Year of good opportunities and growth

By S.B.S. Surendran
Master Feng Shui Consultant
and Traditional Vaastu Practitioner

The Year 2008 is said to be a “Year of Good opportunities and growth.” In the Southeastern countries most of the homes and offices go in for a re-check of their space for good Feng Shui at the beginning of each year and this is known as “Annual Feng Shui audit”.

In the process of our day to day activities and lifestyle we would have unknowingly added or placed décor, furniture, etc which create obstacles for the free flow of energy and weakening the Feng Shui. The annual audit is to correct such defects and also to protect from annual afflictions due to the fact that energy changes constantly and no specific compass direction remains good or bad forever but keeps transforming.

Life on earth is made possible largely due to an important and never-failing phenomenon - the regular, periodic rising of the sun. It is no wonder that the sun is worshipped as a god by the ancient people of the world.

The annual change in the relative position of the Earth's axis in relationship to the sun causes the height of the sun (solar altitude) to vary in our skies. In the month of January, Sun transits the Capricorn sign, this signals the end of winter and the onset of spring throughout the northern hemisphere. For the next six months, the days are longer and warmer, time for harvest, which is the beginning of sowing the seed for new growth; hence the first fortnight of the New Year is very important in deciding the type of energy we draw in to our lives for the rest of the year. New Year celebrations are not just about partying, merry making or exchanging gifts. It is the time to re-charge your work space for a better year ahead; time to re-look not just at our life but the space to bring in continued prosperity, peace and happiness.

Feng Shui says that, anything new enters our life only when we create space for it. Only when we re-energize our living space do we have the benefit of new beginnings. With the advent of technology and global corporate war, principles of Feng Shui were extended to stationery, business cards and corporate logos to ensure that it had the right balance not only in terms of shape and design but also from the point of view of colours and motifs.

Decorating the walls with paintings of outdoor scenes or flowing water—anything that calms the mind is a very useful cure in Feng Shui. In addition, colour plays a key role in Feng Shui. For example, red has energizing properties that are perfect for salespeople; blues and greens inspire those writing software; and warm desert colours—such as orange, pale yellow and taupe—stimulate collaboration. Using vivid colours and patches of brilliant accentuated colour patches are a very unique and effective Feng Shui tool in harmonizing the work space.

As we spend a considerable amount of time at work, it is important that we position ourselves where we feel comfortable and also tap into the directions providing beneficial energies. This is easier if the person is a sole occupant in an office but in reality we have more than one person working in an office so we need to create the right balance which is supportive of all the occupants.

The most important rule in Feng Shui is to make one feel comfortable whatever be the method of correction; so sitting with the back to the door or window or even sitting in line with the door meridian is considered inauspicious as it makes one feel insecure, uneasy and nervous.

The direct glare of sun through the window onto a computer screen could possibly cause strain to the eyes and headache a simple remedy would be to place green healthy plants on the windowsill or any other object, which could counter it. Incorporating designs without sharp corners, having gently curved corridors instead of straight hall ways, placing indoor plants at select areas to absorb the EMI radiation from monitors, having small water fountains with fresh water flowing in specific locations, placing the furniture and cubicles as per Feng Shui recommendations are some of the essential and critical requirements.

Modern organizing tips may not just infuse your workplace with positive flow but they will make it more productive, collaborative and peaceful when Feng Shui tenets and décor are adapted.

The Year 2008 for sure looks good in terms of new opportunities. So fine tune your workplace and make the most of the good times ahead.