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The Art of Fengshui:

Aligning the Human and Natural Realms

 

Introduction: the Correlative Universe
Part 1: the Astrophysical Environment
Part 2: the Geophysical Environment
Part 3: the Metaphysical Environment

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Part 1:  The Astrophysical Environment

 

Figure 1. c. 4500 BCE Tomb (Henan Province)

 

 

 

 

 
Figure 2. The Canopy of Heaven
and the Chariot of Earth

 

 

 

 

 

Figure 3. 433 BCE Tomb (Hubei Province)

 

 

 

Lodges

Figure 4. The 28 Lodges of the Chinese Zodiac

 

 

 

 

heaven

 

Figure 5. The Chinese Cosmograph

 

 

 

 

 

 

Figure 6. The Fall of Mt. Buzhou

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Figure 7. The Rising Dragon

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mid-May Mid-June Mid-August

Figure 8. The Flight of the Dragon

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Part 2: The Geophysical Environment

 

Geophysical Qi

The six qi of heaven--cold, heat, wind, rain, dark and light--"descend and produce the five tastes," but "produce the six diseases when they are in excess."

Zuozhuan, Duke Zhao, 1st year (540 BCE)
"Water is the root of all things and the source of all life. . . . Water is the blood and breath [qi] of the earth, functioning in similar fashion to the circulation of blood and breath in the sinews and veins."

The Book of Guanzi (5th century BCE)

Where is Geophysical Qi?
"Earth is the body of qi--where there is earth there is qi. Qi is the mother of water--where there is qi there is water."

The Book of Burial (3rd century CE)

 

 

 

 

Physiological Qi
"Man's life is the assembling of qi. The assembling is deemed birth, the dispersal is deemed death."

The Book of Zhuangzi (4th century BCE)

 

The Convergence of Geophysical and Physiological Qi

"Truly, life is accumulated qi. It solidifies into bone, which alone remains after death. Burial returns qi to the bones, which is the way the living are endowed."

The Book of Burial (3rd century CE)

 

The Practice of Fengshui
"The Classic says, qi rides the wind and scatters, but is retained when encountering water. The ancients collected it to prevent its dissipation, and guided it to assure its retention. Thus it was called fengshui [wind/water]. According to the laws of fengshui, the site that attracts water is optimal, followed by the site that catches wind."

The Book of Burial (3rd century CE)

 

 

 

 Looking for the Dragon Veins
"Arteries spring from lowland terrain; bones spring from mountain terrain. They wind sinuously from east to west and from south to north. Thousands of feet high is called forces [shi]; hundreds of feet high is called features [xing]. Forces advance and finish in features."
"Where the earth takes shape, qi flows accordingly; thereby things are born. For qi courses within the ground, its flow follows the contour of the ground, and its accumulation results from the halt of terrain. For burial, seek the source and ride it to its terminus."

The Book of Burial (3rd century CE)

Figure 9. Dragon Veins (with aerial view)

 

 

 

The Dragon Lair
"Where forces cease and features soar high, with a stream in front and a hill behind, here hides the head of the dragon. The snout and forehead are auspicious; the horns and eyes bring doom. The ears obtain princes and kings; the lips lead to death or injury from weapons. Where terrain winds about and collects at the center, this is called the belly of the dragon. Where the navel is deep and winding, descendants will have good fortune."

The Book of Burial (3rd century CE)

A. White Tiger, B. Dark Warrior (Turtle), C. Green Dragon, D. Red Bird

Figure 10. The Dragon Lair

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Part 3: The Metaphysical Environment

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Evolution of Qi
Qi
Two Primary Forces:
Yin and Yang
Four Seasons:
Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter
Five Elements:
Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, Water
Eight Trigrams:
Zhen, Xun, Li, Kun, Dui, Qian, Kan, Gen
Thunder, Wood, Fire, Earth, Lake, Heaven, Water, Mountain
Nine Stars:
Tan Lang, Wu Qu, Ju Men, Fu Bi, Lu Cun, Wen Qu, Lian Zhen, Po Jun
Ten Heavenly Stems:
Jia, Yi, Bing, Ding, Wu, Ji, Geng, Xin, Ren, Gui
Wood, Wood, Fire, Fire, Earth, Earth, Metal, Metal, Water, Water
Twelve Earthly Branches:
Zi, Chou, Yin, Mao, Chen, Si, Wu, Wei, Shen, You, Xu, Hai
Rat, Ox, Tiger, Hare, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Cock, Dog, Pig
Twenty-eight Lunar Lodges
Jiao, Kang, Di, Fang, Xin, Wei, Ji, etc.
Horn, Neck, Base, Room, Heart, Tail, Basket, etc.
The Ten Thousand Things

 

 

 

luopan

 

 

 

 

 

Five

 

 

 

 

The Five Elemental Correlations
Elements
Directions
Planets
Flavors
Internal
Organs
Animals
Colors
WOOD east Jupiter sour spleen scaly (snakes) green
FIRE south Mars bitter lungs feathered (birds) red
EARTH center Saturn sweet heart naked (humans) yellow
METAL west Venus acrid kidney hairy (mammals) white
WATER north Mercury salty liver shell-covered black

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mutual Production Order of the Five Elements
 
Earth harbors Metal
Metal condenses Water
Water nourishes Wood
Wood feeds Fire
Fire burns to Earth
 
Mutual Destruction Order of the Five Elements
 
Wood digs Earth
Metal cuts Wood
Fire melts Metal
Water extinguishes Fire
Earth dams Water

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Palace of Nine Halls
 
NW Metal
QIAN (Heaven)
 
6-White
 
North Water
KAN (Water)
 
1-White
 
NE Earth
GEN (Mountain)
 
8-White
 
West Metal
DUI (Lake)
 
7-Red
Center Earth
Courtyard
5-Yellow
 
East Wood
ZHEN (Thunder)
 
3-Jade
 
SW Earth
KUN (Earth)
 
2-Black
 
South Fire
LI (Fire)
 
9-Purple
 
SE Wood
XUN (Wood)
 
4-Green

 

 

 

 

 

 

1948 Natal Guardian Stars 1992
Star Element Male Female
       
1-white water 1954 1950
9-purple fire 1955 1949
8-white earth 1956 1948
7-red metal 1948 1956
6-white metal 1949 1955
5-yellow earth 1950 1954
4-green wood 1951 1953
3-jade wood 1952 1952
2-black earth 1953 1951
       
1-white water 1963 1959
9-purple fire 1964 1958
8-white earth 1965 1957
7-red metal 1957 1965
6-white metal 1958 1964
5-yellow earth 1959 1963
4-green wood 1960 1962
3-jade wood 1961 1961
2-black earth 1962 1960
       
1-white water 1972 1968
9-purple fire 1973 1967
8-white earth 1974 1966
7-red metal 1966 1974
6-white metal 1967 1973
5-yellow earth 1968 1972
4-green wood 1969 1971
3-jade wood 1970 1970
2-black earth 1971 1969
       
1-white water 1981 1977
9-purple fire 1982 1976
8-white earth 1983 1975
7-red metal 1975 1983
6-white metal 1976 1982
5-yellow earth 1977 1981
4-green wood 1978 1980
3-jade wood 1979 1979
2-black earth 1980 1978
       
1-white water 1990 1986
9-purple fire 1991 1985
8-white earth 1992 1984
7-red metal 1984 1992
6-white metal 1985 1991
5-yellow earth 1986 1990
4-green wood 1987 1989
3-jade wood 1988 1988
2-black earth 1989 1987
Star Element Male Female

1948 Natal Guardian Stars 1992