Feng shui, an ancient practice with roots in China, has long been used by our ancestors to study the impact of nature on people’s lives. Over time, numerous feng shui schools of thought have emerged, each offering unique insights into this complex field.
1 What is Feng Shui?
Feng shui (Chinese: 風水), literally meaning “wind-water,” explores the influence of wind and water currents, as well as the orientation and topography of a site, on people’s fortunes. It is not a solitary factor but a comprehensive assessment of various elements, including the surrounding terrain, village or city layout, grave sites, wind direction, water flow, and the orientation, shape, and spatial arrangement of buildings.
Feng shui is closely associated with fortune and misfortune, life and death, health and illness, and the flow of people’s lives. A harmonious feng shui setup brings good fortune, while a disharmonious one brings bad luck.
The “Book of Burial” states, “For burial, one must choose a place where qi gathers. The classics say: when qi meets wind, it scatters; when it meets water, it stops. The ancients caused qi to gather rather than scatter, and to stop rather than flow.” Thus, the name “feng shui” was coined.
Feng shui is also a method for selecting auspicious and prosperous locations for dwellings or burials, bringing peace and longevity. Like other ancient sciences and techniques in the East, feng shui is based on the principles of Yin-Yang and the Five Elements theory.
Feng shui is not superstition but a scientific field that has been studied and developed over centuries. However, the line between feng shui and superstition is thin, depending on how it is used.
2 How Many Feng Shui Schools of Thought Are There?
Bát Trạch Feng Shui
This school focuses on the relationship between the homeowner’s birth year and the orientation or direction of their house. Time factors do not influence the determination of the Eight Trigrams (Bát Trạch). This method solely considers the relationship between the homeowner and the house’s direction, disregarding the structure’s good or bad features and its temporal dynamics.
Practitioners of this school correlate the homeowner’s birth year with the Eight Trigrams and relate them to eight directions to determine the auspiciousness or inauspiciousness of the house for its occupants. This school emphasizes that the front and back directions of a house are fundamental factors in determining its auspiciousness.
Loan Đầu Feng Shui
Also known as “Form School,” Loan Đầu Feng Shui considers factors such as whether a house is located in a depression or on high ground, at a cul-de-sac or a T-junction, and whether there are taller buildings on the left or right, among others. This school involves observing the surroundings of a house, grave, water flow into the house, sleeping and working areas, and understanding the flow of qi in the sky and earth, which can indicate whether it brings life, death, retirement, or imprisonment.
According to this school, an ideal house has a sea in front (Chu Tước), mountains at the back (Huyền Vũ), and is guarded by Thanh Long and Bạch Hổ on both sides.
This school is crucial, as a lack of understanding of it can render 50% of feng shui calculations ineffective.
Huyền Không Phi Tinh Feng Shui
This school specializes in studying and evaluating the movement of stars and falls under the category of astronomical laws. Its principles were discovered and refined through generations of observing the movement of constellations, enabling predictions of future fortunes and misfortunes.
There are nine stars in Huyền Không Phi Tinh, each with its own significance:
- Nhất Bạch: The Tham Lang star, representing water. According to seasonal laws, it is prosperous in autumn, thriving in winter, declining in spring, and dying in summer. If prosperous, it brings wealth and a full house; if dying, it harms the wife, shortens life, and causes illness and a life of drifting.
- Nhị Hắc: The Cự Môn star, representing earth. When prosperous, it brings family wealth and prosperity; when dying, it makes one petty, have their power usurped by their wife, and suffer from constant illness.
- Tam Bích: The Lộc Tồn star, representing wood. If prosperous, it brings wealth, a solid foundation, and successful children. If dying, it causes illnesses like asthma, leg problems, or insanity.
- Tứ Lục: The Văn Khúc star, representing wood. When prosperous, it brings fame and beautiful children. If dying, it leads to female promiscuity and male indulgence in wine and debauchery.
- Ngũ Hoàng: A major killer, represented by the Liêm Trinh star and the element of earth. If prosperous, it brings great wealth; if dying, it brings extreme misfortune.
- Lục Bạch: A major auspicious star, represented by the Vũ Khúc star and the element of metal. If prosperous, it brings widespread influence and family wealth. If dying, it leads to a lonely life and a painful death.
- Thất Xích: The Phá Quân star, representing metal. If prosperous, it brings prosperity in all aspects, especially in martial arts and wealth. If dying, it causes theft, imprisonment, and family disharmony.
- Bát Bạch: The Tả Phụ star, a fortunate star representing earth. If prosperous, it brings family wealth, honor, and longevity. If dying, it causes injury or illness from a young age.
- Cửu Tử: The Hữu Bật star, representing fire. If prosperous, it brings sudden fame, literary brilliance, and prosperous descendants. If dying, it brings misfortune in officialdom, eye problems, or difficulty in childbirth.
Mệnh Lý Feng Shui (Tử Bình or Bát Tự)
Similar to astrology, this method is more complex and profound, making it less accessible. It can provide solutions for problematic destinies. In general, it can:
- Outline a person’s life from childhood to old age, including their youth and middle age.
- Describe one’s temperament, appearance, career, social status, education, wealth, social status, good and bad fortune, longevity, marriage and love life, illnesses, accidents, death, imprisonment, etc.
- Clarify matters related to family members, such as ancestral legacy, grandparents, parents, siblings, spouse, and children.
In this method, life is divided into ten-year periods, and each period is further divided into years (also known as annual branches or Tai Sui). Therefore, there are six pillars for interpretation, and sometimes, years are further divided into months, although this level of detail is rarely used. This method interprets destiny based on Yin-Yang, the Five Elements’ production-destruction-inhibition-harmony cycle, and the interpreter’s innate ability to capture information during prediction.
Dương Trạch Tam Yếu Feng Shui
Dương Trạch Tam Yếu Feng Shui categorizes houses into East and West groups when calculating feng shui. Some also categorize people into East and West groups. An East group house with an East group person living in it is considered ideal, and vice versa. For bed and stove placement, the same principle applies.
In this school, the ideal house benefits anyone who lives in it, regardless of their group. However, if an East group person lives in a West group house or vice versa, the effectiveness of feng shui is reduced to 70%.
Additionally, when calculating the stove’s auspiciousness, the 64 hexagrams are considered, taking into account the door’s direction and its combination with the stove’s direction to determine a hexagram and interpret its meaning.
Thus, this school prioritizes the house’s orientation over the person’s age in determining auspiciousness.
Qi Feng Shui
Qi Feng Shui operates on the principles of Qi gathering and dispersion. A house with many interconnected doors allows for strong air circulation, which can lead to illness and the dispersal of wealth. Too many doors can cause chaotic qi and hinder its accumulation.
Bedrooms should be well-ventilated and constantly supplied with fresh air. In row houses, the rooms at the back, which are often enclosed and accessible only through a hallway or staircase, tend to have stagnant qi.
This school emphasizes the importance of windows in building construction to facilitate qi flow. However, the number and placement of windows should be carefully considered to ensure that qi enters more than it exits, thus preserving the homeowner’s luck.
Tam Hợp Feng Shui
The 12 Chinese zodiac signs are divided into four groups, with each group consisting of three signs that share similar traits. This grouping is known as Tam Hợp. According to this school, signs within the same group, whether Yin or Yang, are highly compatible.
Individuals within a Tam Hợp relationship often share similar aspirations and ideals, supporting each other’s growth and success. The 12 zodiac signs are grouped as follows:
- Hỏa Cục Tam Hợp: Dần (Tiger) – Ngọ (Horse) – Tuất (Dog), all Yin
- Mộc Cục Tam Hợp: Hợi (Pig) – Mão (Rabbit) – Mùi (Goat), all Yang
- Thủy Cục Tam Hợp: Thân (Monkey) – Tý (Rat) – Thìn (Dragon), all Yin
- Kim Cục Tam Hợp: Tỵ (Snake) – Dậu (Rooster) – Sửu (Ox), all Yang
Signs that clash or suppress each other in various aspects of life are grouped into four pairs of conflicting signs:
- Group 1: Dần (Tiger) – Thân (Monkey) – Tỵ (Snake) – Hợi (Pig), meaning Dần clashes with Thân, and Tỵ clashes with Hợi.
- Group 2: Thìn (Dragon) – Tuất (Dog) – Sửu (Ox) – Mùi (Goat), meaning Thìn clashes with Tuất, and Sửu clashes with Mùi. Thìn only mildly clashes with Sửu and Mùi.
- Group 3: Tý (Rat) – Ngọ (Horse) – Mão (Rabbit) – Dậu (Rooster), meaning Tý clashes with Ngọ, and Mão clashes with Dậu. Tý combined with Mão or Dậu only leads to mild clashes, not strong ones.
Cảm Xạ Feng Shui
Cảm xạ, or dowsing, has existed in various forms for thousands of years. Initially, it may have served purposes such as divination, predicting the future, and determining guilt in court cases.
Cảm xạ Feng Shui practitioners use tools like pendulums, dowsing rods, electromagnetic guns with antennas and lights, etc., to detect and locate areas of high and low, good and bad energy. Most followers of this school have studied Human Electricity (Nhân Điện).
Tứ Trụ Feng Shui
Tứ Trụ is a method for predicting destiny that combines major periods and annual branches to help people grasp and alter their fortunes. Tứ Trụ consists of four pillars: the year, month, day, and hour pillars. Each pillar comprises a pair of heavenly and earthly branches.
Essentially, Tứ Trụ is based on two fundamental principles: Yin-Yang and the Five Elements’ production-destruction-inhibition-harmony cycle. Life is divided into ten-year periods, known as major periods. Within each major period, years are further examined through annual branches or Tai Sui.
- Year Pillar: Represents life from infancy to the age of 18.
- Month Pillar: Represents the
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