Divination and Feng Shui
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Feng shui practitioners often use divinatory tools as additions to their feng shui practice. There are many different ways to practice divination, including I Ching reading, dowsing, and card reading. All of these traditions are ways of tapping into our unconscious, or yin side, to help us access information about a situation that we might not otherwise be aware of.
In our certification program, we teach our students I Ching reading and dowsing as ways to gain additional information before or during a consultation. Tarot and oracle card reading are not traditionally used in feng shui, but they are popular modalities that can also be a helpful supplement to feng shui. A practitioner might use these or other tools, depending on their background and expertise, when working with clients.
Here are some of the divination methods that we use for ourselves and when working with clients:
I Ching
The I Ching, usually translated as the Book of Changes, is a Chinese text that has been around for 4000 years. It’s made up of 64 hexagrams, or sequences of lines that symbolize yin and yang. Each hexagram represents a state of being. When using the I Ching as a divination tool, we use six coins to guide us to a specific hexagram. This hexagram can provide insight to a question, such as What do I need to know in this situation?
Dowsing
Dowsing is another divination tool commonly used by feng shui practitioners to gather additional information about a consultation. It can help us better understand the qi of a space, and learn more about what may be going on with the client and their home. Dowsing involves using a pendulum and asking clarifying questions. It can give us an idea of what approaches might be most useful during the consultation, any areas of the home we need to pay attention to, and if there are any situations that we should be aware of. It’s especially helpful to dowse when doing remote consultations.
The Tarot
The Tarot card readings that you might be familiar with originated in Italy in the 15th century. The tarot consists of 78 illustrated cards, each with a different meaning. There are four suits in the Tarot that make up the Minor Arcana, along with 22 cards that make up the Major Arcana. Many readers and artists have interpreted the tarot, so there are countless decks with varying themes and styles of artwork. Working with Tarot cards as a divination tool generally involves asking an open-ended question and pulling one or more cards. Based on the practitioner’s interpretation of the cards pulled, it might lead to certain approaches or further questions.
Oracle Cards
While tarot decks have a fixed number of cards and suits, each with a specific meaning, oracle decks are more varied. Oracle cards don’t have a consistent set of symbols or stories, and they are often connected to other sources of wisdom as well, like animals, crystals, plants, angels, or astrology. Like the tarot, there are many different decks that have been created by different artists and experts, so if you are drawn to oracle cards, you can do some exploring to find a deck that resonates with you.
Do any of these modalities pique your interest? If you’re interested in learning more about feng shui and divination, be sure to check out episode 142 of the Holistic Spaces Podcast with Stefanie Kelly!