‘one size fits all’ scenario when it comes to determining the quality and character of energy flow affecting your home.  In some cases, a red main door may be awesome, however in other cases it has the potential to stir up problematic energy depending on the inherent energy flow and surrounding landform in the Ming Tang.

Many people place guardian statues at their main door and a favourite I see a lot is the lions or fu dogs.  This is fine if you like the look and symbology of these items, however be assured their presence will not automatically prevent theft or people with bad intentions from entering your home.  You still need to be pragmatic with your home security. 

Also, if you do place guardian animal statues such as Fu Dogs or Guardian Lions either side of your main door, have a look under the paws of each statue.  The male will have a ball and the female will have a cub.  Then standing outside facing towards your main door, make sure the cub and ball are on the inside paw of the guardians (ie between the parent guardians) and not on the outside paw.

Australian Feng Shui Master Consultant, Derelle Ball can help you enhance the health, wealth and nurturing Feng Shui potential of your home with a detailed user-friendly Feng Shui Report.  For further information click: Off-Site Residential Feng Shui Consultation.  

Posted in feng shui and your main door, Feng Shui for Property Investors, feng shui front door, feng shui landform, feng shui tips, feng shui wealth

The Most Important Key to Success

Posted on July 24, 2011 by Derelle Ball

Perception is such a funny thing. Two people can experience the same input on their 5 senses and yet come up with totally different conclusions – it all depends on their perception and the underlying subconscious beliefs that drive them.

For example, there is a famous story about 2 brothers who grew up in the same household with a drunken and abusive father. After becoming adults and leaving home, one brother became an abusive drunk and the other brother became a successful business manager who refused to touch a drop of alcohol. When both brothers were questioned as to why they felt they ended up where they did, they both replied “it was their only choice”.

I bring this up in relation to a discussion I had the other day with a friend who moved into his newly renovated home in NSW around a year ago. The renovation was extensive enough to shift the building permanently into the current Period of 8, and this gave him a water star 8 qi at the facing where his main entry and a beautiful external water feature are located.

He started the conversation by stating his finances have gone terribly since he renovated and moved into the house. I did not do the feng shui for his home, however I am familiar with its layout and fei xing/flying star chart and surrounding landform. I was surprised to hear his statement and this lead to a discussion of the underlying character of the 8 Zuo Fo qi.

Yes the water star 8 connects with the ruling energy during the Period of 8 (ie up until 3 Feb 2024), and deemed fortunate if you are able to harness its energy. The character of the 8 Zuo Fo is kind of like the mythical Pi Yao. It likes to gradually accumulate. Legend states the Pi Yao has no anus, so everything it eats is accumulated in its belly!

The character of the 8 qi connects with assets, knowledge, wealth, property, resources, a steady plodding pace, altruism and accumulation. It does not like to be rushed.

My friend had set up his business from home and had expected to continue at his regular creative, frenetic and highly energetic pace, however it appears the 8 qi has had a slow but steady influence on his finances, although not in regard to where he expected it.

His home based business floundered since moving back into his renovated home, however upon digging deeper, it emerged that since moving there his investments in property had significantly increased, along with the rental income he earns from investments made in residential and commercial properties. He hadn’t really taken into consideration sources of income other than his home based business when he made his initial statement. Upon reflection, he realised the gentle plodding and accumulative influence of the water star 8 had indeed been very good to his bank balance via his substantially increased assets, investments and accumulated rental income.

I then dug a bit deeper still and looked at his 4 Pillars chart – especially the month branch, which gives an indication on how strong an individual’s capacity can be to begin and run their own business and whether or not their current luck pillar supports this, or if they should perhaps be open to seeking alternative ways in which to produce income.

In my friend’s case, there had been certain times in his life cycle where he was able to make good money via running his own business, however he had entered a new 10 year luck cycle when he moved into his renovated home, and the energy had changed, and his money making capacity was better supported via property investment and/or the accumulation of material resources, as well as capitalising on his inherent talents connected with the recognition of patterns and trends in the market. He can still make money managing a business, however it will likely be easier to do so if he invests his money, time and/or skill in someone else’s business as part of the process.

So now he feels happy with the effect the water star 8 energy has had on his renovated home and capacity to accumulate wealth. Its subtle influence connected with accumulated assets and increased capital gain and rental income and he is now keen to get further educated on utilising his talent for tapping into market trends and patterns in order to continue generating income.

And here is the most important part of this conversation. You see it’s not enough to simply be aware of your feng shui or astrology. These are tools which give you choices. It’s still up to you do something and take the correct action in order to make the most of what is on offer. As Tony Robbins famously states: “Action is the most important key to any success.”

Australian Feng Shui Master Consultant, Derelle Ball can help you enhance the health, wealth and nurturing Feng Shui potential of your home with a detailed user-friendly Feng Shui Report.  For further information visit: Off-Site Residential Feng Shui Consultation.  

Image by Julian Ball https://www.flowgamestudio.com/

Posted in feng shui consultations, Feng Shui for Property Investors, feng shui tips, feng shui wealth