Spring Break
Ancient arts can provide relief to modern stress
Five schools of feng shui focus on different ways the environment affects people's lives
Alexa Blatz
Issue date: 10/24/05 Section: Health
Spruill said in the Pyramid school, it's important to find out what is missing in a person's life so that person can work with the physical environment to help his or herself.
"Forn school is the oldest of feng shui. It originated in the ancient times," she said. "It involves using surroundings to position things so they protect people from certain elements."
Another type, Black Sect school, originated from the Buddhist religion, Spruill said. Most of the symbols used come from that religion.
She said the Compass school is based on time, date and when a person was born. It's not about where a person is facing, but what he or she is
looking at.
"The meaning of all this is to help achieve the goals you are striving for," Feltz said.
For example, if people have hectic lives, they could create an environment in their bedrooms to help calm themselves down, she said.
"I know that (feng shui) works," Spruill said. "There is some kind of magic to it. The magic is the mindset of the person."
Feltz said people not only are making changes in the home, but they also are making changes toward a positive mental attitude.
"It's not what the person is doing, but what the environment is doing for the person," she said.
To some degree, Thompson said, the environment her mom creates at home does affect her.
"Our home is very inviting," she said.
An example of creating an inviting home would be having a chair on the right as a person enters the room, Feltz said. It shows people entering that they are welcome to come in. It is courtesy to offer them a place to sit down and take off their shoes.
"My parents sometimes strategically place their furniture in our house to evoke feelings of welcome-ness, inviting and comforting," Thompson said.
Feng shui can be compared to yoga in the sense that it could be either religious or simply calming, Feltz said. It depends on the person and which school he or she is using.
Spruill said in order for feng shui to work, people have to surround themselves with objects that have positive feelings. It's important to bring new things into life and let go of the old things.
"Feng shui is not interior design," Spruill said. "However, good feng shui ends up being interior design."
"Forn school is the oldest of feng shui. It originated in the ancient times," she said. "It involves using surroundings to position things so they protect people from certain elements."
Another type, Black Sect school, originated from the Buddhist religion, Spruill said. Most of the symbols used come from that religion.
She said the Compass school is based on time, date and when a person was born. It's not about where a person is facing, but what he or she is
looking at.
"The meaning of all this is to help achieve the goals you are striving for," Feltz said.
For example, if people have hectic lives, they could create an environment in their bedrooms to help calm themselves down, she said.
"I know that (feng shui) works," Spruill said. "There is some kind of magic to it. The magic is the mindset of the person."
Feltz said people not only are making changes in the home, but they also are making changes toward a positive mental attitude.
"It's not what the person is doing, but what the environment is doing for the person," she said.
To some degree, Thompson said, the environment her mom creates at home does affect her.
"Our home is very inviting," she said.
An example of creating an inviting home would be having a chair on the right as a person enters the room, Feltz said. It shows people entering that they are welcome to come in. It is courtesy to offer them a place to sit down and take off their shoes.
"My parents sometimes strategically place their furniture in our house to evoke feelings of welcome-ness, inviting and comforting," Thompson said.
Feng shui can be compared to yoga in the sense that it could be either religious or simply calming, Feltz said. It depends on the person and which school he or she is using.
Spruill said in order for feng shui to work, people have to surround themselves with objects that have positive feelings. It's important to bring new things into life and let go of the old things.
"Feng shui is not interior design," Spruill said. "However, good feng shui ends up being interior design."