Energising approach to home improvement
The Year of the Wood Goat favours residential renovations in the north, southwest and east
Dato’ Joey Yap is a familiar face among homeowners with a fondness for feng shui, as his lively take on the ancient art, without using cryptic crystals, celestial charms and curious wind chimes in favour of effective personal choices and action, has won over practitioners in Malaysia and around the world.
“Feng shui is basically a way to discover what energies are affecting you, and a prescription for what you can do if your environment isn’t optimal, how you can tap into universal forces to channel your own energies towards a fruitful year,” he said, speaking at his recently concluded 2015 Feng Shui & Astrology Seminar.
Trotting into the Year of the Wood Goat
Addressing a spellbound audience of 5,000 at the annual affair, the charismatic character announced his economic and property outlook for the Year of the Wood Goat, citing a sluggish economy favouring longer-term investments and auspicious conditions in the north, southwest and centre, relative to Kuala Lumpur.
At home, the astrologically astute can take advantage of ambient energies through renovation in the requisite areas, which can be as simple as moving a chair or opening a window. Alternatively, the ornamentally inclined can utilise water features like aquariums to facilitate the flow of forces for a harmonious hearth.
“It’s recommended to pursue a feng shui plan for the house over extended periods, even 20 years or more, for the best effect. However, minor adjustments can be made on a yearly basis for incremental improvements, which is where annual forecasts come into play,” says Yap.
Among practitioners, the custom of renovation arose from the traditional association of specific areas or sectors with afflicted signs, like the Grand Duke, the Three Killings and the Five Yellow stars, which govern ill health, arguments and calamities respectively.
Activating architectural ambiences
In much the same way that feng shui emphasises positive practices and planning, however, Yap’s affirmative approach eliminates the negative by focusing on helpful signs, namely the Sun, Moon, and Dragon and Fortune Virtue stars, relating to wealth, resolution, communication and prosperity.
“Some followers ask me why I don’t go into the ‘bad’ stars like many practitioners do. The reason I avoid doing so is because I believe in focusing on the positives in life, because we have so much to be grateful for. When we recognise those, we become more positive ourselves, and it’s easier to have a good year,” he says.
For the home, there are eight sectors relevant to feng shui, corresponding to the points of a compass. According to Yap, north is the wealth sector for 2015, with southwest as the sector for investments and opportunities, and east bringing helpful people, while renovations in the west sector should be avoided this year as it is associated with both the Five Yellow and Three Killings stars.
Aside from renovation and water features, homeowners can also activate beneficial sectors by maximising the time spent in such areas, generally through sleeping or working in them. As such, living rooms, bedrooms and home offices that align with positive stars are considered felicitous by practitioners.
He exclaimed, “But what if your room is in the west and you can’t change it? The solution is to activate all the ‘good’ sectors – the north, southwest and east, and on the balance, you’ll get more positive than negative. Of course, if you’re not on the friendliest terms with your neighbours to the east, you can kill two birds with one stone by renovating there first!”
An annual assortment of affirmations
Yap concluded the seminar with the much-anticipated announcement of the most auspicious days in the Year of the Wood Goat, which include March 1 for financial opportunities, March 12 for relationships, and March 9 for academic performance, with May 2 as a particularly promising date with the convergence of a number of favourable stars.
His outlook for the new year also suggests a tendency towards undervaluation in the share market, a strong indicator for the timely acquisition of stocks, as well as healthy economic trends for the United States and Europe, based on the arrangement of elements in 2015’s Bazi charts, the four pillars that govern worldly fates in Chinese tradition.
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