Archive for the Feng Shui garden
Nature is not a phenomena found only in the county, or in the woods at the ocean or in the mountains. Nature is all around you, no matter where you are. Nature is the pulse, the heartbeat of the earth and you are part of it. Nature isn’t a place you go, it’s where you are.
To connect to nature, begin by being aware of it. Open your windows, take a walk, purchase a plant or flowers, plant a garden. Embrace the life around you!
“…man is nature and if we are trying to instill ethical relationships between humans, we need to have that same relationship with our natural world.” ~~~Mark Biedron
Where is your favorite place in nature?
Close your eyes and imagine where your favorite place is.
What do you see? Is it a quiet hillside retreat; an ocean shore, a wooded trail on a mountain, a meadow, a butterfly garden or grasslands? Envision your favorite place in nature fully. Listen for the sounds, smell the scents, feel the temperature of the air around you, see the colors. Imagine all aspects of your favorite place.
Now open your eyes and take a look around you. How can you bring a bit of favorite place in nature to where you are? A picture, a statue, a plant, a shell, a color? No matter how big or small, bringing nature to where you are is a simple and powerful way to bring a bit of balance to your world.
Connecting with nature in your garden can put your in touch with the cycles of life, the seasons of nature, the gentle balance, the yin and yang. Incorporate the sounds, scents, temperature and colors of your favorite place into your garden. (Even if your garden is a few potted plants on the terrace or a potted plant or two indoors – it’s not about the size or quantity, it’s about the feeling, the connection.)
Your garden is the visible symbol of your commitment to making room for nature in your everyday life. And it begins with a single step. It doesn’t matter how you begin, what matters is that you do begin.
© 2011 Harmony Life®, LLC by Laurie Bornstein
Feng Shui Lifestyle™ articles, tips and conversation http://www.fengshuilifeandstyle.com
WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR E-ZINE, BLOG OR WEB SITE?
You can, as long as you include the copyright and link above.
A Feng Shui garden embraces a sense of comfort, balance, beauty and inspiration. A Medicine Wheel Feng Shui garden aligns balance with the power of the directions and the symbology of the circle. It is a place of tranquility and a connection to nature.
Circles, they are the foundation of life, from the shape of an atom, the face of a flower and the growth rings of a tree, circles surround us with the patterns of nature.
The circle has symbolic meaning as well, never ending love and protection in the shape of a wedding ring, Stonehenge in England aligning with the power of the sun, labyrinths, ancient mosaics on temple floors, the perfect balance of Yin and Yang, the Hindu Wheel of Existence and the Native American Medicine Wheel. All are symbols represented by the shape of a circle.
A circular flower bed can
be a powerful and simple
Medicine Wheel garden
Everything Feng Shui stands for and seeks to achieve aligns with balance and harmony. In Feng Shui, the circle represents balance, wholeness, and complete unity.
Medicine Wheel gardens can be as simple as a circle with representation of each of the 4 Cardinal directions. They can be as complex as a large garden circle embracing sacred healing herbs, flowers, and plants, adding their power to the power of the Medicine Wheel. There is a strong connection between Medicine Wheels and healing. To include plants that align with healing is a strong and powerful way to use a Medicine Wheel Garden. A Medicine Wheel garden can be whatever you want it to be; its meaning and power uniquely aligning with you and the space it’s in.
Sometimes the place for a Medicine Wheel garden almost announces itself, and sometimes we have to consider the size of our space, our needs and the type of Medicine Wheel garden we want to create. Choosing a site is an opportunity to connect to your inner knowing, that place of deep awareness, that place of intuition and insight.
A good way to choose your location is to slowly walk your property, carefully and thoughtfully, in a meditative mood. Picture your Medicine Wheel in your mind’s eye as you walk your property; stay open to how you feel as you walk. Often you’ll come to a place that just feels right, other times you’ll have to consider the size and shape of the land and make your choice accordingly.
If you live in an apartment, you can use a balcony, a windowsill or even a plate for your Medicine Wheel garden. Remember the size isn’t what’s important, what’s important is the feeling and connection created through your Medicine Wheel garden.
Your Medicine Wheel garden can even be located in the front garden, wrapping itself around the path to your door creating a sacred sense of welcome to all who enter.
How you create your Medicine Wheel garden is less important than the meaning it has for you. A simple sand circle with a stone in the center embraces a sense of serenity and balance just as effectively as a large ornate garden. While each are visually quite different from one another, the inner connection they create is the same and it is this connection we seek with Medicine Wheel gardens.
The possibilities are endless. The sacred connection is the same. Beauty and inspiration await you!
Follow the process shared by Nikiah Seeds on her blog .
© 2010 Harmony Life, LLC by Laurie Bornstein
Visit www.fengshuilifeandstyle.com for inspiring Feng Shui Lifestyle articles, tips and conversation.
WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR E-ZINE, BLOG OR WEB SITE?
You can, as long as you include the copyright and link above.
What’s the difference between a garden and a Feng Shui garden? In a word, love.
A Feng Shui garden is a holistic garden co-created with nature. Flowers are still picked, trees and shrubs are trimmed, and the lawn is mowed but it’s all done with appreciation and thanks. A careful hand is used, not one that grabs and damages what’s touched.
A Feng Shui garden is a garden that embraces an understanding that first and foremost, we are the earth. A Feng Shui garden embraces organic methods, as these are methods that nourish, replenish and reenergize the earth in a natural and safe manner. If we tend to those spaces of earth that are our responsibility with the same care we choose for ourselves, our gardens prosper. And when our gardens prosper, the earth prospers.
Soft undulating color and curving walls
embrace you with beauty
As Minnie Kansman states in Spirit Gardens, “Feng Shui is about tuning into all that surrounds us, knowing that what we are surrounded by affects us deeply. Our mood, energy level and even our health are influenced by the spaces we occupy.”
Nature flows along the path, and the path is curved. Create flowing paths in your garden, curving walkways from the street to your front door, soft flowing paths from your driveway to the front door, soft flowing paths through your garden. These paths should be easy to see, safe and well lit, gently pulling you forward with the movement and grace of their curves.
A curved pathway draws you forward and welcomes you
One of the ways to incorporate the principles of Feng Shui into your garden or just an area in your garden is to utilize the Bagua . The Bagua is a template or grid with 9 sections, it is used to map the space being evaluated. (Home, property, business.) Each section defines the fundamental life energies present in all places around us and shows how these energies are affected by one another and the natural phases of nature.
The nine life areas are Career, Inner Knowledge, Family, Abundance, Illumination, Relationships, Creativity, Helpful People and Health & Balance sits in the center position. Each life area has attributes that are specific to it: color, elemental relationship, shape and the energy of the area itself. (Click here for your FREE Bagua map with instructions.)
An easy way to work with these 9 life areas is to incorporate the colors of the areas or items that represent the energy of the areas.
For example in the area of:
- Relationships: add red, yellow or pink flowers
- Fame: add red
- Abundance: add red, purple, green and gold
- Family: green and blue
- Inner Knowledge: add blue and yellow – this is a wonderful place to add a meditation area or simply a comfy place to sit and enjoy the beauty of your garden
- Career: incorporate a fountain or birdbath, and the color white
- Helpful People: area add white
- Creativity: add something that embraces the spirit of creativity to you and the color white
- Health: add yellow, red or deep orange
Your Feng Shui garden is your personal sanctuary, your spirit garden. It’s not only about how it looks, it’s also about how it feels. A Feng Shui garden can be big or small; size isn’t what’s important. What’s important is that you take the time to connect to your space and in that connection you’ll feel a sense of comfort and welcome.
Reconnect to nature and incorporate Feng Shui in your garden and beauty and inspiration will surround you. Your spirit will be enriched.
© 2010 Harmony Life, LLC by Laurie Bornstein
WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR E-ZINE, BLOG OR WEB SITE?
You can, as long as you include the copyright and the following information:
Feng Shui Teacher, Designer and Entrepreneur Laurie Bornstein, is the author and creator of ‘Feng Shui Lifestyle’, her FREE monthly ezine filled with Feng Shui and Lifestyle Marketing articles and tips, empowering and inspiring you to live and work in comfort, balance and harmony.
Visit www.harmonylifedesign.com to learn more.
I’ve always known that fast streets and Feng Shui aren’t the best combination. With fast streets the energy flows by the home so quickly that it can create a negative impact on the home. One of the best ways to address this is with a landscape berm. A landscape berm is a raised bed in between the home and the busy street. This raised bed should include a bank of evergreen trees or shrubs to create a barrier between the home and street.
Landscape berms are great ways to block fast flowing energy, loud, noisy street sounds and they create beauty and enhance the front of the home. When the front of the home is enhanced, good energy or Chi is attracted. And good energy supports a home and it’s occupants.
What has this got to do with me?
The home I live in has a lovely berm in front, between the street and house. A string of large evergreen shrubs run down the center and both sides are filled with beautiful flowering plants, shrubs and grasses. Or I should say, up until this spring the beautiful berm I’m describing existed.
What happened this spring? We had gale force winds and rain tear through our town and cause tremendous destruction throughout town. Large, ancient trees were toppled, homes were damaged and streets were blocked.
In my case, my lovely front berm literally had all the large trees destroyed! My view went from one of beauty, and calm inspiration to a view of the street and even worse…all the noise from the street!
It’s like suddenly finding yourself outside in front of your home naked. Everyone can
see you, you feel exposed and uncomfortable.
The noise level has gone up substantially, I no longer feel welcome in my front yard and when I look out my office window, I don’t see beauty, I see the street.
The difference in my experience of my home and front year has changed dramatically. I have to say, I REALLY appreciate all the benefits a landscape berm provides. I understood it before but now I have a much more intimate appreciation and understanding.
What am I doing about it?
Next week we’re replacing the evergreens we lost. No longer will I feel naked and exposed in our front yard! We won’t be able to see and hear the street and our lives will slow down, and gain more clarity and beauty. When I look out my office window the view will be comforting, welcoming and inspiring.
It’s going to be a good thing!
© 2010 Harmony Life, LLC by Laurie Bornstein
WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR E-ZINE, BLOG OR WEB SITE?
You can, as long as you include the copyright and the following information:
Feng Shui Teacher, Designer and Entrepreneur Laurie Bornstein, is the author and creator of ‘Feng Shui Lifestyle’, her FREE monthly ezine filled with Feng Shui and Lifestyle Marketing articles and tips, empowering and inspiring you to live and work in comfort, balance and harmony.
Visit www.harmonylifedesign.com to learn more.
