Fountains and Feng Shui

'Feng Shui' is a phrase that is much-used in popular culture, but many people don't even know what it is. Feng Shui (pronounced fung-shway) is the ancient Chinese practice of placement and arrangement of space to achieve harmony and promote the flow of positive energy, which is called chi (pronounced 'chee'). The literal translation of Feng Shui is 'wind-water'. Feng Shui has become one of the hottest design trends around, and many people are starting to catch on to its benefits and are applying it to their own homes.

There are many different methods of applying feng shui principles to your home; the most prevalent uses the relationship of the five elements - fire, earth, wind, wood, and metal. The basic principles of Feng Shui teach that in their balanced state, the five elements represent harmony, yet each element can weaken or strengthen the other elements in a variety of beneficial and detrimental ways. If you have too much or not enough of one element, this can lead to negative chi. The five elements each correspond to certain colors and objects:

• Metal - Related color: white.Metal can be introduced through any sort of metal object whether it is furniture, a metal window frame, a sculpture, or wind chimes.
• Wood - Related color: green.Use any kind of wooden objects such as furniture, wood trim in your home, wood floors.
• Fire - Related color: red.Introduce the element of fire as candles or incense burning.
• Earth - Related color: yellow.Introduce as any kind of clay or ceramic objects - pots, bricks, tiles, figurines.
• Water - Related colors: black, blue.Water can be introduced into your home decor as a fountain, aquarium, or simply a vase of water. Flowing water increases the positive chi, so water fountains are the ideal solution for introducing the 'water' element into your feng shui decorating scheme.

There are many water fountains that are made specifically with the principles of feng shui in mind, which can get you off on the right start with implementing Feng Shui into your home. The Water and Fire Tabletop Fountain, pictured, has three of the elements in one beautiful water fountain - fire in the form of oil lights built into the fountain; copper for metal; and flowing water. You could add a small ceramic vase full of twigs or pine needles, as shown, and have all five elements in one. Nearly any fountain is suitable for Feng Shui; browse through wall fountains, floor fountains and tabletop fountains to find the one that would best suit your home and your tastes.

Feng Shui is an ancient set of theories and complex calculations, the depths of which cannot be summed up. There are many aspects of Feng Shui which require in-depth study and understanding. A multitude of information sources on this rich tradition are available, which may be found in any bookstore, local library, or by searching on the internet. You can also learn more about Feng Shui here.