A Feng Shui Guide for Men

A Feng Shui Guide for Men
By
Cheryl Grace

“Our homes have an enormous impact on our state of mind. They can make us feel as though we are plunging into the depths of despair, or they can be uplifting havens of beauty and rejuvenation. I believe the soul yearns for places of sanctuary and balance, ones that provide authentic reminders of what is truly important in life.” —Denise Linn, Feng Shui for the Soul


The subject of feng shui fascinates many people as a commonsense way to arrange your furniture in a way that creates balance and symmetry. Men instinctively practice good feng shui by their desire to produce stability in their personal surroundings. Yet beyond the physical environment, Feng Shui addresses one’s internal environment that includes your emotions, feelings and ultimately your actions.

Feng shui wisdom began in China over 3000 years ago with practitioners who were motivated to develop greater spirituality and honor by living toward their highest values such as modesty, sincerity, compassion, and forgiveness. By letting go of their ego, they followed their path toward greater spiritual harmony with patience and passive perseverance.

Higher understanding ultimately led these early practitioners of feng shui to serve others by providing precise information on how to locate and design an ideal living environment; an integral part of a person’s health and vitality. A vital principle used was the concept of Yin and Yang, defined as the balance between extremes. Yin and Yang are complementary forces that work together to achieve balance and harmony in the décor of any environment.

Feng shui literally means wind and water. With the external environment, the goal was to find a physical location for the home somewhere between the strong forces of the wind (such as the top of the mountain) and the strong flow of the water (such as an ocean). This centered location, half way between the extremes of the wind and water, became the ideal position where the home would be built.

This philosophy also applied to the person’s inner guidance system in the sense that it encouraged an individual to remain impartial and flexible during natural cycles of change and opposing forces. If, for an example, we applied traditional wealth and prosperity feng shui cures to the office environment in order to attract my tangible wealth, such as a piggy bank or the wealth colors of red, purple, and blue, it could go either way. We may receive it abundantly, or we may still face any number of money challenges. If your desire to increase wealth in the form of more money or a better paying job still eludes you, it’s time to look within for the answers. In other words, Feng Shui is not just about the placement of the furniture or adding the color purple to the wealth area of your home! If it were that simple, everyone would do it and life would be easy and predictable.

Wealth comes in many different packages, not only in greenbacks. A person already has an abundance of wealth if they are able to appreciate all of the blessings in their life. In order to draw in wealth, both material and spiritual, follow these feng shui principles:

• Pay it forward: If you feel that by doing something nice for someone or giving money to a charity generates reciprocal gestures, you’re missing the point. When you give freely without conditions, you will receive prosperity in return… often unexpectedly. Want to make more money? Give generously with your time, support, talent and money. If you always give, you will always have.

• Attitude of gratitude: Be aware of all the things that occur during the day that you can be grateful for, such as your health, a sunny day, a compliment made to you, a smooth and easy ride to work, etc. Write them down daily in a journal, or recite them to yourself before you go to bed. To dwell on things that are wrong is equal to being ungrateful for what is already going right for you. The Laws of Attraction also work with negative thought patterns. Focusing on negative aspects is reinforcing the thought that somehow you are lacking. If you find yourself immersed in negative conversation and worry all day about you life, ask yourself, who could you be without this gloomy story?

• Random Acts of Kindness: Donate whatever you can spare, both monetarily and with things you may have you no longer need or want. When you see someone struggling with a heavy box, help him or her out. By viewing the world and everyone you meet as interconnected, you will benefit from your unselfish act.


If you have a question on how to redecorate your home and improve your life using Feng Shui principles, email ggRedecorating@yahoo.com or send your question to Natural Awakenings Magazine, c/o Cheryl Grace, and your question may be featured in a future article.

Cheryl Grace is a professional feng shui consultant, nationally certified Interior Refiner, and the winner of the 2008-2009-2010 Natural Choice Award for Favorite Feng Shui Practitioner. Call 941-400-3816. Visit www.ggRedecorating.com.