Feng Shui Made Really Easy VI
The Different Levels of Feng Shui: Black Sect
Master Joseph Yu
June 1999
Level 2a: Black Sect Feng Shui
Black Sect Feng Shui consists of two parts: Tibetan Buddhism and Feng Shui. A clever man called Lin Yun who was originally from Tai Wan invented this School of Feng Shui.
He claims that there are two parts of Feng Shui - the logical part and the illogical (or transcendental) part.
The logical part is a clever modification of the "Eight Life Aspiration School". The only difference is that he does not use the compass. He said, "I have my compass in my heart."
The front door is always the "Career Life Station." It does not matter whether the house faces North or South or, in fact, any direction. This is very clever because it solves the problem of defining the facing of a house. The facing is totally ignored. So is the problem.
Yet his disciples explain that such consideration (orienting the Ba Gua regardless of direction) actually has its root in the I Ching. One of his admirers said:
"One uses Black Sect teachings to develop one's own awareness in context to a given space through transcendental blessings and adjustments based on the use of the Ba Gua in a relative context. That is, what is out in front is visible and bright (Fire 101)* while what is in back is hidden (Water 010)*, etc... There are a variety of examples of this usage of the Ba Gua throughout history."
I just want to point out that the Black Sect School does not use "what is out in front is visible and bright (Fire 101) while what is in back is hidden (Water 010)". In fact, the Black Sect teaching is just the opposite. The front is assigned the Career Station that is represented by the Water 010 trigram. The back is assigned the Fame Station that is represented by the Fire 101 trigram. Accordingly then, what is visible and bright (Fire 101) is the back while what is hidden (Water 010) is the front. The I Ching expert tried to defend the orientation of the Ba Gua only to expose the illegitimacy.
It is, in fact, quite reasonable to assign the front door as the Career Station. Since the trigram Water 010 represents wisdom, no one will contest that wisdom is essential for career success. In Feng Shui, the main door is the most important part of a house. It is also the most active part of the house admitting the most yang energy. The Career Station can be considered justifiably assigned. The rest is just a logical consequence.
In the last article I explained the loose connection of the eight life aspirations with the Ba Gua. The explanation holds for the Black Sect Ba Gua as well. This part of the Black Sect teaching is a clever improvement over the Life Aspiration School.
Lin Yun claims that the transcendental part of Feng Shui is much more powerful than the logical part. I would like to rephrase this to read: Transcendence is much more powerful than Feng Shui is.
In fact, Feng shui is not magic. We cannot expect to use Feng Shui to change our lives overnight. Transcendence, if you believe it, can. No contest.
This level of Feng Shui has a lot of believers. Being popular is being successful. Being successful is being meritorious. There are good points, which other schools of Feng Shui can adopt to be successful.
To be continued...
[* The numerical designations 010 and 101 in the terms Water 010 and Fire 101 refer to the yin and yang properties represented by the lines in a Trigram.
' ' ' ' ' ' - - ' ' ' ' ' ' ' ---
010 = --- , 101 = - -
. . . . . .- - . . . . . . ---
--- is a yang line, - - is a yin line.]
Joseph Yu, ?1999, All Rights Reserved
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