Tips

5 Places to Avoid When Cleaning Your House for the Lunar New Year to Keep Good Feng Shui

As the Lunar New Year approaches, it's customary for households to engage in a thorough spring cleaning spree to usher in a fresh and prosperous year ahead. However, it's crucial to pay attention to certain areas when tidying up to avoid any potential pitfalls in feng shui. Here's a revelation of five key spots you should never neglect during your annual festive cleaning ritual.

Administrator

21 July, 2024

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In the past, families would come together to thoroughly clean their homes to welcome the new year. However, it’s important to pay attention to certain areas when cleaning to avoid bad luck. Join us in noting these five locations to avoid any feng shui mishaps.

1 The Spaces and Central Area of the House

When cleaning the house, most people tend to focus on rarely touched areas such as door crevices or wall-lined shelves, neglecting the fact that the central area (the heart of the house) also needs a thorough cleaning, despite regular sweeping and mopping.

According to feng shui experts, the central area is a point that attracts positive energy and guides the interior’s line of sight. Therefore, it should be kept clean, well-lit, and adorned with decorative items while maintaining a spacious and comfortable living and walking space.

The central area of the house deserves special attention during cleaning

2 West and East Directions

According to feng shui, every year, two inauspicious stars, Wu Huang and San Sha, will take turns shining down on the west and east directions. These stars bring bad luck to your entire family if they are disturbed, leading to illness, work difficulties, and other challenges.

So, when cleaning for the new year, avoid these areas. Refrain from hammering nails or sticking things on walls in these directions. If there are any alterations to be made to the walls or floors, proceed with caution to avoid significant changes. However, you can still move or add new furniture.

The west and east directions are affected by inauspicious stars during the last month of the lunar year

3 Transition Areas Between Indoor and Outdoor Spaces

Transition areas between indoor and outdoor spaces include doorsteps, window sills, and entrance halls. These areas are responsible for welcoming positive energy and dispelling negative energy daily, so they require special attention during cleaning.

Always keep these areas fresh and lively to attract positive energy. You can add decorations such as small potted plants, hanging lanterns, or turtle-dragon figurines, or go a step further and build a waterfall, hang bamboo tubes, or wind chimes to create soothing sounds, adding liveliness and stimulating positive energy flow.

Decorating transition areas stimulates positive energy flow

4 Ancestral Altar

The ancestral altar is the most sacred place in the house, so it demands special attention when cleaning. Use clean cloths to wipe the statues and photos on the altar, minimizing any movement. If the incense burner has many incense sticks, remove some on the 23rd of the last lunar month, burn them, and dispose of the ashes in a lake, river, or stream. Do not throw them in the trash.

When cleaning, follow these principles: Place the incense burner closest to the person offering incense, a little further from the statues or photos, and leave some space in the middle of the altar for offerings.

The ancestral altar is a sacred area that requires proper cleaning etiquette

5 Dining Area

The dining area is often the most bustling and interactive space, so it’s essential to keep it clean and tidy, especially during festive occasions. Additionally, consider arranging and decorating this area efficiently and aesthetically to create a comfortable and convenient atmosphere.

To be a considerate host and prevent accidents, remove objects with sharp edges and dangerous items to free up space and reduce risks, especially when hosting a large gathering.

The dining area, being a high-traffic area, requires careful cleaning and arrangement

Now you know the five locations to pay attention to when cleaning for the new year to avoid any feng shui mishaps. Keep these tips in mind and apply them to welcome a lucky and prosperous year ahead!

Frequently asked questions

It is believed that avoiding these areas will help maintain good feng shui, bringing prosperity and good luck for the new year.

1. The altar: It is considered disrespectful to disturb the altar, as it is a sacred space for worship and offerings.
2. The front door: Sweeping or scrubbing the front door is thought to symbolically sweep away good luck.
3. The kitchen: Any intense cleaning in the kitchen may inadvertently ‘wash away’ the resident god of the stove, who brings prosperity and fortune.
4. The bedrooms: Sweeping or vacuuming the bedrooms could inadvertently sweep away good luck and fortune from the occupants.
5. The ancestral altar: Disturbing this space is believed to bring bad luck and misfortune to the family.

It is recommended to do light cleaning and organizing in these areas instead. You can dust, wipe down surfaces, and tidy up without engaging in heavy-duty scrubbing or moving furniture around. This way, you respect the spiritual and symbolic significance while still maintaining a clean and tidy home.

In addition to avoiding these five places, other practices include thoroughly cleaning the rest of the house, especially windows and entryways, to allow new energy to flow in. It is also beneficial to decorate with lucky charms and symbols, such as red envelopes, mandarin oranges, and auspicious plants like bamboo and peach blossoms.

Yes, aside from the places mentioned above, it is generally considered taboo to take out the garbage or throw away unwanted items during the first few days of the new year. This is believed to symbolically throw away your luck and prosperity. It is also advised to avoid breaking anything during this time, as it could signify breaking the flow of good fortune for the coming year.