Historically, as well as in many parts of the contemporary Chinese world, feng shui was used to orient buildings and spiritually significant structures such as tombs, as well as dwellings and other structures. One scholar writes that in contemporary Western societies, however, "feng shui tends to be reduced to interior design for health and wealth. It has become increasingly visible through 'feng shui consultants' and corporate architects who charge large sums of money for their analysis, advice and design."[4]
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Feng shui has been identified as both non-scientific and pseudoscientific by scientists and philosophers[5] and has been described as a paradigmatic example of pseudoscience.[6] It exhibits a number of classic pseudoscientific aspects, such as making claims about the functioning of the world which are not amenable to testing with the scientific method.[7] Some users of feng shui may be trying to gain a sense of security or control. Their motivation is similar to the reasons that some people consult fortune-tellers.[8][9]
Cosmography that bears a resemblance to modern feng shui devices and formulas appears on a piece of jade unearthed at Hanshan and dated around 3000 BC. Archaeologist Li Xueqin links the design to the liuren astrolabe, zhinan zhen and luopan.[16]
Some of the foundations of feng shui go back more than 3,500 years[18] before the invention of the magnetic compass. It originated in Chinese astronomy.[19] Some current techniques can be traced to Neolithic China,[20] while others were added later (most notably the Han dynasty, the Tang, the Song, and the Ming).[21]
The oldest examples of instruments used for feng shui are liuren astrolabes, also known as shi. These consist of a lacquered, two-sided board with astronomical sightlines. The earliest examples of liuren astrolabes have been unearthed from tombs that date between 278 BC and 209 BC. Along with divination for Da Liu Ren[24] the boards were commonly used to chart the motion of Taiyi through the nine palaces.[25][26] The markings on a liuren/shi and the first magnetic compasses are virtually identical.[27]
Traditional feng shui is inherently a form of ancestor worship. Popular in farming communities for centuries, it was built on the idea that the ghosts of ancestors and other independent, intangible forces, both personal and impersonal, affected the material world, and that these forces needed to be placated through rites and suitable burial places, which the feng shui practitioner would assist with for a fee. The primary underlying value was material success for the living.[30]
According to Stuart Vyse, feng shui is "a very popular superstition."[31] The PRC government has also labeled it as superstitious.[32] Feng shui is classified as a pseudoscience since it exhibits a number of classic pseudoscientific aspects such as making claims about the functioning of the world which are not amenable to testing with the scientific method.[7] It has been identified as both non-scientific and pseudoscientific by scientists and philosophers,[5] and has been described as a paradigmatic example of pseudoscience.[6]
Qi (气, pronounced "chee", "cee", or "tsee") is a movable positive or negative life force which plays an essential role in feng shui. The Book of Burial says that burial takes advantage of "vital qi". The goal of feng shui is to take advantage of vital qi by appropriate siting of graves and structures.[1]
Polarity is expressed in feng shui as yin and yang theory. That is, it is of two parts: one creating an exertion and one receiving the exertion. The development of this theory and its corollary, five phase theory (five element theory), have also been linked with astronomical observations of sunspot.[34]
Eight diagrams known as bagua (or pa kua) loom large in feng shui, and both predate their mentions in the Yijing (or I Ching).[37] The Lo (River) Chart (Luoshu) was developed first,[38] and is sometimes associated with Later Heaven arrangement of the bagua. This and the Yellow River Chart (Hetu, sometimes associated with the Earlier Heaven bagua) are linked to astronomical events of the sixth millennium BC, and with the Turtle Calendar from the time of Yao.[39] The Turtle Calendar of Yao (found in the Yaodian section of the Shangshu or Book of Documents) dates to 2300 BC, plus or minus 250 years.[40]
Traditional feng shui is an ancient system based upon the observation of heavenly time and earthly space. Literature, as well as archaeological evidence, provide some idea of the origins and nature of feng shui techniques. Aside from books, there is also a strong oral history. In many cases, masters have passed on their techniques only to selected students or relatives.[43] Modern practitioners of feng shui draw from several branches in their own practices.
The Form Branch is the oldest branch of feng shui. Qing Wuzi in the Han dynasty describes it in the Book of the Tomb[44] and Guo Pu of the Jin dynasty follows up with a more complete description in The Book of Burial.[citation needed]
The Form branch was originally concerned with the location and orientation of tombs (Yin House feng shui), which was of great importance.[29] The branch then progressed to the consideration of homes and other buildings (Yang House feng shui).
The Compass branch is a collection of more recent feng shui techniques based on the Eight Directions, each of which is said to have unique qi. It uses the Luopan, a disc marked with formulas in concentric rings around a magnetic compass.[46]
The Eight Life Aspirations style of feng shui is a simple system which coordinates each of the eight cardinal directions with a specific life aspiration or station such as family, wealth, fame, etc., which come from the Bagua government of the eight aspirations. Life Aspirations is not otherwise a geomantic system.[citation needed]
After Richard Nixon's visit to the People's Republic of China in 1972, feng shui practices became popular in the United States. Critics warn that claims of scientific validity have proven to be false and that the practices are pseudoscientific. Others charge that it has been reinvented and commercialized by New Age entrepreneurs,[47] or are concerned that much of the traditional theory has been lost in translation, not given proper consideration, frowned upon, or scorned.[48]
Feng shui has nonetheless found many uses. Landscape ecologists often find traditional feng shui an interesting study.[49] In many cases, the only remaining patches of Asian old forest are "feng shui woods,"[50] associated with cultural heritage, historical continuity, and the preservation of various flora and fauna species.[51] Some researchers interpret the presence of these woods as indicators that the "healthy homes,"[52] sustainability [53] and environmental components of traditional feng shui should not be easily dismissed.[51][54] Environmental scientists and landscape architects have researched traditional feng shui and its methodologies.[55][56][57] Architects study feng shui as an Asian architectural tradition.[58][59][60][61] Geographers have analyzed the techniques and methods to help locate historical sites in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada,[62] and archaeological sites in the American Southwest, concluding that Native Americans also considered astronomy and landscape features.[63]
Believers use it for healing purposes, to guide their businesses, or to create a peaceful atmosphere in their homes, although there is no empirical evidence that it is effective.[64] In particular, they use feng shui in the bedroom, where a number of techniques involving colors and arrangement are thought to promote comfort and peaceful sleep.[citation needed] Some users of feng shui may be trying to gain a sense of security or control, for example by choosing auspicious numbers for their phones or favorable house locations. Their motivation is similar to the reasons that some people consult fortune-tellers.[8][9]
In 2005, Hong Kong Disneyland acknowledged feng shui as an important part of Chinese culture by shifting the main gate by twelve degrees in their building plans. This was among actions suggested by the planner of architecture and design at Walt Disney Imagineering, Wing Chao.[65] At Singapore Polytechnic and other institutions, professionals including engineers, architects, property agents and interior designers, take courses on feng shui and divination every year, a number of whom become part-time or full-time feng shui consultants.[66]
Victorian-era commentators on feng shui were generally ethnocentric, and as such skeptical and derogatory of what they knew of feng shui.[69] In 1896, at a meeting of the Educational Association of China, Rev. P. W. Pitcher railed at the "rottenness of the whole scheme of Chinese architecture," and urged fellow missionaries "to erect unabashedly Western edifices of several stories and with towering spires in order to destroy nonsense about fung-shuy."[70]
After the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, feng shui was officially considered a "feudalistic superstitious practice" and a "social evil" according to the state's ideology and was discouraged and even banned outright at times.[71] Feng shui remained popular in Hong Kong, and also in the Republic of China (Taiwan), where traditional culture was not suppressed.[72]
During the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976) feng shui was classified as one of the so-called Four Olds that were to be wiped out. Feng shui practitioners were beaten and abused by Red Guards and their works burned. After the death of Mao Zedong and the end of the Cultural Revolution, the official attitude became more tolerant but restrictions on feng shui practice are still in place in today's China. It is illegal in the PRC today to register feng shui consultation as a business and similarly advertising feng shui practice is banned. There have been frequent crackdowns on feng shui practitioners on the grounds of "promoting feudalistic superstitions" such as one in Qingdao in early 2006 when the city's business and industrial administration office shut down an art gallery converted into a feng shui practice. Some officials who had consulted feng shui were terminated and expelled from the Communist Party.[73] 2ff7e9595c
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