Feng Shui and our element

In Feng Shui, each person has its own Ming Gua, or personal number, which corresponds to one of the five elements. In Chinese astrology, the animal for our birth year also corresponds to one of the five elements.

Are the two elements identical?

Sometimes yes and sometimes no. The element of our Ming Gua is not identical to the element of our animal in Chinese astrology. But it can happen that both are equal.

2008 is the year of the water rat and children born this year will have the water element. But in Feng Shui, the calculation of Ming Gua makes the difference between men and women. Thus, boys born in 2008 will have the water element and girls born in 2008 will have the earth element. As we can see, the Ming Gua is the same for boys but different for girls.

Another example is that of persons born in 1982: the element of the Chinese animal is water, but the Ming Gua for men is the fire element and for women is the metal element. Thus, we can have three different elements for the same year.

It is clear that the element of the animal in Chinese astrology is not synonymous to the element of our Ming Gua.

Applying Feng Shui in the bedroom

One of the most important rooms of the house is without doubt the bedroom. We spent many hours there in our lives sleeping. In the case of children and adolescents, the bedroom becomes even more important, as they spend a good part of their time in it.

We can apply Feng Shui in the bedroom, but we must always take into account the entire house. As you know, we have to analyze the house to know in which sector or sectors is the bedroom. Once we have all the necessary data, we will know which is the most appropriate element for the bedroom. From there we can choose furniture, decorations and appropriate colors.

Another very important point is the location of the bed. The main guideline is to have the bed in one of our favorable directions. If the layout of the bedroom allows us, we can choose which of the four directions should be most favorable. If not, we must always give priority to a favorable direction. You can use the Ming Gua calculator to know your personal number and favorable and unfavorable directions (to avoid).

What must we avoid in a bedroom?

The bedroom has to be more Yin, thus we must avoid water sources or an aquarium, plants, mirrors that reflect directly the bed and electrical appliances such as television or computer.

The bedroom has to invite us to rest. But when it comes to the bedroom of a child or adolescent, they use to play, study or listen to music in the bedroom. We will have to be careful with the “poisoned arrows” or edges of the desktop and shelves towards the bed. We should separate the spaces of rest and activity inside the bedroom, using one side of the bedroom for the bed and the other side for other activities.

Feng Shui and colors

A very common question is whether there are specific colors in Feng Shui. The color is a characteristic of the elements used in Feng Shui. To find out what color is best suited in a room or a section of the house, we must first analyze the house to see what element is needed and where. We’ll use the Flying Star or the 8 Mansions system for the analysis.

If we must harmonize a sector of the house with the water element, we can choose the color – black or blue – to paint or for the decoration. We can use all shades of blue, from light blue to dark blue. For the bedroom, a soft color will always be more appropriate, since the bedroom is Yin. On the contrary, we can choose a stronger blue for a living room, as it is a Yang room.

For those who prefer the walls of their house in white, they can utilize the characteristics of the elements in the furniture and decoration to harmonize the energies.

Can I use red in a bedroom?

The red color is very intense and Yang, thus does not invite to sleep. However, it depends on the sector of the house and the person. I saw red bedrooms for people with Ming Gua 9 – Fire. When analyzing the house, the fire was appropriate in this sector and the person had no problem sleeping.

There are no specific colors for specific rooms. We must always analyze first the house and its inhabitants to know the appropriate element. From there, we can choose between color shades that we like.

Ming Gua – your personal number

To accurately apply Feng Shui to your home, one of the first things you should know and take into account is your personal number or Ming Gua. The Ming Gua (also called Kua number) is calculated from your birth year. The calculation also depends on the gender.

Each Ming Gua belongs to one of the five Chinese elements: water, wood, fire, earth and metal. And each Ming Gua belongs to either the East or the West Group. Water, wood and fire belong to the East Group, while earth and metal belong to the West Group.

The four favorable directions of the East Group (North, East, South-East, and South) are the unfavorable directions of the West Group (North-East, South-West, West, and North-West) and vice-versa.

Use this Feng Shui calculator to know your Ming Gua and your good and bad directions.

Why is our Ming Gua so important?

The Ming Gua determines our favorable and unfavorable directions. That means that if we sleep pointing towards one of our favorable directions or work looking (sitting) towards one of our favorable directions, depending on which one it is, we will benefit from its good energy. On the contrary, sleeping or sitting in a bad direction will have negative, unfavorable effects.

It doesn’t matter in which one of your favorable directions you sleep, unless you want to benefit from a particular energy, but you should absolutely avoid sleeping and working in one of your unfavorable directions. If you really can’t change it, you should at least try to be in the least bad direction, but I highly recommend avoiding any bad direction.