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Visit Katarina’s free Substack, Jewel Lines, to read her article on classical vs. westernized Feng Shui, “Feng Shui vs. Faux Shui”.
What is Classical Feng Shui?
In an ideal world it would not be necessary to explain what classical Feng Shui is and more to the point, what it is not, but in the last few decades westernized Feng Shui has proliferated in the United States, forcing we who use the time-tested, venerated version to differentiate ourselves. My point is not to criticize anyone using the other form, however, it’s important to know what the differences are and how each form originated so that you can understand the value of using classical Feng Shui. The real problem is in the naming of the nouveau, westernized version: unfortunately, they co-opted the Feng Shui brand that has existed for thousands of years and turned their product into something unrecognizable. Unfortunately, there’s nothing we can do about this other than to educate the public.
Many dismiss Feng Shui as being about the silly-looking placement of trinkets, mirrors, flutes, and crystals — all of those things being part of westernized Feng Shui and not used in my practice at all. Many of my clients found me after they had initially tried using westernized Feng Shui and getting no results. Once they were exposed to my work with classical Feng Shui, they were astonished at how quickly they saw problems change for the better. Nouveau Feng Shui relies on religious or New Age beliefs and depends heavily on the pracitioner’s use of intuition. While intuition can be a valuable tool in addition to educating, training, and practice in any profession, it is in no way a substitute for the rigorous learning required to become a master pracitioner of classical Feng Shui any more than it is a substitute for the training I got in architectural school. As one of my teachers said, “Westernized Feng Shui is to classical Feng Shui as a can of Chef Boyardee beefaroni is to a five-course dinner at Sustanza in Napoli.”
Dazed and confused
Do just one search for Feng Shui information on the internet and you may come away so confused that you throw up your hands and quit. That’s because in the United States, there are essentially two types of Feng Shui, and they are nothing alike. Simply put, there’s the real Feng Shui — called “classical,” traditional,” or “authentic”, and faux Feng Shui — know as “western,” “Black Hat Tibetan,” “BTB,” “Tantric” or “Black Hat.” To compound the problem, many online sources don’t say which form they are using and worse yet, some sources blend the two, creating a bizarre hybrid. Now with AI muddying the picture even more, it’s important to be very careful if you search for information about Feng Shui on the internet.
Let’s begin by defining terms. Classical Feng Shui originated over 5,000 years ago with important evolutionary milestones at about 2,700 and then 1,600 years ago when the modern form was solidified. It developed under the same philosophical principles as Chinese medicine, acupuncture, the martial arts, Yijing (I Ching), and metaphysics. By contrast westernized Feng Shui, which draws heavily on Buddhist principles combined with a version of interior decoration, was created out of whole cloth by two people in the 1980s. Altered beyond recognization, this “Feng Shui” was simplified and sold to western audiences that possessed neither any knowledge of the real thing nor (supposedly, on the assumption of those selling it) the patience to learn it. Western Feng Shui was born as a money-making opportunity for its creators.
What classical Feng Shui is NOT
- Dependent on your beliefs: much like the laws of gravity or thermodynamics, it works whether you choose to believe in it or not
- Derived from any religion or a part of any religion
- “New Age” or superstitious in its approach
- Dependent upon the “setting of an intention” or projecting the outcomes you want to achieve
- Concerned with clearing out clutter (although common sense tells us that a clutter-free home or business is going to feel better than a messy one)
- A form of interior design or decorating, although its principles can positively influence and interact with those practices
- About dividing your home into eight rigid areas such as the “relationship corner”, “fame sector,” etc.
- Cookie-cutter, template, “one size fits all” in the way it is used or applied
- About the display of “lucky objects” or superstitious symbols
You know you are dealing with faux, westernized Feng Shui when you see any of the following:
- Hanging bamboo flutes1
- Using bagua mirrors2
- Hanging wind chimes indoors and outside3
- Hanging or placing crystals, especially in windows4
- Figures of frogs with coins in their mouths, bundles of tied coins, statues of gods or mythical animals, etc.5
- The pracitioner expects to be paid for their services by way of a red envelope6
Mega-corporations like Bank of America, Wynn Properties, Wells Fargo, Goldman Sachs, Virgin Atlantic, Disney, Wells Fargo, Hyatt Hotels, MGM (along with most of the casinos in Las Vegas) and many more, all use classical Feng Shui at their properties. Can you seriously see any of them with bamboo flutes, crystals, and wind chimes hanging from ceilings, doors, and windows, even on the inside of their buildings? If you like having those things in your home or office, use them, but make no mistake: they are not real Feng Shui.
What classical Feng Shui IS
Classical Feng Shui is based on complicated mathematical formulæ and methodologies and takes years to master. There are several different schools of classical Feng Shui. We at Lang, Barisoni & Song use a combination of them (see the Menu of Services and About pages for more information about our services and methods). We visit your property in person or virtually to survey the surrounding area often extending out several miles. We read contour maps and satellite imagery of your property and vicinity. We use specialized Chinese compasses called Luopans to take a variety of readings from important points like doors, driveways, entrances, exits, nearby roads, streams and rivers and other water features, placement of valleys, hills, and more. We prefer to use a tripod with the Luopan where level ground is available, and move it around your property to do a survey from numerous angles. Luopan compasses are only used in classical Feng Shui, never in westernized Feng Shui; if you want to know which type of Feng Shui a person practices, ask if they use a compass and if they use a compass, ask what type of compass — it should be a Chinese Luopan.
To conduct a full audit and analysis, we need the time, date, and place of birth of the property owner and principal occupants of the home; for a business we need this info regarding the business owner and important members of staff. We use this to determine the best areas of the building for each person to use and to avoid by effectively harmonizing the property with its inhabitants. We generate geomantic charts (Flying Stars) that show how the property will change over time and when to expect challenges to arise and opportunities to appear; knowing this helps you to plan ahead for success. We suggest modifications on the interior and exterior of the property to remove clashing elements and enhance positive flow by creating more balance. Some rooms in a building and certain outside areas surrounding it will be best avoided during certain periods of time, while others will be important to utilize and keep active. Timing is everything in classical Feng Shui, which is why it’s crucial to have an annual audit update of the property performed (something that westernized Feng Shui does not do). Knowing these things before you build, buy, or lease is ideal but long-time residents and property owners can greatly improve their situation by applying the principles of classical Feng Shui.
Often imitated but never duplicated
I’m as fond of fast-and-easy DIY solutions as the next person but western Feng Shui doesn’t bring results. I speak from personal experience since I began my Feng Shui journey in the 1980s by learning Western Feng Shui — at the time, there was nothing else available in the USA. I experimented with it first on myself, then with friends, and finally with clients. Our combined results ranged from no change at all to things actually getting worse. While disappointed, I still believed there was something to Feng Shui and wanted to know more. A few years later, I connected with a talented and forward-thinking architect who introduced me to classical Feng Shui. The first time I applied it to my own home, I saw immediate improvement. I knew I’d found what I’d been seeking, and I never looked back. In the Orient, the only form of Feng Shui is classical. They don’t recognize westernized styles as being Feng Shui at all.
The venerable, time-tested art and science of classical Feng Shui has been refined and perfected over thousands of years by experts who applied its principles, observed the results, noted what worked and what didn’t, and went on to continually test and improve their craft. Sounds like the scientific method, no? In this way Feng Shui is a science and an art, just like architecture. Every year, classical Feng Shui is becoming more accepted in the west, and it’s is now taught to varying degrees in most schools of architecture. Eventually, it will have its own official professional certifications and it will be a foundational part of the design curriculum at the university level. It’s been a part of everyday life in the East for milennia because it works so well to put humans in harmonious balance with each other and the natural and built environments around them.
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1I am aware of a few classical Feng Shui practitioners who use bamboo flutes, however, these are not a part of the traditional practice. The most commonly-seen application of bamboo flutes is to correct the destruction caused by indoor ceiling beams. I have tried using bamboo flutes for this purpose and have never had a client get a good result from them.
2Bagua mirrors are used, often prolifically inside and outside, in westernized Feng Shui. I advise great caution with all mirrors and recommend that clients avoid them both inside and outside when possible. They tend to create many serious problems and I’ve yet to see them solve any.
3On occasion I do recommend hanging one large wind chime, made of high-quality metal like bronze, copper or pewter, outside a main door, but only in very specific circumstances. The reason these are effective in the right circumstances is because of the elemental content of the wind chime combined with the noise and movement it creates; a chiming clock creates the exact same effect. I never recommend wind chimes to be hung indoors as there is always a better way to fix the problem. Indoor wind chimes look silly!
4Rock and crystals can, at times, be used effectively in classical Feng Shui in places where the element of Earth is needed. Even then, it takes a huge rock or extremely large and heavy collection of them to act as an elemental cure. Individual, small gemstones are not big enough to have any effect. I never advise hanging them inside windows. A large, attractive rock or crystal, or a grouping of same can be a nice addition to a room’s décor as well as helping to introduce the Earth-element into the area when necessary.
5These things are either part of traditional culture, folklore, and superstition, or they are considered to be good luck symbols, just as statues of the Virgin Mary or a 4-leaf clover are in the West. You will see such things placed in many traditional households but they are not a part of classical Feng Shui.
6We accept payment the same way everyone else does, with check, credit cards, electronic payment, or cash: no red envelope necessary.
Disclaimer
The information offered on this website is in accordance with the author’s best knowledge and experiences and makes no claims for absolute effectiveness. If can be beneficial or harmful, depending upon one’s implementation of it and stage of development. Readers should use their own discretion and liability. The adoption and application of the material offered on this website remains solely the reader’s own responsibility. The author, Katarina Lang, and Lang, Barisoni & Song are not responsible or liable in any manner for loss or damage of properties or bodily injuries that may occur by following instructions detailed on this website. Anecdotes described on this website are real, although names have been changed to protect the client’s privacy.
Services provided by Katarina Lang and Lang, Barisoni & Song cannot replace or substitute for the services of trained professionals in any field, including but not limited to financial, medical, psychological, or legal fields. Katarina Lang and Lang, Barisoni & Song do not offer any professional, personal, medical, financial or legal advice and none of the information offered through services rendered or information on this website should be confused as such advice. Any information pertaining to the events, occurrences, dates and other details relating to the person or persons, dead or alive, and to the companies have been verified to the best of their abilities based on information obtained or extracted from various websites and other public media sources. However, Katarina Lang and Lang, Barisoni & Song make no representation or warranties of any kind with regard to the contents of this website or services rendered and accept no liability of any kind for any losses or damages caused or alleged to be caused directly or indirectly from using the information on this website or rendered by Katarina Lang and Lang, Barisoni & Song.
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