Thinking about a post for tonight I was wondering if I should relate one of my true "ghost" encounters in a home. It's All Hallows Eve, after all, the perfect time to tell one. But it's not one of them, instead it's (what else?) a Feng Shui Post....on VOICES. Something I have not covered before and a topic I feel is important that I don't believe many people are aware of.
We literally have hundreds of principles in Feng Shui and this story relates to ME in MY house and what I have learned----which is part of the reason I practice the way I do. There was something that had bothered me for many years in my home and although I've tried to look up the history of it, I can't find it. I do know it was built by early Dutch settlers on Long Island and that my block is named after the man who built it. There is a tiny burial plot on my block that is dedicated to him and his family (oddly enough placed right next to a house!). There were originally two exact same homes built at the same time, mine and my neighbors right next to each other in the same exact style. They are cottages, actually. An inline ranch which goes from the living room to the dining room to the kitchen. The original homes had two bedrooms and a bathroom off to the side.
So what's so "off" about my home? It's DOORS. There were doors everywhere. The entrance door, of course which leads into a "mud room" (door) which goes to a coat closet area (door) which went into the living room (door). From the living room to the dining room were two double doors, from the dining room to the kitchen was another door, from the kitchen to the back mud room yet another door. If you wanted to go to the bedroom/bathroom area you had to pass through yet ANOTHER door. This isn't taking into account the "normal" doors like the ones for the bedroom, pantry, basement or bathroom.
Since the house is over a hundred years old I could only speculate that they were trying to close off spaces for heating; not a very good theory since my living room does NOT have a fire place. The doors remained up but bothered me, I felt claustrophobic. Finally I went to school for Feng Shui and was surprised to learn that in the Black Sect Tradition of Feng Shui, the doors are considered VOICES. And an important principle to look out for. For example, two door that open together and hit or bump into each other are considered in Feng Shui as "Arguing Doors." This can lead to arguments with everyone from family to co-workers to friends. There is a blessing for this and while working with clients when I see it I can give it to them.
But MY doors, what to do about so many? The first teacher I had taught both Black Sect and Compass Methods and I asked if I could remove some of the doors. The answer was a flat "NO." I had children living here and they might felt as if they weren't "being heard." By removing the doors I would be removing their voices. The second teacher taught Black Sect only and I asked the same question---to another resounding NO. They were built into the house for a reason and were to be left, pretty much for the same reasons the first teacher gave.
My third teacher taught us "Western" methods of addressing Feng Shui issues without compromising Feng Shui Principles. What he taught during class made SENSE to me; you didn't have to renovate (which some people were told to do for different reasons such as finding your Bathroom in your WEALTH area); it also gave me another perspective to Feng Shui. I finally asked him whether I could take the doors down and he looked directly at me. "How would YOU feel about it?" he asked. I was amazed, would I have a say in such deeply rooted Feng Shui Principles. "I feel that it would open up the house" I told him and this is what he said:
To practice true Feng Shui, he told me, the further along you go the more situations you will come across. And while they may LOOK the same, your clients will all be different. The more ways you can look at one situation will help you be the best practitioner you can be. Gain different perspectives, see things in EVERY light before making a recommendation. And don't forget to acknowledge what your clients think and feel.
Take down your doors, he advised me and put an acknowledgement up that they were there. A tiny wind chime, a small Red Ribbon, something that shows you have appreciated it but it's time to let go. (This is something, interestingly enough that our other mentors had told us while having to remove a tree, for example). And see how you FEEL. It will not remove your children's voices or cause any harm; you must feel in harmony with your surroundings.
I did take them down and I did feel as if the whole house opened up. I watched the kids carefully for any signs that it may have affected them but they were just the same. Many people ask me if combining both Black Sect AND Western methods "compromise" a house. I don't believe it does, not for a second. It gives a blend that takes away fear and gives inexpensive solutions to Intentionally solve a Feng Shui dilemma.
Sadly, Western methods are no longer being taught, to my knowledge along with Black Sect and Compass methods. I was fortunate enough to gain some very valuable insights into how to blend a combination of all the best.
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