The Sunday Times FT - The wonders of Feng Shui

This is a new column series on the art of Feng Shui, a well known practice in the art of living. The author, S.B.S.Surendran is a Master Fengshui Consultant and Traditional Vaasthu Practitioner from India who has had some successful seminars and workshops in Sri Lanka. His website is -- http:// www.fengshuiserver.com.

I pay my obeisance to my masters and teachers who imparted the knowledge, skill, secrets and techniques of this wonderful art and science of Feng Shui.

‘Feng’ meaning Wind (pronounced as Fung) and ‘Shui’ meaning Water (pronounced as Shway) are the two energies, which symbolise all the other energies existing in the universe. Feng Shui is a corollary to The Vaasthu Vidya and quite often it is interpreted as Chinese Vaasthu". In reality it is a lot more as it could be used right from our environment effects to interiors right up to landscaping and gardens.

As an Engineer, it was easy to assimilate and understand the methods, 3-dimensional perspectives, floor plans and structural details while adapting Fengshui. Trained under many Masters in India for Vaasthu and Traditional Taiwanese and Chinese Fengshui Masters, I have been auditing in India and abroad many sites, buildings and offices for over fourteen long years now.

Prior to understanding Vaasthu and Fengshui, we need to understand the energy and earth relationship or in other words GEOMANCY. Geo means earth and mancy means divination. In simpler terms, Geomancy is the practice of working with the energies of the earth

Traditionally geomancy has been used to define beneficial and detrimental places. Types of energy are suited to particular endeavours - for example places of power are not necessarily good for everyday living.

However working with earth energies can also be a part of everyday auspicious sitting - from town planning to domestic arrangements. An important part of choosing a suitable site is considering the energy that lies beneath it - preferably finding beneficial, and also avoiding and curing harmful. The popularized term geopathic stress describes the negative effect of exposure to harmful earth energies.

Geomancy enables us to identify what is known as Geo Pathos. geo - earth pathos - suffering, disease. Such energies may be natural global grids and their crossings, or arise from earth fault lines, mineral deposits and underground water courses. Trauma to the earth such as excavation, mining, building, even battlefields can also result in disrupted harmful energy.

If such zones are located directly beneath you they can cause or exacerbate weakened immune system resulting in difficulty sleeping, exhaustion, anxiety, and agitation. German medical studies over 70 years have indicated that exposure over a period of time may correspond to chronic health problems particularly the incidence of cancer.

Feng Shui is so fascinating that when it is done properly; you certainly feel the change in your place of dwelling which contributes to the overall improvement of your "Quality of life".

Through these columns, I wish to bring to you the theory, practice and the techniques decoded by the great grand masters who had documented it for the benefit of all those who wished to adapt it.

Feng Shui, in its simplest form is the practice of placing or arranging objects within a space so that they are pleasing to you and naturally support you within the context of that space.

While architecture and interior design concern themselves with structure, function and visual impact, Feng Shui takes into consideration the conscious and unconscious associations you may have with the space and the objects and their placements within it. Feng Shui accomplishes this by combining an ancient divination tool with simple psychology. An artful combination of the two is where the real work of a Feng Shui practitioner comes in. The result should be a house, an apartment or even just a room that reflects your own values and aesthetics that supports your personal ambitions and simply reminds you of your dreams. Indeed using Feng Shui your "castle" should become your own in the most intimate detail, profoundly affecting the way you think about yourself and the world.

Feng Shui could also be called as an environmental science and its origins are simple and it is the interpretation of the natural world, which has enabled the Chinese to create efficient agricultural systems by analyzing and studying the movement of energies. From nutrition to medicine, exercise (Taichi), martial arts, Fine arts to calligraphy, Feng Shui underlies all aspects of life.

As we move ahead, I will be discussing more theory and practicalities of Feng Shui, which would help you, improve your space and in turn your quality of life.