7th December 2004
Husband in bike shed horror; Rats and oxen; It’s never too late; Prediction for 2005; Housebusters…
Feng Shui Diaries
Dai shuut : Great Snow
Solar fortnight beginning
Monday Dec 7th 2004 02.43
Hour Day Month Year
fire metal fire wood
ding gung bing gap
chow shen chee shen
ox monkey rat monkey
Husband in Bike Shed Horror
I mentioned Tina last time. Her husband was in the bike shed, you’ll remember. I’ve been asked how you get a husband out of the bike shed.
First I have to explain how he got there.
What I meant was that their house is an irregular shape effectively excluding the North West. And outside, separate from the house in this area was a chaotic shed full of bikes and bric-a-brac. The North Western sector is governed by Kin the Confucian father. By extension Kin represents older men, the male side of relationship and authority. So anything that happens in this sector represents what is happening under these headings. I believe there are Western systems that call the North West Helpful Friends.
Kin element is metal and therefore if we want to build it up, we add metal or earth (as earth creates metal in the Productive Cycle, you’ll recall) If we want to lessen its strength we add water which drains metal, or fire which attacks it.
First of all the shed needed clearing up.
And indeed her husband has been having a hard time. Her children (his stepchildren) have not accepted him. There is a new baby in the home. It is tense right now.
We restore the North West by ensuring plenty of metal on that edge of the house. This can be white or metallic decor, round things, discs, coins and so on. By restoring the North West, we get the father back on track. Music is metal. So are bikes, by the way. Things to avoid here are too much water or fire. A North Western bathroom is notoriously tricky because it means that the Father’s energy is being constantly drained by water.
If we don’t get what we want we consider metal in the tai chi (for what this is, see below)
Rats and Oxen
This is the month of the Rat; wet and cold, the approach to dung gee, the death of the old and the birth of the new year. If your birthday is between dung gee, Dec 23rd approx and Feb 8th approx you were probably not born under the animal sign you think. Many Western practitioners calculate from lap chun, the beginning of spring. This is wrong: the year is born at the moment of maximum yin, the Winter solstice, dung gee. So, many for instance, who think they are born Rats born in say January 1973 are actually Oxen.
The Rat is nocturnal. It likes dark places. It is cunning and ingenious. It is also deceptively busy. You don’t see it but if you have rats you know they are up to something. The Rat is known for its scratching noises by night. Perhaps the worst aspect of having rodents in your house is hearing them scratch, wondering what they are scratching and knowing they won’t stop till they’re done. Few things are less attractive than finding droppings in your cornflake packet.
In nature this is a time of hibernation but the Rat doesn’t care. So by extension this is a time of busy-ness; not of productivity particularly but of harder effort. Shops are open later and later with lower prices and bigger offers. People are working longer and longer hours. Here in the commuter belt, the trains to Waterloo fill up by 6.30am. Is anyone gaining as a result?
I am often asked what to do about this experience of rushing.
One remedy is to find the tai chi of the house. The tai chi or Great Tentpole is the point where the longest length and the widest width of the house meet. It is the geometric centre, reputedly 27” in diameter.
What you do then is sit there. Ideally at night – the small hours are perfect if you can’t sleep – and deliberately worry. Conjure up all the issues that are bugging you. Take a piece of paper and a pencil if that works for you. Some worries will dissolve with the attention, some will indicate solutions. Some will demand planning, some visualisation. A few call for prayer. All come attached to certain feelings. These feelings though harmless are generally unwelcome. Breathe deeply and feel them. If you do this diligently you will start to get answers and the pain that kept you restless will recede.
Some people can’t do much of this at first. Be gentle with yourself: do a few minutes and build it up next time.
I am always interested in feedback about the experience of observing such exercises
It’s never too late.
An example of the most complimentary sort of feedback came from Elaine (not her real name, of course) this week:
“Thanks for pushing me through the pain on Tuesday…something has lifted… I think it is fair to say that no one has ever been there with me in that place before…”
We had been trying to answer the question why when she is so talented, she is always broke, frantic and dissatisfied. Her ba zi, or personal feng shui derived from date of birth, made clear that there was a nostalgic aspect to this. She was comparing her present life, career, income and relationship with the last lot. So it was clear that the past was the place to go for answers.
People tend to need powerful motivation to change: broadly the alternative has to be so hideous or the incentive so great that they just can not stay stuck where they are. Accordingly courage can be called for and respect for truth. The ba zi raised questions but Elaine was prepared to answer them. Specifically, the year characters revealed certain patterns or cycles in her behaviour.
Sometimes I do a ba zi instead of house-based feng shui, sometimes I do both. I always do a sketchy one as part of a survey. As a rule ba zi’s are best for diagnosis and feng shui for remedy.
Predictions for 2005
I am still working on my annual predictions. They are almost complete and I expect them to go out with the next Diary or possibly the one after that. They hinge around the nature of the wood Rooster which is the year animal for 2005. The Rooster can stand for the first rays of dawn or the last before sunset. Predictions are always a hostage to fortune and this is quite an important distinction to get clear before I go public.
End of world hunger anyone?
Housebusters
I heard just recently from Michele whose house I feng shui’d on the programme. She has met Mr Right and he was someone she knew already. Just as predicted, by the way. Modesty forbids.
Next time: about the Rat.
Best wishes,
Richard Ashworth
Richard features features in the new series of Channel Five’s Housebusters:
Fridays 8.30pm Channel 5.