Q&A Sunday: Feng Shui and Crystals

Anjie Cho July 5, 2020

Photo by Franco Antonio Giovanella on Unsplash

I really appreciate your podcast and all the work you are doing. I would love to hear your opinion about the use of crystals in Feng Shui. They seem an integral part of the practice, but I find them personally difficult to use as many are mined in deadly conditions in one of the world’s poorest countries.

- Christine T.

Hi Christine,

Thank you for your question, and thank you for listening to our podcast! First, natural crystals are actually not an integral part of feng shui. That’s a common misconception. If you look at any older feng shui books, you won’t see any crystals, except maybe jade since that was often used in Asia. A lot of feng shui practitioners do use crystals, but they’re not necessary. The use of crystals in feng shui is part of a modern version of feng shui that’s been adapted to make it relevant for the current time.

We do talk a lot about using feng shui crystal balls in BTB feng shui, which is the school of feng shui that I practice and teach. In the BTB tradition, these faceted crystal balls are very important, but they’re also not necessary. There’s always something else you could use as an adjustment instead. Feng shui is about shifting the energy in your environment. You can use many different tools, including natural crystals or crystal balls, but they’re not a must. If you’re working with a consultant, they’ll be able to give you adjustments that are appropriate for you and customized to what you’re working on, as well as substitutions if required.

In terms of the mining industry, that’s a really important thing to think about. Especially because crystals are used as a healing tool, it’s important to think about where they come from. I find that as I’m teaching more and becoming more available to the public, I have a responsibility to educate myself because what I show and model publicly has an impact. While in many areas of my life I’ve taken the time to consider the ethics involved with where things come from, I haven’t researched that much about natural crystals, so I’m really grateful that you’ve brought this to my attention.

I don’t have a great answer about the mining industry because I’m not a gemstone expert, but I think it’s an important conversation and I’m going to reach out to my colleagues who are gemstone experts to see how they address it. If this aspect of crystals does make you uncomfortable, remember that you don’t have to work with them to practice feng shui.

We all have to do the best we can and continually wake up to see more of the suffering in the world and the ways we can lessen it. Since I’m talking publicly, it’s especially important for me to up the ante and take responsibility for what I am sharing with the world.

Thanks again for your question and for bringing this to my attention!

by Anjie Cho

Thanks for reading our "Q&A Sunday". We will be answering questions submitted by our readers. Click here to submit any Feng Shui questions!

If you’d like to learn more about feng shui, check out Mindful Design Feng Shui School at: www.mindfuldesignschool.com

Q&A Sunday: Feng Shui and Morning Rituals

Anjie Cho June 28, 2020

I would like my home to feel more like a sacred space, especially now that I’m spending more time there. Do you have any suggestions?

Thanks for your question! One thing that really helps me incorporate more sacredness into my day is ritual. Ritual has been really important to me, even when I was little. I’ve always felt very connected to the ritual aspect of feng shui, and it really helps me feel connected to my home.

How do we bring more ritual into our lives using feng shui? There are a lot of ways to approach this, but a great way to start is to look at what happens when you first get up in the morning, and to create a morning ritual that really supports you.

I’ve been reading The Wisdom of No Escape by Pema Chodron, and I really love what she says about ritual. She writes, “Ritual is about joining vision and practicality, heaven and earth, samsara and nirvana.” How can you join vision and practicality in your home? How can you join heaven and earth? In feng shui, heaven is the ceiling and earth is the floor. Earth is always there to ground you, and heaven represents guiding principles, spaciousness, and openness.

For instance, I wake up to an alarm clock that emulates sunrise and sounds like birds chirping, and then I do my beauty rituals. Your ritual could be preparing a cup of tea or coffee, or making your bed. Whatever your chosen ritual, having that daily structure in your home gives you a sense of sacredness in your daily life. Feng shui is mindfulness for your home. It’s about paying attention to all the details in your environment, and noticing how your space affects you and how you affect your space. When we’re aware of this, we start to see that we’re not separate from our environment.

Morning rituals can look different for each person. If you’re not sure what to incorporate into your ritual, I would suggest looking at which of the five elements is most supportive for you. You can take my quiz here to find that out. For me, water is really nourishing, so part of my morning ritual is going to the East River and sitting in meditation by the water. Other ways to connect to the water element in the morning are to take a shower, drink a big glass of water, or listen to water sounds when you first get out of bed.

If wood is really nourishing for you, you could make sure one of the first things you see when you wake up is connected to the wood element, like a houseplant or something green or blue. If you’re fed by fire, you could sit in a room with a lot of sunlight first thing in the morning, or turn on the stove to make a cup of tea. To connect to earth in the morning, make sure the first thing you see when you wake up is brown, or sleep in earthy colored sheets. If metal is most supportive for you, try sleeping in a white room or in white sheets, so that’s what you see in the morning.

Thanks again for your question, I hope that helps!

by Anjie Cho

Thanks for reading our "Q&A Sunday". We will be answering questions submitted by our readers. Click here to submit any Feng Shui questions!

If you’d like to learn more about feng shui check out the Mindful Design Feng Shui certification program. Laura Morris and I launched our program in September 2018. To get on the list about it, sign up at: www.mindfuldesignschool.com.

Dive deeper into feng shui to transform your life!

Mindful Design is a new way to learn feng shui. Create sacred spaces that support, and nourish.

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Q&A Sunday: Water-Themed Art in the Bedroom

Anjie Cho May 5, 2019

I read somewhere that paintings of water were bad feng shui. Is this true?

Magalie R., Los Angeles, CA

I have been taught that there are no feng shui issues with having images of water in the bedroom. Actually, I personally have a photograph of water in my bedroom above my bed. I am a water person and love being near and seeing water. It is calming. In four pillars I am yin wood, so water also nourishes me in five element theory.

I have been taught that water elements like fountains and fish aquariums are not ideal in the bedroom. Perhaps this is where the question comes from. The moving water may be too active for some people, and a bedroom is a yin space where we seek out rest and relaxation.

As with most objects in the bedroom, be thoughtful about what the images represent. If you have trouble sleeping, a painting of a rushing river or surfers riding waves might not be so calming. Use your intuition to determine if that piece of art is appropriate for the type of mood you want for your bedroom. A bedroom is there to support and nourish you while you sleep in a passive yin state.

If there is a particular piece of art you are looking to add to your bedroom, please feel free to submit it for Q&A Sunday!

by Anjie Cho

If you’d like to learn more about feng shui check out the Mindful Design feng shui cerfication program. Laura Morris and I launched our program in September 2018. Check us out at www.mindfuldesignschool.com

Mindful Design is a new way to learn feng shui. Our a unique training program takes an holistic approach to learning the art of feng shui design. Mindful design is about becoming aware, and attentive, to the energy around you: both inner and outer qi. It is about promoting a better way of living and creating sacred spaces that support, and nourish.