Smart ways to embrace New Year’s energy

People like to rearrange the interior of rooms or change furniture to refresh their living environment in the New Year. It is more recommended before Feb. 4, the first month of the saju calendar. In order to activate energy around us letting the old one out and allowing the new one in, we usually purchase fresh objects to decorate or substitute for used ones.

We have deliberated once or twice about what would be the best gift for our loved ones on their special days. Accessories and scarves or other types of hand-carrying or wearing items are frequently considered. When it comes to household objects, purchasing and placing a new piece of furniture or small decorative item brings extremely good luck on or before the lunar New Year’s Day. The introduction of new items should be accompanied by the removal of old pieces. They can be outdated home appliances or an old blanket and even a chipped dish. The new object doesn’t have to be expensive but simple, which emits better qi energy with genuine fortune colors.

How can we discern the lucky objects? I usually give special lectures during this time of the year, before spring comes. The new one gives off a certain animated energy and brings enhancement effect if you think more carefully about what would be more auspicious for your destiny.

Let’s think about a wallet, which is considered to be a typical object to determine wealth. There are common beliefs about it, such as, red wallets are more fortunate while others say golden yellow ones are better. How can we appraise colors for certain luck? How about materials.

Leather wallets are usually made of cowhide, pig or sheepskin. Crocodile or eel skins are getting popular these days. The latter ones are more favored as 2013 is the year of snake. Is it a good selection for everybody? While we have a prepossession to accredit something to be fortunate, others must also be cautiously evaluated as they do not always bring luck for everybody.

Those who were born in the year of pig (1947, 1959, 1971, 1983 and 1995), anything made of snake, crocodile or eel skins are not compatible. Likewise, pig products are not good for people born in the year of snake (1953, 1965, 1977 and 1989). Those who were born in the year of horse (1954, 1966, 1978 and 1990), cow products are not recommendable. Once you understand mismatch and conflicting combinations between two earthly branches, or zodiac signs, you will become wise enough to apply them to many cases, such as human relations and people’s compatibility with objects.

– Mismatch combinations

Rat and Sheep
Horse and Cow
Tiger and Chicken
Rabbit and Monkey
Dragon and Pig
Snake and Dog

– Conflicting combinations

Rat and Horse
Rabbit and Chicken
Tiger and Monkey
Snake and Pig

When it comes to colors, how can we use the correct colors to enhance our environment? The easiest way is to understand the five elements of the universe, their directions and symbolic colors. It provides profound knowledge about our destiny and can be correlated to our household items and bearings by using a compass. First of all, you need to find the center of your home and define your orientations with a compass. Then you are able to figure out which direction rooms of your house are located. The eight compass directions correspond to each element and shed their own energy to influence your life. Consequently if you use an appropriate color in the right direction, it will effectively produce fortune “qi” or energy.

For those who want to promote their wealth fortune, it is most blessed to present an object in golden yellow in a westerly direction. If you want to avoid waste of money, you will be benefit from possessing a black wallet which connotes savings. In this case, it is more commendable to keep the wallet in the northern part of your house.

There are overflowing books and information providing various feng shui tips to enhance your destiny. A smart reader is more likely to make a wise choice that suits their type of life.

The writer is the president of the Heavenly Garden, a saju research center in Korea, and the author of “Learning Four Pillars.” For further information, visit Janet’s website at www.fourpillarskorea.com or contact her at 010-5414-7461 or email janetshin@hotmail.com. <The Korea Times/Janet Shin>