East and West Direction

East and West Direction
by Joani Nunez
from: http://www.indigosun.com/july99/feng_shui.htm

This month we continue to explore direction in the application of Feng Shui as we look at east houses and west houses. Whether your home is an east or west dwelling will be determined by the direction it faces. You can run into some confusion as you work to determine this, because there are different schools of thought about how to determine this! Some schools insist that that this is determined by the direction the back door faces, others say it’s determined by the direction the front door faces. How you measure this will then determine the ways in which you adjust, or cure the different areas.

Because the front door is the mouth of chi, it’s the major source of chi for the home. For this reason, I take my calculations and make my adjustments according to the front of the building. I love the results I get when working with this system in this way, so these were the deciding factors for me in choosing to take the measurements in this way. I explore, try, and experiment with everything before making a commitment to a particular theory or position. In this way my own personal experience and results guide me, so I’m absolutely certain when I share it with someone else.

I suggest you take your reading several times from two different locations. It’s important to remove any metal jewelry from your body when you do this. Stand at the front door and take a reading facing out the front door. Do this inside and then again from the outside. Make sure you’re not receiving interference from any metal objects like closely parked cars or metal door jams, or even computers. After you’ve taken your reading from the front door looking out, then go to the heart of the house, face the front of the building, and take a second reading. These compass readings should match, and you’ll now know which direction your house faces.

Now that you know the direction your home faces, you can determine whether you live in an east or west house. East houses will face east, south, southeast, or north, and are associated with the elements of wood, fire and water. West houses will face west, northwest, northeast, or southwest, and are associated with the elements of metal and earth.

Interestingly, you now have another use for the 9 square grid you’ve thus far been using as the ba-gua. Overlay the grid onto your home with only the directions, the appropriate direction for each gua or corner/square. If you live in an east house, then those areas that fall in the east, south, southeast, and north are considered to be inherently lucky spaces in the home. They are the best locations for the front door, master bedrooms, home offices, family rooms, and studies. The other four directions, (w, nw, ne, sw) are considered inauspicious or unlucky in an east house. They are the best locations for bathrooms, storage closets, guest bedrooms, or the kitchen. This is completely reversed for a west house.

It is ideal (though not always possible) for an east life group person to live in an east house, and for a west life group person to live in a west house. The lucky areas of a home are characterized as follows:

Sheng Chi or Generating Breath – Prosperity location, good fortune.
T’ien Yi or Heavenly Healing – Strengthens health, corrects “bad luck”.
Yen Nien or Lengthened Years – Harmony in relationships, creates marriage.
Fu Wei or Manifested Position – Strengthens studies, creates peace.

The unlucky areas are characterized:

Liu Sha or Six Curses – Illness, accidents, legal problems.
Wu Kuei or 5 Ghosts - Burglary, fire, discord, haunted atmosphere.
Chueh Ming or Severed Fate – Loss of job, spouse, results in poor health and ruin.
Huo Hai or Disaster – Safety concerns, accidents, trouble and worry.

Each of the lucky directions can be strengthened and increased with one of the elements. Sheng Chi is strengthened with a Water Cure , Yen Nien with earth, Tien Yi with fire, and Fu Wei with water. Each of the unlucky directions can be corrected in the same way. Liu Sha is cured with wood, Wu Kuei with earth, Chueh Ming with water, and Huo- Hai with metal.

If you must sleep or spend a great deal of time in an inauspicious sector, you can help to rectify this by facing an auspicious direction within that sector.