A logo is a graphical element, together with its logotype, forms a trade mark or commercial brand for recognition. One of the most important parts of a company’s branding strategy is choosing the right logo. From a feng shui point of view, a logo is beyond just a trademark or brand. It encapsulates the energy of the company in the image. It represents the very essence, the totality of the company.
Ten years in the making, the National September 11 Memorial was completed and opened to the public on September 12, 2011. The eight-acre park was designed by Israeli- American, Michael Arad of Handle Architects, a New York and San Francisco firm.
The Memorial is composed of a forest of swamp white oak trees with two square pools, one on each of the original foot prints of the North and South Towers. The core of the design is a 30-foot man-made wall of water that hugs the sides of the one-acre reflecting pools. The downward-streaming water is meant to symbolize falling tears.
Does religion have a role in Feng Shui?
This is a frequently asked question.
The answer is: No. Feng shui is not a religion nor has it ever followed any religious tradition or practice.
However, most religious groups do apply feng shui principles in building their temples and monasteries. Most Taoist and Buddhist temples in China are built on a site that nourishes spiritual energy.
Siting for Zen Temple, Jiang Xi, China
The purpose of Feng Shui is to create a good living environment for all living beings. The “environment” in Feng Shui concepts exists in all scales; the planet, continent, region, city, neighborhood, house, room, and down to a favorite chair.
It is important to realize that our body and mind co-exist.On a more fundamental scale, our body is the “living environment” of our mind, and our mind is the “living environment” of our body. By taking care of our physical health, we provide a good living environment for our mind. Therefore, a sound and tranquil mind, provides a good environment for our body. This is the very first Feng Shui concept we need to concentrate on. Good Feng Shui design for harmonious living begins with our bodies and minds.
A house with good feng shui means it has good energy. A house with good energy will support you in all aspects of your life—health, good relationships, prosperity and success in your work or career. A good measurement of whether your house has good feng shui or not, is to look at the true reality of your daily life. If you have been living in the house for a period of time, and everything in your life is going well, then you must have a good feng shui house. If on the other hand, after moving in the house, things start to go bad, either in health, relationships or business, you may want to look into a feng shui issue.
On May 7th, I posted a blog about the ancient Trypillian culture (dated back 7500 years ago) along the Dnipro River in Kiev, Ukraine. I mentioned that most of the ancient villages were located on the right-hand side of the river, facing downstream. We find this consistent in the traditional feng shui concept, recognizing that land on the right-hand side was more auspicious. But why it this so? I have challenged students to come up with an explanation and have been waiting for the correct answer. However, it may be time to provide the explanation:
From the city’s point of view, which is the energy spot, the left-hand side is the yang side or the blue dragon guardian, while the right-hand side, also known as the white tiger guardian, is the yin side. The yang side is more dynamic while the yin side is more static. Since the river is more dynamic than land, ideally you want to have the river on the left-hand side of your village. Therefore, it is natural that the village is on the right-hand side of the river. Ancient people were intuitively following the natural principles, the feng shui principle, thus they chose to settle on the more auspicious right-hand side of the river. This holds true for both the northern hemisphere and southern hemisphere. If you check the big cities around the world which sit along a large river, you will find the majority of cities are on the right-hand side of the river.
While lecturing in Kiev, Ukraine, the students there asked me to comment on the feng shui of Ukraine.
“Good” I answered. Indeed, Ukraine has a good mountain in the Northwest, vast fertile land on the east and south, and it is also adjacent to the Black Sea on the south. From a feng shui point of view, Ukraine has all the four features: Dragon, Guardian Hill, Energy Spot and Bodies of Water. Furthermore, Ukraine has an abundant amount of natural resources, and it exports uranium, coal, electricity… “How then are we still poor?” the students asked?
We are affected by Heaven (time), Human, and Earth (space). Even if the space is good, it is also affected by the human factor. This is a country, where food and clothes are not any less expensive than in the United States. The streets are full of new cars such as, Mercedes, BMW and Lexus. I was amazed; it does not seem like a poor country. Yet, a university professor makes about only $500 per month. People in the private sector make a bit more, but $1000.00 per month is regarded high. The average person is indeed poor. But who are those driving all the expensive cars? There must be an issue with the Human factor. There must be some imbalance in the Human factor. The Human factor includes the average citizen and government officials. Well you can guess what is wrong here. It must be the abundant amount of corruption among government officials!
A good friend from St. Simons Island, Georgia, asked if there is a good way to help sell her house. She is anxious to move back to the NW and the fact her house is still on the market has bogged her down. With the current difficult climate in real estate, many people must also be anxious to find a way to sell their house quickly. Traditionally, for a new house, a builder or realtor will rent furniture or employ a staging service, allowing the buyer to visualize how they will live there. But both are costly options. To enhance the house in the information and energy levels, the least expensive way is by using living indoor plants; place an abundant number of plants in the house. If there are people still living in the house while on the market, it is advised to keep the house tidy and clean, and naturally, living plants will help too. However, there is another power and a hardly being recognized way to speed up the process of the sale. I told this charming lady to treat the house humanly—to say farewell to the house: “I love you, and thank you for accommodating me for all these years until now. I know you will be in good hands after I depart”. Is this idea too new-age for you? It doesn’t hurt to try. It might surprise you.
