Have you ever entered a house, an office and felt in harmony? And has it ever happened that you felt bad without knowing why, as though there was some sort of bad energy in the air?
The people from the Far East have been studying the flow of energy in spaces through the vibration of light, sound or electromagnetic energy for a long time now. The way in which spaces are laid out and decorated increases, or decreases, the balance of energy. Feng Shui is the ancient Chinese art that helps achieve harmony through healthy environments.
We spoke to Sofia Lobo Cera, a Professional Classical Feng Shui consultant and Chemical, Environmental and Quality engineer, who has been offering suggestions in accordance with the Feng Shui philosophy, pro bono, on how to make changes in the AAAIO nursing home, whose directors were familiar with her work.
After graduating in 2002 in Chemical Engineering – Environment and Quality – from the Lisbon School of Engineering (ISEL) and having worked in several areas, such as construction, factories, urban sold waste management and treatment, and in Lean auditing and certification, it was Feng Shui that brought her fulfilment in life. In 2008, she began her studies at the National School of Feng Shui in Portugal, which she completed three years later. This year she was accredited by the Feng Shui Society, which includes the best Feng Shui consultants in the world.
Sofia has just released her book “Change your Home Enrich your Life) (https://www.sofialobocera.com/publicacoes/mude-a-sua--casa-enriqueca-a-sua-vida.html).
But… what is Feng Shui all about, really? This Chinese philosophy allows us to harmonize, balance and foster the energy in spaces. Accordingly, when the energy flows positively, there is harmony and people become happier, wholesome, healthy and financially stable. Let’s not forget that a home is the reflection of the people who live in it.
To lay out the space following this Chinese philosophy, you’ll preferably use the Luo-Pan, a Chinese compass (in olden days, the point of reference was the sun). Energy charts are drawn up using the measurements taken, taking into account the space’s orientation and outside shapes.
How does a Chemical Engineer, who specialized in Environment and Quality become a Feng Shui consultant?
When I started working in Engineering, I realized “it” wasn’t quite what I had in mind. I imagined I’d be working in research or on something green or even in organizations where processes flowed for a greater good. Yet, when I came across the reality where “machines” did everything, and where every day was the same as the day before, or I found myself working in a landfill, my health frequently taking the grunt, I realized this was far from being my dream. Meanwhile, I continued on my quest, in the hope that I’d find something in my field of work that would make me happy. Despite enjoying certification and quality, I was flabbergasted with the incredibly complicated management systems that companies couldn’t implement in their day to day life, only to run around like headless chickens to get everything in order just before an audit. That was not the order I identified with. I wanted to work on something that gave me pleasure, where I could contribute to society, to the common good. For a while I studied and analysed myself, to find myself, with the help of a coach. After a lot of hard work, I did manage to find myself. Feng Shui was already present in my life since the first year of university and it was something that came naturally to me. One day, after work and after mediating and thinking about why I’d taken the degree I had, I hit my Eureka moment! The thought came to me: “I know exactly why I took a degree in chemical, environmental and quality engineering! Of course! It’s all related! Well: Chemistry => energy; Environment => the environment around us, that is, our home; Quality => The quality of the environments we live in! That’s it! I’m going to take a professional Feng Shui course. That’s what I want to do. Helping others have a better life, the life they want to have!”
When did you feel you had to change the direction of your professional compass?
In the first years on the job, where I realized that what I was doing wasn’t fuelling me. The lack of humanity in companies appalled me, as did those incredibly “yang” environments where people were/are numbers. I didn’t want to be a number, I wanted to continue being a person.
How can Feng Shui improve our life?
We’ve all gone into places where we felt better than in others. That feeling derives from the way in which energy flows in a given space, whether through the vibration of light, sound or electromagnetic energy. Feng Shui techniques can help people synch their energy and even use it to their benefit, strengthening the most positive periods and helping them through difficult times. When the spaces support their occupants energy-wise, life flows in greater harmony and people become happier, wholesome, healthy and financially stable.
Feng Shui allows us to harmonize, balance and foster the energy of homes and spaces, helping their occupants reach certain goals, such as health, relationships, prosperity, wealth, studies, professional life, social status, and many others, as a home/space is a reflection of those who live in or occupy them.
The testimonials I’ve had over these almost ten years of professional Feng Shui consulting are incredible. It’s amazing to see the before and after and feel people’s happiness and the way in which their lives changed for the better.
Is the book you’ve recently launched “Change your Home Enrich your Life” about wanting to help the average person improve their life?
Absolutely! There are many things we can all put into practice in a simple, uncomplicated way and which allows us to get our home’s energy flowing and reaching great results and goals. These are the suggestions I offer in my book in an incredibly simple, organized way that is easy to put into practice. It is a book that, in addition to being for reading, is also one you can refer back to at any time and which we should all have at home, as we will certainly need it in the future.
It’s interesting that I get messages from my readers almost every day, telling me they read the book in less than two days, have started implementing the suggestions and experiencing the results.
Cycle of the Five Elements – an explanation of how Feng Shui works by Mariana Crawford Dourado
How did the contact with AAAIO and the Nova Casa nursing home come about?
I often say that nothing happens by chance. One of my professional goals for this year was engaging in a social welfare act with an institution. It was something I was planning on doing more towards the end of the year, as 2016 has been a year filled with achievements. It started with me obtaining my accreditation by the International Feng Shui Society, which includes the best consultants in the world, refreshing my entire website and organizing my content, my course for Master, and writing and releasing my book. But, in a conversation with Joaquina Cadete Phillimore, where she laid out a few situations the home was facing and which she’d like to improve, I told her about my project and we thought “why not?” And everything was brought forward!
What did you feel when you visited the home for the first time?
When I entered this space, I felt there is concern with the patients’ well-being and care taken with the facilities, which is fundamental for this type of institution. Even though management was careful, I noticed there were still some things that needed doing. And especially because in this type of space we have a lot of stagnant energy, where human beings may be in a stage of decline (energy speaking), and where there is disease and death, this is something felt when you walk into this type of place. We felt this in this home, especially in one of the rooms. However, this can be worked on and improved, bringing healthier, more joyful energy that is beneficial to all who live, work and visit the place. In fact, many of my suggestions are already being put into practice.
What amendments did you suggest to the management of AAAIO to improve the well-being of the patients at the home, by implementing Feng Shui theories?
I made several suggestions, especially in the common areas. Some of the rooms were changed around, as was their organization and layout and some decoration, with things as simple as moving objects around and placing them somewhere more suitable.
The technical areas and offices were also analysed and I suggested some changes organization wise, how the workers were laid out and changes to the decorative items in the offices.
Seeing that this was your first social responsibility project, how do you view this pro bono collaboration with similar entities?
I’ve been doing pro bono work for a while now, but it’s more in terms of lectures at companies and institutions. The first, and the oldest I have to this day is with Centro Pré e Pós Parto ante and post-natal care clinic in Lisbon, where I give monthly workshops to mums-to-be so they can organize their baby’s nursery according to Feng Shui, so the baby is healthy, happy and develops properly.
I’ve also been giving lectures and workshops at companies/organizations for a while now, where the workers learn how to organize their workstations so they feel better, achieve better work/life balance and with this are happier and more productive, which means that progressively the company will grow more and have financial gains. There are also other types of social projects under development, but this type of project was something that came up this year and which I intend to carry over to other institutions.
Sofia is a Professional Classical Feng Shui consultant, teaches at the National School of Feng Shui, where she is also completing her advanced studies. She also gives workshops and writes for our magazine. She has recently written a book, “Change your Home, Enrich your Life”, a book where she places the ancient art of Feng Shui at your service and enables the energy of our homes to flow in a positive way, making it cosier and better protected.
After reading her first book on Feng Shui, her passion grew and has remained so until this day.
What made you become interested in Feng Shui?
I recall when I read the first book on the subject. It was fascinating. It seemed as though everything made sense, something innate. I started to implement some of the measures and it was almost like a miracle – it worked! From then on, this passion grew and has been doing so until today.
It’s charming to compare people’s lives before and after making changes in their homes.
Feng Shui allows me to do what I most enjoy – helping others have a better life, the life they want to have.
You wrote the book Change your Home Enrich your Life. Tell us about this book …
It was actually a goal I’d had for quite a while. I wanted to create something that would reach more people and that they could, on their own, implement a few small suggestions and feel the results happen in their lives. At the end of 2015, when I was setting my goals for 2016, I felt: “this is it, this is the moment!” And perhaps that’s why everything came together and here it is now.
It’s a very practical book, filled with tips so we can make major changes and get major results. Can you offer us a few tips on the practical use of feng shui?
There are endless options, some more general and others that are specific to each case. But overall, we can all pay more attention to our homes, care for them as though we were caring for ourselves, which in truth is exactly what happens. The initial and fundamental points for the energy to start flowing in people’s lives include airing it every day, letting the sunshine in, applying the principle of “out with the old and in with the new”. This last one is fundamental for everything else to start and the first results show up. Then, I recommend you apply the various suggestions I make in my book, appropriate to each room. You will be taking a big step with all these small ones!
Feng Shui seeks balance and harmony in our lives. How can this major ally bring us the support for our life to go better?
It’s as simple as placing energy flowing correctly, namely by placing objects in the right place given their energy characteristics. In reality, much like other philosophies, the basis for Feng Shui is in applying the Cycle of the Five Elements correctly, that is the relationship between them (Water, Wood, Fire, Earth, and Metal).
New Year, New Life. To make the most of the energies of the changing year, we need to end the year in the best way possible. How can we start the next year with a bang?
The first thing to do is analyse the year coming to an end and define the goals for the following year. This is something that needs to be done in time and calmly. Next, it’s fundamental that we start the year with our accounts organised, so this is another point that should be “closed” at year end. Lastly, check that you’ve gotten rid of any clutter so that you start the new year lighter.
How can we get our home winter-ready?
Winter is a time that invites us to be cosy and we need to keep up with the energy of each season. For this reason, in winter you should make your home cosier, warmer when it comes to colours and textures. It’s fundamental that you keep the house with some activity going on, so it doesn’t go into hibernation mode. Having friends over is healthy.
Whenever we bring new objects into our home, they will interact with the existing energy. What should Christmas decorations be like, according to Feng Shui?
The decoration should be balanced and we should never fill up the house to the point where it’s difficult to move. Then there are details that can be used to stimulate good energy. For instance, this year it’s lucky to place the Christmas tree in the south part of the living room to bring joy to your career. In the northern section you can place some snowmen to help reduce possible financial loss. In the southwest section of your living room you can place a nice Christmassy basket with pinecones to bring harmony with people and improve your finances.
What should we make sure we look out for when house hunting?
Make sure you’re not stuck in an alley. Having unimpeded views is also essential for a life with well-defined goals and objectives. The number of people who can’t define what they’d like to do on a professional level nowadays is huge.
Can a home influence the inhabitants’ state of mind and health?
Absolutely! Not just the inside, i.e. how we decorate and organize it, but also what’s on the outside.
Are colours important to balance the energy in our home?
Yes. Each colour is associated with a given element (Water, Wood, Fire, Earth and Metal), which should then be placed in the most suitable room given the analysis done of the inside and outside of the home. However, Feng Shui is so much more than using the proper colours.
What is your favourite place in your home and what does it have in terms of Feng Shui?
All of them!! I apply Feng Shui everywhere in my home or, as a friend of mine says, it’s “bullet proof”! Everything was or is thought out and analysed to the smallest detail and according to Feng Shui and that’s why I, my family and my friends feel so comfortable there.
Would you care to share a story about applying Feng Shui in your life? What worked, what didn’t work?
Yes, I can share the most important one. A few years back, when I was still an engineer and taking my first tentative steps in Feng Shui, in actual fact I had two jobs going on at the same time. No matter how much I enjoyed what I was doing, the days were draining, as I worked from 9 am to 6 pm in a company and then I entered my “consultant” mode until almost two or three in the morning. The weekends were filled with classes and workshops I taught (and still do), consultations and I still found some time for family and friends. Yet, my health couldn’t take this pace and so I was “forced” to make a decision. Either I continued as an engineer and gave up on Feng Shui consultancy, or else I would chase after my dream. I thought about it. I meditated. And I made up my mind. I chased my dream! I applied a series of specific “cures” for the situation at hand and here I am now.
Would you like to leave a message for those who are interested in Feng Shui?
Yes. Just like the title of my book says: Change your Home Enrich your Life!
One of the questions I get asked often is “how do I organize my home according to Feng Shui ?” or, when I go over to a friend’s house, I’m immediately asked “Sofia, is my home laid out according to Feng Sui?” or else, if I go out for dinner with friends, they ask me “Sofia, what’s the restaurant with the best Feng Shui for us to go to?” But, what does it mean to have good Feng Shui?
It’s as simple as a space giving us a good feeling, good vibes, having the pleasure of being there and wanting to return. And this feeling applies to a restaurant, a friend’s house or even our own home. The feeling of walking into your home and enjoying being there. Of giving you a good life. But how is this achieved?
Feng Shui studies the way in which energy flows in a given space and there are numerous requisites to ensure, some specific to each space, others of a more global nature. Feng Shui is an entire world in itself! Yet there are simple and general concepts that you can implement in your home, workplace or even a restaurant!
The entrance hall should, ideally, be well lit, airy and spacious. One should be able to circulate here and only place objects your like in this space. Avoid having shoes, photographs and unpaid bills.
Your living room should be more inviting if you wish to have friends over and see new opportunities making their way into your life. By inviting we mean having the sofa near the door to the living room and “facing” it.
If your living room has more than one environment, they should be well divided, i.e. sitting room, dining room and work area if this exists.
In your bedroom, i.e. the master bedroom where the couple sleeps, if you wish to have a balanced, harmonious and happy relationship, choose a bed with a good headrest, against a wall, and two matching and symmetrical bedside tables. Never have only one. Having pictures of the couple in wooden frames on both of the bedside tables is also lucky. Mirrors in front of the bed are the perfect cocktail to hamper community and intimacy, so definitely avoid these.
Don’t store anything under the bed. If you have a bed base with storage, keep your bed linen in there and nothing else.
The bathroom must be clean, neat and tidy. Prefer to keep everything in its rightful place, ideally inside the cabinet as opposed to on shelves or on the counter or the bathtub. Overall, the toilet lid should be down and the bathroom doors closed, but there are exceptions where these are to remain open.
In the kids’ bedroom, avoid placing beds and study areas in between doors and windows, where energy moves quicker. These are better as a play area. The beds, much like the master bedroom, should be well protected with a headrest and against a wall. The room should be tidy when the children go to sleep or are studying.
As for the kitchen, a very relevant space in a Feng Shui analysis: keep the stove clean and in a good state of repair at all times, as it is directly linked to a family’s health and prosperity. It is essential to have a well-positioned stove, but only a Feng Shui professional, with advanced technical knowledge will be able to analyse this point in detail. Preferably, the stove should not be next to the sink, but if that’s your case, place a plant between them to harmonize the Water and Fire elements.
Pick a chair with a high back to protect your own back. Likewise, you should work with your back towards a wall, rather than a window or a passage area. Those situations bring discomfort and heavily increase lack of productivity and concentration.
The view in front of the desks should be wide and impaired in order to improve productivity and creativity. If possible, organize and position your desk according to Feng Shui, specifically for you, to stimulate and improve your performance.
Moments of relaxation among co-workers are fundamental for them to be creative, productive and more focused on their goals and job. Avoid very heavy, tense and highly controlling environments. It’s fundamental for a worker to feel well in his or her workplace. This is one of the essential requisites for your activity’s dynamism and your business to grow.
Change your Home (or your space) and Enrich your Life!
We wish you a good energy,
“What direction should I sleep in, after all?” This is one of the questions I get asked the most. When you start reading up on Feng Shui, this subject is generally addressed, as sleeping is one of our vital needs and we spend a large portion of our life sleeping.
When we start getting involved in the subject “Feng Shui”, the first contact is through our date our birth, where our element is calculated. This is called Lo Shu and is directly related to our personal trigram. And in this way, we can obtain Water 1, Wood 3 or 4, Fire 9, Earth 2,5 or 8 and Metal 6 or 7. Through our element, male or female, we can determine the four directions that are lucky for us to sleep in, work or carry out important tasks and the four that are unlucky. Lo Shu is very much used in the San He School and also the 9 star Ki astrology, where the 8 trigrams are used. In this School, Earth 5 is not considered. Men 5 become Lo Shu 2 and therefore, their directions are the same as someone Earth 2; and women 5 as Lo Shu 8.
In a professional Feng Shui course, depending on the School followed, the term used is Mig Gua (for the San Yuan School) instead of Lo Shu (for the San He School), where, also through date of birth, each individual has an associated transformation. Yet unlike the San He School, here we have all the transformations: Water 1, Wood 3 or 4, Fire 9, Earth 2,5 or 8 and Metal 6 or 7.
At the same time, we often hear phrases such as “all children should sleep facing East” or “everyone should sleep facing North.” I’ve been confronted by architects of customers of line who were really worried because they didn’t want to put the bedrooms for every single house they designed facing North!
Only when we go deeper into the studies do we realize that there are also the directions of the energy charts for the space in question (house, workplace, etc.) and that these are highly relevant. Truth be told, they’re more important than each individual’s personal directions. So, we have 8 directions: North, South, East, West, Northeast, Northwest, Southwest and Southeast and whether they are good or not to an individual depends above all on the space’s energy chart. However, there is still a third layer of information: the annual energies are also relevant. That is, we need to take into account the good directions of the space, the good annual directions and this is even better if we can reconcile this with the personal directions of each one.
Diving even deeper into the knowledge, of the 8 existing directions we can now have 64! It’s what we call a Hexagram. That is, within each cardinal sector, or macro direction, if you will, there are 8 directions (hexagrams). Well, 8 directions times 8 hexagrams will give us 64 directions. But for the more curious among you, inside each hexagram there are still 6 “affinities”, and we can determine which is more suited for each individual and even each situation!
Therefore, it’s fundamental that we sleep and work facing directions that are beneficial to us and bring us health, success and well-being. It doesn’t make sense to sleep or work facing our personal direction, when it’s not the same for the space and time we’re in. Yet, of course, if it’s possible to combine them and select a good hexagram and affinity, even if these two are already very detailed, then the results will be even better. Please note that when we are talking about personal directions, we are working at a 45º detail. When we are talking about the directions of charts and annual directions, we are working at a 45º to 15º level of detail. When we are talking about hexagrams, we work at a detail of 5.5º. And, lastly, when we talk of affinities, we are talking about exact degrees.
Every day, we spend around 8 hours sleeping and 8 hours working, so choosing a good direction is fundamental. But why is it often said that everyone should sleep facing North?
Because, according to the Feng Shui approach, Water transformation in its positive side is associated with clam and serenity. However, even if this is the case, this does not mean that North is suited for everyone, in every space, every year! And now you ask, how can we determine the directions for each person? That is not the aim of this article, seeing that determining the directions of charts, annual directions, hexagrams and affinities takes years of studies. However, we can show you the Lo Shu for each individual depending on their year of birth and thereby determine the personal lucky or unlucky directions. Notwithstanding, it is worth noting that the Chinese solar year begins around 4 February, so anyone born before that day belongs to the previous numerical year.
We now present a summary table of the favorable and unfavorable directions for each Lo Shu (male and female). Note that in this approach (in Lo Shu), men 5 assume Lo Shu 2, and women 5 assume Lo Shu 8.
| Lo Shu | Lucky Personal Direction (from luckiest to least lucky) | Unlucky Personal Direction (from least lucky to unluckiest) |
| 1 | SE, E, S, N | W, NE, NW, SW |
| 2 | NE, W, NW, SW | E, SE, S, N |
| 3 | S, N, SE, E | SW, NW, NE, W |
| 4 | N, S, E, SE | NW, SW, W, NE |
| 6 | W, NE, SW, NW | SE, E, N, S |
| 7 | NW, SW, NE, W | N, S, SE, E |
| 8 | SW, NW, W, NE | S, N, E, SE |
| 9 | E, SE, N, S | NE, W, SW, NW |
Key:
| N - North | NE - North East | E - East | NW - North West |
| S - Soulth | SE - South East | W - West | SW - South West |
