Why you Should Use Feng Shui as a Personal Development Tool.

As opposed to using it to manifest the life of your dreams.

Photo by Charles Deluvio on Unsplash

Feng Shui is the art of setting up our homes to support our health and wellbeing. And that wellbeing stretches across all aspects of our lives, not just our physical health.

Fundamentally it works with our home's energy, which is divided into nine zones that represent different facets of our lives. The aim is to have the purest possible energy which can easily circulate throughout the home.

This nine-zone grid is known as the Bagua, and in the western world it is largely treated as a manifestation tool. If we want to attract the perfect relationship, wealth, or fame, we check the Feng Shui in that area. And if it’s off, we introduce remedies to bring things back into balance.

And while this is all well and good in theory, it is very hit and miss in practice. Some people have amazing results, and others are disappointed.

There is a simple explanation for this: every single manifestation technique out there is limited in its efficacy. And the stumbling block is our own subconscious readiness to have what we think we want.

If we have a self-sabotage pattern in a particular area of our lives, then trying to manifest what we want out of the ether is likely to have limited results.

If we want to resolve our self-sabotage to have lasting results, we have some inner work to do.

And this is where I find Feng Shui far more useful.

We can use the Bagua to help us excavate where we have some work to do. I like to take a two-pronged approach to this.

Outside-in:

Firstly, when I notice clutter building up in a particular spot in my home, I check in with my corresponding life area. How are things going there? Am I experiencing challenges? If so, what am I doing (or not doing) that is contributing to difficulties?

If I’m not getting answers, then I set the intention for the insights to come. And if I already know what I need to do, I set an appropriate intention to support myself in taking those steps.

And then I declutter and clean the space.

Regardless of all the traditional cures for Feng Shui sore points, the fundamental practice is cleaning and decluttering. There is no point doing any of the other tweaks if the space is chaotic and dirty.

Inside-out:

If I’m experiencing some challenges, or I want to make some changes in an area of my life, I go to the part of my home that corresponds to it on the Bagua and I look for the clutter.

Again, I set an appropriate intention and then go about cleaning and decluttering. Sometimes insights will come to me mid-clear out. Sometimes they’ll come after. The refreshed space has a refreshing effect on my mind, allowing for more clarity to come through.

Energetically we have a symbiotic relationship with our homes.

Our energy affects the home's atmosphere, and the energy of happiness, sadness, sickness, optimism, and frustration that we experience is also held within our homes. And then it continues to impact how we feel.

It can be a vicious or virtuous circle, depending on how often we clean up the energy by cleaning and refreshing our space. This means opening windows as well as decluttering.

So if you’re feeling the need to make some changes in your life, but you look around and don’t see any clutter, then open a window and let in some fresh air. Hold the intention to invite in new opportunities as you do so while releasing any energy that no longer serves you.

But also find something to declutter.

If everything is already neat and tidy, then empty your wardrobe, sock drawer, or bookshelves. And examine each item before you decide to put it back in an organized manner. Examine yourself too - do you really need or want to keep this? Do you use it regularly? Or does it bring joy to your life?

It’s got to do one or the other.

If it’s not adding something to your life, then choosing to let it go makes space for something new to come in. And when we do that in the physical, it affects the metaphysical level too.

Decluttering our space helps the energy circulate better in our homes, but it also enables the energy within us to flow better. Leading to helpful insights and shifting stubborn habits and attitudes.

After decluttering, review the symbolism of the décor of your space.

Do your artwork and curios depict the kind of scenario you want to create in your life? If not, why were you drawn to display it there? This assessment could point you towards some subconscious resistance or sabotage.

We need to know where we’re getting in our own way before we can set about changing that. And the stuff in our homes can give us some powerful clues.

As within, so without.

Feng Shui can teach us to see our homes as a mirror of our inner worlds. It helps us to see where we need to redirect our energy. And it helps us to identify where we need to focus some self-care and healing attention.

And all of this comes back to personal development and spiritual practice. For me, it’s about developing my relationship with myself and doing what I need to do to support myself.

Having a mindful and respectful relationship with our home facilitates that. And it can lead to surprisingly wonderful results in our lives.