Feng Shui Interior Design
What is Feng Shui? If we translate this term to English, Feng Shui
literally means "Wind & Water".
Feng Shui is essentially the art of arranging objects to achieve harmony in the surrounding
environment. Not only is Feng Shui used in interior design, it is used in choosing a place to live, a burial spot
and agricultural planning.
In Singapore, many people (especially the Chinese) believe that Feng Shui has an effect on
health, wealth and personal relationships. Feng Shui is a traditional Chinese practice.
Early Feng Shui interior design relied on astronomy to find the symmetry between humans and the
universe.
The early Chinese often used the celestial poles determined by the pole stars to determine the
north and south. Feng Shui instruments dating back to 278 and 209 BC have been unearthed from tombs.
As practiced today, the goal of Feng Shui is to situate the human designed environment on spots
with good qi.
Spots are determined by an axis in time. Feng Shui teaches that areas that are not suitable for
human settlement should be left in their natural state.
Qi, pronounced Chi, literally means air. In Feng Shui, Qi is the flow of energy and may be based
on a form of solar energy.
Ying and Yang
Polarity in Feng Shui is known as ying and yang. This is the absolute balance
between two entities. It is the good and the bad, the living and the dead, and is one of the key principals
behind Feng Shui interior design.
If we apply Ying and Yang in interior design, we are looking at balance of various aspects of
design like complex vs simplicity, bright vs dark, etc. When an interior design strikes a balance between the 2
absolute, the design can be seen as a balance polarity in Feng Shui.
Most Westerners knew nothing about Feng Shui until 1972 when Richard Nixon visited The People’s
Republic of China. It is interesting the many westerners are looking to the study of Feng Shui today.
New Age by western entrepreneurs then reinvented Feng Shui. Feng Shui now speaks to the profound
role of magic, mystery and order in American life.
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