This cause and effect also applies to the weather. In the autumn and winter the air becomes more cold and damp, both yin qualities. This creates a need for warming foods like hot porridge, thick soups and stews, which are more yang, creating balance in the body Conversely, in the spring and summer, as the air becomes warmer and dryer, a more yang atmosphere, people then prefer yin quality foods that will cool the body, such as fruits, salads and drinks. As everything moves in a cycle of constant change yin always changes to yang and back again. This constant flow can be seen throughout our natural environment. The day (yang) changes to night (yin). After we rest (yin) we go to work (yang).
People can also be more yin or yang. A more yin person tends to be relaxed, physically supple, sensitive, creative and imaginative. However, if this person is too yin they could become lethargic, slow and depressed. The opposite is true of someone more yang. A more yang person tends to be alert, quick, more physically active, extrovert and expressive. But if the person becomes too yang they would become tense, irritable, angry or physically stiff and tight. People are a mixture of both yin and yang. With a health problem the overriding cause can frequently be attributed to an extreme of yin or yang.
All this becomes very powerful when you can actually control these natural processes to achieve certain results. For example, with a simple understanding of yin and yang one can tailor one’s diet, exercise and lifestyle to one’s own individual needs. If you have a very demanding event next week, between now and then, you would benefit from eating more yang foods and doing more yang exercises. After this event, more yin foods and exercises would be ideal to relax and unwind you.
In terms of a house, buildings that have sharp, straight lines, sharp corners and are very angular, are more yang than those that are more rounded, irregular and curved. You can make your home more yin by adding soft surfaces such as tapestries, big cushions and long curtains. In contrast, tiles, metal surfaces and glass create a more yang atmosphere.
Colours have a great influence. Bright, strong, stimulating colours make us feel more yang, whereas soft, relaxing colours make us more yin. People have their own individual reactions to colours. However, red, orange and bright yellow are examples of colours that make us feel more yang. Greens, blues and pastel shades help us feel more yin.
One of the ways I test the principles of Feng Shui is to observe the most successful restaurants and compare them with those sites that have a high turnover of restaurant failures. The successful restaurants have often applied Feng Shui by chance or by design with great accuracy. A relatively new chain of fast food restaurant opening branches throughout London, predominantly uses shiny stainless steel on their walls, along with a maroon, purple colour. The decoration gives the restaurants a strong yang impression. Purple is considered the colour of passion. This is ideal for being noticed. As you walk by, you can’t help but look in. All those bright sparkling surfaces. Once you enter and are inside and seated, you can’t wait to get out. It’s too yang. Of course, this is just what you want if you are the owner of a fast food restaurant. Lots of customers coming in, buying food and leaving quickly. You will notice that shiny plastic, bright lights, tiles and metal surfaces, are a consistent theme in fast food restaurants. Conversely, we find it hard to imagine sleeping in a room constructed from metal, tiles and glass. History has shown that we like soft yin furnishings in our bedroom.
The easiest way to decide if you are too yin or yang is to compare yourself to other people. I have a friend who consistently finds other people aggressive and pushy. To her, everyone else is too yang. She often wakes late. She daydreams and burns the porridge. Her boyfriend becomes annoyed with her. She rushes for the bus without the correct money. People in the queue become irritable as she fumbles for the change. She is late. Her boss is annoyed. Once at work she wants to relax, chat and socialize. Her colleagues push her to get on and finish things. And so it goes on. Compared to most other people she is more yin. At the same time there must be something very yang present to maintain balance. Perhaps a very yang experience from the past, something in her diet that is too yang or even working in a very yang building/environment could be the cause.
On the other hand, when I worked as an engineer, I had a colleague who found everyone else far too yin. He was constantly complaining that people were too slow. Why couldn’t they get on with their lives. He was always rushing, getting furious with anyone who slowed him down. He was great with details, but broad-ranging, imaginative discussions on a point of design would drive him mad. He did a lot of shouting. Everything seemed to be a source of irritation. Working with my more yin colleagues would have sent him into a rage. Compared with other people in the design office he was much more yang. How did he get his balance of yin? As soon as he finished work he would rush round to the pub for a couple of pints of beer before going home.
So, each person has more yin or yang characteristics and our environment has the ability to make us more yin or more yang. The idea is that if you can recognize whether you are already too yin or too yang, you can then decide if you need to become more yin or more yang in order to feel happier and more balanced. Once you know this, you can change your environment in a way that helps you become more yin or more yang.
To illustrate this, let us take the example of a man who finds he becomes irritable and angry at work. He realizes that his conduct is becoming a serious problem in terms of the success of his career. Not only that, but women find him aggressive and intimidating. The first assessment we need to make is whether his behaviour is more yin or yang. My opinion is that we can safely assume he is more yang. If he can become more yin, he will be more relaxed, calmer and have a greater feeling of peace inside himself. How can we change his home to help him become more yin?
Let us take his bedroom for this example. Here are the things I would look for to avoid. Hard shiny surfaces such as mirrors. Furniture with sharp edges. Objects with bright stimulating colours, such as a picture of a bright red racing car. Objects made of hard materials. This could include metal furniture, steel ornaments or wrought iron artefacts. Wall colours that are too stimulating. Steel blinds on his windows. Brightly-coloured bed clothes.
The next step is to advise him what to replace these yang features with. My recommendation would be to bring more of the following into his bedroom. Objects and furniture with more round, curved shapes. Colours that help him relax. Perhaps greens. Cloth wall hangings. Loose curtains. Furniture made of wood rather than metal. Plants with large, round, floppy leaves instead of wrought iron. Calming colours for his bedding.
The philosophy of yin and yang is open to many interpretations and this chapter owes a great debt to the work of the Japanese author George Ohsawa.
CHAPTER 3
To help understand the process I am taking you through, imagine we are building a house. The foundation represents an understanding of Chi. The first floor is the philosophy of yin and yang. Now we are ready to add a new floor. This next layer of understanding is the five elements of Chi, also called the five transformations of Chi. Essentially, this is a further refinement of yin and yang. Whereas yin and yang express two opposite, but complementary characteristics, the five elements describe five different types of Chi.
The five elements are based on the annual seasons. Rather than the four seasons we are used to, this is based on a year divided into five distinct seasons. The additional season appears between what we think of as summer and autumn. It is called late summer. Each of the five elements describes