Feng Shui Questions
Am I water or fire?
Many people tell me that they are confused about their personal element. In a
book on Feng Shui they find that they belong to the element Fire. Yet when they
consult a astrologer they are told that they are Water. "So am I fire or water",
they asked.
The principle of the five elements is pervasive in many disciplines of Chinese
metaphysics. It is not just used in Feng Shui and astrology but also in Chinese
medicine, face reading, palm reading, name changing etc.
While the cycles of the five elements such as the productive and controlling
cycles are similarly observed in all the disciplines, they differ in the way
that they are used.
So it is quite possible that you are fire in one system and water
in another. I will illustrate this with some examples.
Let's start with a Eight Mansions Feng Shui example. You are a West Group person
with Kua number 7 and the element metal. This personal Kua element is used by
some consultants to determine dominant colors for your house. Since earth
produce metal, the dominant colors of your house should include metal colors
such as white, gold and silver as well as earth color such as yellow.
Let's look at another example from BaZi. Your day master is the heavenly stem of
your day of birth. Let's say you are strong Water and through a further
analysis, you determine that wood is your favorable element. This element is
used to determine your favorable years. In this system the years that contain
many wood elements are your favorable years.
As you can see from the above example, while the cycles are closely adhered to,
you may be a certain element in one system and another element in another.
So they next time a Zi Wei Dou Shu practitioner tells you that your
classification is Fire or Metal, do not be concerned or distressed.
And it does not matter as long as you do not mix the system and use your Kua
element in the BaZi system to determine your favorable years!