Build a House Using Feng Shui

Proponents of the ancient Chinese placement and design system feng shui believe that buildings possess an inherent energy; depending on various elements, the building's energy, or "chi," can be either supportive or destructive. Since these energies are established when the building is first erected, many who are interested in feng shui draft building plans with the system's many tenets in mind.

Concentrate first on which direction your home will face. Ideally, place the home at the foot of a gently sloping hill, with the front of the home facing away from the raised area. Eschew home sites in cul-de-sacs, as negative, forward-surging energy called "sha" flows into homes built there. Sha is also attracted to triangular-shaped lots. If there is any running water nearby, situate your home in such a way that the water is rushing away from, and not toward, your house. Your facing direction has the most energy, so place footpaths, windows and your front door in this area for the best chi.

Plan to build a square house, which will conform easily to the Feng Shui grid, which is composed of nine equal squares. When considering the placement of your front door, choose a spot that is, ideally, clearly seen from as well as facing the street. Build only one front door; double doors are undesirable. Design ceilings that are of medium height, preferably without exposed beams, which can disrupt chi.

Determine which rooms in which you plan on spending most of your time, and plan the placement of the rooms inside your home accordingly. In Feng Shui, the center of the home has the most power, so take advantage of its powerful properties; put a home office in this area if you work from home, for example.

Avoid common feng shui pitfalls, such as long hallways, which can create a surging chi, or placing your front door in view of the backdoor or upstairs hallway. Also avoid adding too many entrances and exits to interior rooms, because those doorways will "argue." Small rooms trap chi, so plan for large windows in those rooms to open up the space and free the chi.