by Lioba Steinkamp

Created on: February 10, 2009   Last Updated: February 11, 2009

I write in response to the article 'When Feng Shui doesn't work'.

For quite a few years I am an interior consultant who has given Feng Shui and all its different aspects a lot of thought. I still use the term Feng Shui for my clients as this is by now a familiar term for many. Yet, I feel compelled to rather call it 'Room Psychology' as I feel that this is what Feng Shui is (or can be) about.

Sure, many people like to use Feng Shui as a quick fix for all their problems - marriage problems? No worries, you put two mandarine ducks in your SW corner and it will be all cream and peaches! Financial problems? Buy one of our three-legged froggies with some coins in it's mouth and place in in the SE corner or your home (or, if you use the 3 Door Bagua method - the far left hand corner from your entrance or desk).

Well.... to be honest, I do NOT believe that this is how Feng Shui was intended in the first place or how it best serves the client in nowadays. e have to consider that Feng Shui is a very old system of knowledge, dating back about 4000 years in ancient China. Needless to say that things have changed since then, especially for those who live in Western culture.

There are complicated and complex methods to calculate the energy of a place for any given moment. In fact, if you wished to, you could spend your days rearranging your furniture just to be on the 'safe side'!

So, coming back to the article: I very much agree with its author on the fact that good old common sense goes a long way when it comes to... well, pretty much anything!

Yet, what I find most fascinating is the aspect of symbolism. The way a person lives tells a lot about him or her. It starts with WHERE you want to live. Which country? Climate? Mountains? Sea? City or rural? What sort of neighborhood do you prefer? Then: what sort of dwelling do you prefer or can you afford? Do you care of your home is rather run down or does it have to be spick and span? When you move in, do you renovate the place first or do you not care to live in the energy of the previous owners? Do you have a masterplan for the house - does every room have its specific purpose? Do you stick to these or are you flexible? What does your furniture and belongings tell about you? If you were someone else and would enter your rooms: what kind of person would you assume, lives there?

What I am getting at is: in my eyes there is no 'right' or 'wrong' or how it is done. Our home is just a mirror in which we can look to see what is going on in us and in our lives - the functional and the dysfunctional.

When a new client asks me for help, I always try to see the whole story. As Sherlock Holmes said: 'Don't make assumptions before all the facts are in'. The floorplan, astrological chart, etc.are one aspect, the actual situation (environment, land energies, electrosmog, quality and quantity of Chi, etc) is another. Together with the personality of the client, they form a picture. It is on that background of facts that the client's question can be investigated and advise can be given. Every situation is different.

Yes, it is a bit like solving a mystery sometimes. In my experience it is a most fascinating and direct way to transform our life!

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