Feng shui ( / ˌ f ʌ ŋ ˈ ʃ w eɪ / fung-SHWAY,[1] formerly /ˈfʌŋʃuː.i/ FUNG-shoo-ee;[2] Chinese Chinese or the Sinitic language (汉语／漢語 Hànyǔ; 华语／華語 Huáyǔ; 中文 Zhōngwén) is a language family consisting of languages which are mostly mutually unintelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the two branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages: 風水, pronounced [fə́ŋʂwèi]) is an ancient Chinese China is seen variously as an ancient civilization extending over a large area in East Asia, a nation and/or a multinational entity system of aesthetics Aesthetics is a branch of philosophy dealing with the nature of beauty, art, and taste, and with the creation and appreciation of beauty. It is more scientifically defined as the study of sensory or sensori-emotional values, sometimes called judgments of sentiment and taste. More broadly, scholars in the field define aesthetics as "critical believed to use the laws of both Heaven (astronomy Astronomy in China has a very long history, and historians consider that, 'they were the most persistent and accurate observers of celestial phenomena anywhere in the world before the Arabs'. Star names later categorized in the twenty-eight mansions have been found on oracle bones unearthed at Anyang, dating back to the middle Shang Dynasty , and) and Earth (geography Geography is the study of the Earth and its lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena. A literal translation would be "to describe or write about the Earth". The first person to use the word "geography" was Eratosthenes (276-194 B.C.). Four historical traditions in geographical research are the spatial analysis of natural and) to help one improve life by receiving positive qi In traditional Chinese culture, qi is an active principle forming part of any living thing.[3] The original designation for the discipline is Kan Yu (simplified Chinese Simplified Chinese Characters are standardized Chinese characters prescribed in the Xiàndài Hànyǔ Chángyòng Zìbiǎo for use in Mainland China. It is one of many standard character sets of the contemporary Chinese written language. The government of the People's Republic of China in Mainland China has promoted them for use in printing in an: 堪舆; traditional Chinese Traditional Chinese characters refers to Chinese characters in any of the standard sets of Chinese characters which are not the Xiàndài Hànyǔ Chángyòng Zìbiǎo or Tōyō kanji. It most commonly refers to characters in the standardized character sets of Taiwan, of Hong Kong, or in the Kangxi Dictionary. The modern shapes of traditional: 堪輿; pinyin Pinyin , or more formally Hanyu Pinyin (汉语拼音 / 漢語拼音), is currently the most commonly used romanization system for Standard Mandarin (标准普通话 / 標準普通話). Hànyǔ (汉语 / 漢語) means the Chinese language, and pīnyīn (拼音) means "phonetics", or more literally, "spelling sound" or ": kānyú; literally: Tao of heaven and earth).[4]
The term feng shui literally translates as "wind-water" in English. This is a cultural shorthand taken from the following passage of the Zangshu (Book of Burial) by Guo Pu Guo Pu , courtesy name Jingchun (景纯), born in Yuncheng, Shanxi, was a noted natural historian and also a versatile and prolific writer of the Jin Dynasty. He wrote The Book of Burial, an early source of fengshui doctrine. He made annotations to many pre-Qin ancient works, such as: of the Jin Dynasty The Jìn Dynasty , one of the Six Dynasties, following the Three Kingdoms period and followed by the Southern and Northern Dynasties in China. The dynasty was founded by the Sima family (司馬 pinyin: Sīmǎ). Note that there are four periods of Chinese history using the name "Jin" (see clarification here):[5]
Qi rides the wind and scatters, but is retained when encountering water.[5]
Historically, feng shui was widely used to orient buildings—often spiritually significant structures such as tombs, but also dwellings and other structures—in an auspicious An auspice (Latin: auspicium from auspex, is literally "one who looks at birds", a diviner who reads omens from the observed flight of birds. This type of omen reading was already a millennium old in the time of Classical Greece: in the fourteenth-century BCE diplomatic correspondence preserved in Egypt called the "Amarna manner. Depending on the particular style of feng shui being used, an auspicious site could be determined by reference to local features such as bodies of water, stars, or a compass. Feng shui was suppressed in China during the cultural revolution The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution was a violent mass movement that resulted in social, political, and economic upheaval in the People’s Republic of China starting in 1966 and ending officially with Mao's death in 1976. It resulted in nation-wide chaos and economic disarray and stagnation in the 1960s, but has since seen an increase in popularity, particularly in the United States.
Contents |
History
Origins
Currently Yangshao The Yangshao culture was a Neolithic culture that existed extensively along the central Yellow River in China. The Yangshao culture is dated from around 5000 BC to 3000 BC. The culture is named after Yangshao, the first excavated representative village of this culture, which was discovered in 1921 in Henan Province by the Swedish archaeologist and Hongshan cultures The Hongshan culture was a Neolithic culture in northeastern China. Hongshan sites have been found in an area stretching from Inner Mongolia to Liaoning and Hebei, and dated from about 4700 BC to 2900 BC provide the earliest evidence for the practice of feng shui. Until the invention of the magnetic compass A compass is a navigational instrument for determining direction relative to the Earth's magnetic poles. It consists of a magnetized pointer free to align itself with Earth's magnetic field. The compass greatly improved the safety and efficiency of travel, especially ocean travel. A compass can be used to calculate heading, used with a sextant to, feng shui apparently relied on astronomy Astronomy in China has a very long history, and historians consider that, 'they were the most persistent and accurate observers of celestial phenomena anywhere in the world before the Arabs'. Star names later categorized in the twenty-eight mansions have been found on oracle bones unearthed at Anyang, dating back to the middle Shang Dynasty , and to find correlations between humans and the universe.[6]
In 4000 BC, the doors of Banpo Banpo is an archaeological site first discovered in 1953 and located in the Yellow River Valley just east of Xi'an, China. It contains the remains of several well organized Neolithic settlements dating from approximately 4500 BCE. It is a large area of 5-6 hectares and surrounded by a ditch, probably a defensive moat, five or six meters wide. The dwellings were aligned to the asterism Yingshi just after the winter solstice The Winter Solstice occurs exactly when the Earth's axial tilt is farthest away from the sun at its maximum of 23° 26'. Though the Winter Solstice lasts only an instant in time, the term is also colloquially used as Midwinter or contrastingly the first day of winter to refer to the day on which it occurs. More evident to those in high latitudes,—this sited the homes for solar gain Solar gain refers to the increase in temperature in a space, object or structure that results from solar radiation. The amount of solar gain increases with the strength of the sun, and with the ability of any intervening material to transmit or resist the radiation.[7] During the Zhou The Zhou Dynasty followed the Shang Dynasty and was followed by the Qin Dynasty in China. The Zhou dynasty lasted longer than any other dynasty in Chinese history — though the actual political and military control of China by the dynasty only lasted during the Western Zhou. During the Zhou Dynasty, the use of iron was introduced to China, while era, Yingshi was known as Ding and used to indicate the appropriate time to build a capital city, according to the Shijing The Book of Songs (simplified Chinese: 诗经; traditional Chinese: 詩 . The late Yangshao site at Dadiwan The Dadiwan culture was a Neolithic culture found primarily in Gansu and western Shaanxi, China. The culture takes its name from the earliest layer found at the type site at Dadiwan. The remains of millet and pigs were found in sites associated with the culture. The culture shared several similarities with the Cishan and Peiligang cultures (c. 3500-3000 BC) includes a palace-like building (F901) at the center. The building faces south and borders a large plaza. It is on a north-south axis with another building that apparently housed communal activities. The complex may have been used by regional communities.[8]
A grave at Puyang Puyang is a prefecture-level city in northeastern Henan province, China. Located on the northern shore of the Yellow River, it borders Anyang in the west, Xinxiang in the southwest, and the provinces of Shandong and Hebei in the east and north respectively (c. 4000 BC) that contains mosaics—actually a Chinese star map Chinese star maps are usually directional or graphical representations of Chinese astronomical alignments. Throughout Chinese civilization, numerous star maps have been recorded. This page is intended to list or show the best available version of each star map. Star catalogues are also listed. For academic purposes, related star maps outside the of the Dragon and Tiger asterisms and Beidou (the Big Dipper, Ladle or Bushel Dippers are members of the genus Cinclus in the bird family Cinclidae. They are named for their bobbing or dipping movements. They are unique among passerines for their ability to dive and swim underwater) -- is oriented along a north-south axis.[9] The presence of both round and square shapes in the Puyang tomb, at Hongshan ceremonial centers and the late Longshan settlement at Lutaigang,[10] suggests that gaitian cosmography (heaven-round, earth-square) was present in Chinese China is seen variously as an ancient civilization extending over a large area in East Asia, a nation and/or a multinational entity society long before it appeared in the Zhou Bi Suan Jing.[11]
Cosmography that bears a striking resemblance to modern feng shui devices and formulas was found on a jade unearthed at Hanshan and dated around 3000 BC. The design is linked by archaeologist Li Xueqin to the liuren astrolabe An astrolabe is a historical astronomical instrument used by astronomers, navigators, and astrologers. Its many uses include locating and predicting the positions of the Sun, Moon, planets, and stars; determining local time (given local latitude) and vice-versa; surveying; triangulation; and to cast horoscopes. They were used in Classical, zhinan zhen, and Luopan Luopan is a Chinese magnetic compass, also known as a Feng Shui compass. It is used by a Feng Shui consultant to determine the precise direction of a structure or other item. Since the invention of the compass for use in Feng Shui, traditional feng shui has required its use.[12]
Beginning with palatial structures at Erlitou The Erlitou culture is a name given by archaeologists to an Early Bronze Age urban society that existed in China from 2000 BCE to 1500 BCE. The culture was named after the site discovered at Erlitou (二里頭村) in Yanshi, Henan Province. The culture was widely spread throughout Henan and Shanxi Province, and later appeared in Shaanxi and Hubei,[13] all capital cities of China China is seen variously as an ancient civilization extending over a large area in East Asia, a nation and/or a multinational entity followed rules of feng shui for their design and layout. These rules were codified during the Zhou era in the Kaogong ji (simplified Chinese Simplified Chinese Characters are standardized Chinese characters prescribed in the Xiàndài Hànyǔ Chángyòng Zìbiǎo for use in Mainland China. It is one of many standard character sets of the contemporary Chinese written language. The government of the People's Republic of China in Mainland China has promoted them for use in printing in an: 考工记; traditional Chinese Traditional Chinese characters refers to Chinese characters in any of the standard sets of Chinese characters which are not the Xiàndài Hànyǔ Chángyòng Zìbiǎo or Tōyō kanji. It most commonly refers to characters in the standardized character sets of Taiwan, of Hong Kong, or in the Kangxi Dictionary. The modern shapes of traditional: 考工記; "Manual of Crafts"). Rules for builders were codified in the carpenter's manual Lu ban jing (simplified Chinese Simplified Chinese Characters are standardized Chinese characters prescribed in the Xiàndài Hànyǔ Chángyòng Zìbiǎo for use in Mainland China. It is one of many standard character sets of the contemporary Chinese written language. The government of the People's Republic of China in Mainland China has promoted them for use in printing in an: 鲁班经; traditional Chinese Traditional Chinese characters refers to Chinese characters in any of the standard sets of Chinese characters which are not the Xiàndài Hànyǔ Chángyòng Zìbiǎo or Tōyō kanji. It most commonly refers to characters in the standardized character sets of Taiwan, of Hong Kong, or in the Kangxi Dictionary. The modern shapes of traditional: 魯班經; "Lu ban's manuscript"). Graves and tombs also followed rules of feng shui, from Puyang Puyang is a prefecture-level city in northeastern Henan province, China. Located on the northern shore of the Yellow River, it borders Anyang in the west, Xinxiang in the southwest, and the provinces of Shandong and Hebei in the east and north respectively to Mawangdui Mawangdui is an archaeological site located in Changsha, China. The site consists of two saddle-shaped hills and contained the tombs of three people from the western Han Dynasty (206 BCE - 9 CE). The tombs belonged to the first Marquis of Dai, his wife, and a male who is believed to be their son. The site was excavated from 1972 to 1974. Most of and beyond. From the earliest records, it seems that the rules for the structures of the graves and dwellings were the same.
Early instruments and techniques
A feng shui spiral In mathematics, a spiral is a curve which emanates from a central point, getting progressively farther away as it revolves around the point at LA Chinatown Chinatown in Los Angeles, California is a Chinatown in Downtown Los Angeles that was founded in the late 1800s. It was originally located less than a mile from its current location where Union Station is located's Metro The Los Angeles County Metro Rail is the mass transit rail system of Los Angeles County. It is run by the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority and is the indirect descendant of the Pacific Electric Red Car system and Los Angeles Railway Yellow Car lines, which operated in the area from the early to middle twentieth century station.The history of feng shui covers 3,500+ years[14] before the invention of the magnetic compass. It originated in Chinese astronomy Astronomy in China has a very long history, and historians consider that, 'they were the most persistent and accurate observers of celestial phenomena anywhere in the world before the Arabs'. Star names later categorized in the twenty-eight mansions have been found on oracle bones unearthed at Anyang, dating back to the middle Shang Dynasty , and.[15] Some current techniques can be traced to Neolithic The Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BC in the Middle East that is traditionally considered the last part of the Stone Age. The Neolithic followed the terminal Holocene Epipalaeolithic period, beginning with the rise of farming, which produced the " China China is seen variously as an ancient civilization extending over a large area in East Asia, a nation and/or a multinational entity,[16] while others were added later (most notably the Han The Han Dynasty was the second imperial dynasty of China, preceded by the Qin Dynasty (221–206 BCE) and succeeded by the Three Kingdoms (220–265 CE). It was founded by the peasant rebel leader Liu Bang, known posthumously as Emperor Gaozu of Han. It was briefly interrupted by the Xin Dynasty (9–23 CE) of the former regent Wang Mang. This dynasty, the Tang The Tang Dynasty (June 18, 618–June 4, 907) was an imperial dynasty of China preceded by the Sui Dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period. It was founded by the Li (李) family, who seized power during the decline and collapse of the Sui Empire. The dynasty was interrupted briefly by the Second Zhou Dynasty (October 16,, the Song The Song Dynasty was a ruling dynasty in China between 960 and 1279; it succeeded the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period, and was followed by the Yuan Dynasty. It was the first government in world history to issue banknotes or paper money, and the first Chinese government to establish a permanent standing navy. This dynasty also saw the first, and the Ming The Ming Dynasty , or Empire of the Great Ming (simplified Chinese: 大明国; traditional Chinese: 大明國; pinyin: Dà Míng Guó, also anachronistically simplified Chinese: 大明帝国; traditional Chinese: 大明帝國; pinyin: Dà Míng Dìguó), was the ruling dynasty of China from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol-led).[17]
The astronomical history of feng shui is evident in the development of instruments and techniques. According to the Zhouli the original feng shui instrument may have been a gnomon The gnomon is the part of a sundial that casts the shadow. Gnomon is an ancient Greek word meaning "indicator", "one who discerns," or "that which reveals.". Chinese used circumpolar stars to determine the north-south axis of settlements. This technique explains why Shang palaces at Xiaotun Yinxu (Chinese: 殷墟; pinyin: Yīnxū; literally "Ruins of Yin" ) is the ruins of the last capital of China's Shang Dynasty (1766 BC - 1050 BC). The capital served 255 years for 12 kings in 8 generations lie 10° east of due north. In some cases, as Paul Wheatley observed,[18] they bisected the angle between the directions of the rising and setting sun to find north. This technique provided the more precise alignments of the Shang walls at Yanshi Yanshi is a county-level city administered by the prefecture-level city of Luoyang in western Henan province, People's Republic of China. The ancient Erlitou culture existed in the area. Yanshi lies on the Luo River. The ruins the first Shang Dynasty capital, Xibo, are located in Shixianggou Township of Yanshi. Xibo was founded by King Shang Tang and Zhengzhou. Rituals for using a feng shui instrument required a diviner to examine current sky phenomena to set the device and adjust their position in relation to the device.[19]
The oldest examples of instruments used for feng shui are liuren astrolabes, also known as shi. These consist of a lacquered, two-sided board with astronomical sightlines. The earliest examples of liuren astrolabes have been unearthed from tombs that date between 278 BC and 209 BC. Along with divination for Da Liu Ren[20] the boards were commonly used to chart the motion of Taiyi through the nine palaces.[21] The markings on a liuren/shi and the first magnetic compasses are virtually identical.[22]
The magnetic compass was invented for feng shui[23] and has been in use since its invention. Traditional feng shui instrumentation consists of the Luopan or the earlier south-pointing spoon (指南針 zhinan zhen)—though a conventional compass could suffice if one understood the differences. A feng shui ruler (a later invention) may also be employed.
Foundation theories
The goal of feng shui as practiced today is to situate the human built environment on spots with good qi. The "perfect spot" is a location and an axis in time.[24][25]
Qi (ch'i)
Qi (roughly pronounced as the sound 'chee' in English) is a movable positive or negative life force which plays an essential role in feng shui.[26] In feng shui as in Chinese martial arts, it refers to 'energy', in the sense of 'life force' or élan vital. A traditional explanation of qi as it relates to feng shui would include the orientation of a structure, its age, and its interaction with the surrounding environment including the local microclimates, the slope of the land, vegetation, and soil quality.[citation needed]
The Book of Burial says that burial takes advantage of "vital qi." Wu Yuanyin[27] (Qing dynasty) said that vital qi was "congealed qi," which is the state of qi that engenders life. The goal of feng shui is to take advantage of vital qi by appropriate siting of graves and structures.[25]
One use for a Luopan is to detect the flow of qi.[28] Magnetic compasses reflect local geomagnetism which includes geomagnetically induced currents caused by space weather. [29] Professor Max Knoll suggested in a 1951 lecture that qi is a form of solar radiation.[30] As space weather changes over time,[31] and the quality of qi rises and falls over time,[25] feng shui with a compass might be considered a form of divination that assesses the quality of the local environment—including the effects of space weather.
|
Tue, 17 Aug 2010 11:22:06 GMT+00:00
Swell UK Following the art of feng shui and adding some water features to your garden could bring more that just a wealth of wildlife into your life. ... Arranging prosperity Honolulu Star-Advertiser
626px x 600px | 186.40kB
[source page]
One of the important principles in understanding Feng Shui is color Feng Shui color is modeled after the five elements wood fire earth metal and water In regards to Feng Shui and
Wed, 11 Mar 2009 04:02:59 PDT
Eine feng shui ambience ziel des Films ist es, eine Stimulation zu erzeugen, die zum Kontakt mit der inneren Stille, dem Selbst fuehrt ... video.yahoo.com.
cathleenmccandless
Sat, 28 Aug 2010 16:37:54 GM
Cathleen McCandless has been named The Best . Feng Shui. Consultant in San Diego by San Diego Magazine. She has almost twenty years experience as a . Feng Shui. consultant and teacher and stars in the Nation-wide television series Feng ...
