How Does Feng Shui Work to Make You More Energetic & Productive?
How Making Decisions About Your Environment Makes You Happier, Healthier
Danijela Saponjic, a Feng Shui expert and founder–CEO of Unfolding Spaces, answers the question, “does Feng Shui work?” Her SpaceHealing program helps people reconnect their passion to their purpose in life via design, space, and spirituality. Speaking with Danijela on a new episode of The Adiel Gorel Show, I find a lot that resonates with me. It explains much of why I have a certain level of discomfort with messy spaces, some types of seating or furniture arrangements, and so on. In part 1 of my podcast with her, she explains the fundamental principles of Feng Shui along with some very relatable anecdotes. She has further valuable insights about how Feng Shui works and a simple exercise to share in Part 2.
Our environments can help us thrive.
As Danijela says, we have to be able to connect to our spaces, to dig in and put down roots. After all, a tree cannot grow tall without its roots reaching deep down into the soil. Our homes have to be our oases. They have to be the places we return to to recharge our batteries. This is also connected to mindfulness and being present in ourselves and our surroundings. So, does Feng Shui work to improve health? Feng Shui is one of the pillars of Chinese healing systems. So much so that when a traditional Chinese medicine doctor encounters a patient with a recurring health issue, they may refer the patient to a Feng Shui expert.
Balance is the key to creating spaces that foster wellness. We have to identify the missing parts as well as what is superfluous. Danijela shares an interesting insight that her Sanctuary Master had told her about. Relationships start in the bedroom, he said. For this reason, Danijela has created the concept of ‘Palaces.’ To activate a relationship, she turns to the person’s bedroom. Similarly, she would turn to the kitchen to activate a person’s physical health and so on.
What clutter does to the flow of life?
Often Chinese medicine practitioners recommend Feng Shui consultations because it’s not enough to just fix the body. We need to look at the root cause. – Danijela Saponjic
How does Feng Shui work to improve energy? A cluttered space is not just an eye-sore. It doesn’t just mean that you’re going to bump your knee on unnecessary furniture. It isn’t just that you have difficulty keeping the area clean or perhaps compromising your health. It is also about impeding the free and natural flow of energy in the space.
The Chinese concept of Chi or Qi is similar to the concept of Prana in the Indian tradition. This is proof that the ancients had similar understandings of the body’s working. When the Qi is impeded, we are less productive, less happy, and sort of stuck. It is like having “a knot in the brain,” as the Germans put it, says Danijela.
The problem is that we tend to surround ourselves with just too much stuff. Our consumerist society measures the wellness of the economy through how much people consume and buy. There is so much stuff we have that we can very well do without. There is much that we may want, but every little we need. Most of what we own, we do not use. Often, we buy things only because we can, not because we have to.
Danijela has a simple but useful exercise in decluttering that she recommends to make life easier and more fun. She speaks about making decisions about how to spend money – whether it is to buy an object or something that improves the quality of life/gives support/joy. To learn more about how Feng Shui works to transform your life, you can visit her website. Meanwhile, don’t miss this episode of The Adiel Gorel Show.
