Feng shui – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Feng shui (i/ /;[1]i/ /;[2]pinyin: fng shu, pronounced[f wi]( listen)) is a Chinese philosophical system of harmonizing the human existence with the surrounding environment. The term feng shui literally translates as "wind-water" in English. This is a cultural shorthand taken from the passage of the now-lost Classic of Burial recorded in Guo Pu's commentary:[3] Feng Shui is one of the Five Arts of Chinese Metaphysics, classified as Physiognomy (observation of appearances through formulas and calculations). The Feng Shui practice discusses architecture in metaphoric terms of "invisible forces" that bind the Universe, Earth, and man together, known as qi/chi/energy.

Qi rides the wind and scatters, but is retained when encountering water.[3]

Historically, feng shui was widely used to orient buildingsoften spiritually significant structures such as tombs, but also dwellings and other structuresin an auspicious manner. Depending on the particular style of feng shui being used, an auspicious site could be determined by reference to local features such as bodies of water, stars, or a compass. Feng shui was suppressed in mainland China during the cultural revolution in the 1960s, but since then has increased in popularity.

Modern reactions to feng shui are mixed. The Skeptic Encyclopedia of Pseudoscience states that some principles of feng shui are "quite rational", while noting that "folk remedies and superstitions... [have been] incorporated into feng shui's eclectic mix".[4]

As of 2013[update] the Yangshao and Hongshan cultures provide the earliest known evidence for the use of feng shui. Until the invention of the magnetic compass, feng shui apparently relied on astronomy to find correlations between humans and the universe.[5] In 4000 BC, the doors of Banpo dwellings aligned with the asterism Yingshi just after the winter solsticethis sited the homes for solar gain.[6] During the Zhou era, Yingshi was known as Ding and used to indicate the appropriate time to build a capital city, according to the Shijing. The late Yangshao site at Dadiwan (c. 3500-3000 BC) includes a palace-like building (F901) at the center. The building faces south and borders a large plaza. It stands on a north-south axis with another building that apparently housed communal activities. Regional communities may have used the complex.[7]

A grave at Puyang (c. 4000 BC) that contains mosaics actually a Chinese star map of the Dragon and Tiger asterisms and Beidou (the Big Dipper, Ladle or Bushel) is oriented along a north-south axis.[8] The presence of both round and square shapes in the Puyang tomb, at Hongshan ceremonial centers and at the late Longshan settlement at Lutaigang,[9] suggests that gaitian cosmography (heaven-round, earth-square) existed in Chinese society long before it appeared in the Zhou Bi Suan Jing.[10]

Cosmography that bears a striking 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.[11]

Beginning with palatial structures at Erlitou,[12] all capital cities of China followed rules of feng shui for their design and layout. During the Zhou era the Kaogong ji (simplified Chinese: ; traditional Chinese: ; "Manual of Crafts") codified these rules. The carpenter's manual Lu ban jing (simplified Chinese: ; traditional Chinese: ; "Lu ban's manuscript") codified rules for builders. Graves and tombs also followed rules of feng shui, from Puyang to Mawangdui and beyond. From the earliest records, it seems that the structures of the graves and dwellings followed the same rules.

The history of feng shui covers 3,500+ years[13] before the invention of the magnetic compass. It originated in Chinese astronomy.[14] Some current techniques can be traced to Neolithic China,[15] while others were added later (most notably the Han dynasty, the Tang, the Song, and the Ming).[16]

The astronomical history of feng shui is evident in the development of instruments and techniques. According to the Zhouli the original feng shui instrument may have been a gnomon. Chinese used circumpolar stars to determine the north-south axis of settlements. This technique explains why Shang palaces at Xiaotun lie 10 east of due north. In some cases, as Paul Wheatley observed,[17] they bisected the angle between the directions of the rising and setting sun to find north. This technique provided the more precise alignments of the Shang walls at Yanshi and Zhengzhou. Rituals for using a feng shui instrument required a diviner to examine current sky phenomena to set the device and adjust their position in relation to the device.[18]

Continue reading here:
Feng shui - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia