Feng Shui Concepts

Feng Shui 2013 — Centers of Compassion

By Jenny Liu

 

Wisdom gathered from the I-Ching (Book of Changes) and the Flying Star charts indicates that the Year of the Water Snake 2013 will test the compassion of humanity.

According to the I-Ching, the 2013 Snake Year is associated to the wei ji hexagram, which indicates a “lack of support,” such as insufficient financial resources. In the 2013 Flying Star chart, the menacing energies of Star 5 appear in the center. This portends disease, irrational behavior, acts of desperation, an increase of predators, and challenges of natural forces.

In the face of these hardships it is necessary to act from a place of compassion rather than frustration. Everything happens for a reason, and in every crisis it is with compassion for ourselves, each other, our leaders, and our natural resources, that we will heal and evolve.

It is important to realize that energy is cyclical. We are currently at the midpoint of a 20-year cycle, and often things get worse before they get better. Awareness of these energy cycles allows us to mindfully pre-pare by making harmonizing annual feng shui adjustments to our homes and offices.

You can help neutralize the Star 5 energy in the center sectors of your home and office by removing broken or negative items, donating unused articles, and recycling reusable materials. In 2013, it is also vital to adjust the energy in public environments such as schools, common arenas, and city centers (particularly capitols) to emphasize community, support, and compassion.

If you are involved with public buildings and spaces, encourage a similar activity and eliminate negativity like graffiti, vandalism, dark areas, pollution, wastefulness, and trash.

In the human body, the center is associated to the heart, so clearing the center sector of your home also welcomes openness and a positive energy flow in your heart area. When your heart is light, you are more inclined to be happy, peaceful, and content. You are not held back and you recognize your true priorities.

Creating a positive flow of energy in your heart requires compassion for yourself as well as others. When you view life with compassion, you find there is no “good” or “bad.” Actions and outcomes are simply an exchange of energy. At any given moment you are exchanging energy by either receiving or giving in some form. Just like breathing requires inhaling and exhaling, one aspect of a cycle cannot exist without the other.

Knowing when and how much to give or receive is living with understanding and compassion. Giving too much can create waste, and receiving too little can be as ineffective as receiving nothing at all. A lopsided energy exchange upsets balance and wreaks havoc.

People with a serious illness who treat their disease as a message to reflect upon and learn from tend to heal more thoroughly, for they work with themselves rather than fight against the disease. Self-compassion often allows the dis-ease to return to a state of ease and balance because negativity is eliminated, allowing blockages to dissolve. Often, a person will not heal until the underlying cause of their imbalance is resolved.

The Chi Art accompanying this article, Quan Yin Protects You, is a vision of Quan Yin — the goddess of compassion, mercy, and benevolence. These feminine yin qualities are symbolized as a female form, which represents the unconditional maternal love, patience, and nurturing that fosters human growth and evolution.

Quan Yin’s compassion is overflowing, depicted by her large golden aura from which many powerful mantras and blessings radiate. The mantras address the spectrum of human conditions — from releasing suffering, karmic debts, jealousy, conflicts, and illness to enhancing mind focus, promoting career, using good judgment, maintaining reputation, and balancing relationships. By placing this visual Chi Art meditation in the center of your home, Quan Yin imparts to you the importance and power of compassion.

The emotions within your heart are responses that guide the mental decisions you make in your life. I believe true compassion is the ability to see and act with a heart that flows with positive energy. Interestingly, “compassion” contains the word “compass.” Like the magnetic needle in a compass that unwaveringly points north, your heart acts like the magnetic needle in the body’s compass, pointing your mind toward compassion. It is important to listen and act accordingly. Life on earth is a lesson in compassion and until we learn it, we are bound to recreate and repeat our lessons.

Master Jenny Liu holds a BA in Environmental Design from UC Berkeley and an MA in Architecture from UCLA. She is an expert in feng shui who shares her knowledge through seminars, periodicals, and the internet. For more information please see Liu-FengShui.com or call Jenny at (626) 272-4901.