10 Dec White: A Color of Importance in Feng Shui
In addition to the placement of certain pieces of furniture and objects in one’s home to obtain perfect harmony, According to Chinese philosophy, whether it is a home or business environment, placement of furnishings and objects, where certain rooms are located and the color within the rooms, are all based upon the practice of Feng Shui. The art of Feng Shui is ablut harmony and balance, about inner and outer peace. Color plays an important role. Each color represents one of Feng Shui’s five elements; fire, water, metal, wood or earth. Each color has specific characterizations, which are taken into consideration; as each color affects energy flow in a different way. There are Yin colors, which tend to be lighter, more passive and calming in nature, and Yang colors, which are more vibrant and aggressive. The combination of Yin and Yang in perfect balance is what Feng Shui strives to achieve and maintain. By incorporating Feng Shui into your home and business environment, happiness, harmony, peace and creative energy will flow freely. Assessing color palate and placement of color, when decorating your surroundings, you can more easily attain these important features and Feng Shui benefits in your life.
The color white represents the element of metal. Grays and golds are also representative of the metal element, but white has many helpful properties for one’s life. While the Chinese associate the color white to death, the Western World sees it more as new life, purity, innocence, peacefulness and tranquility. Other characteristics of the color white are confidence, focus, intensity and poise. The color white, used in Feng Shui creates a fresh, crisp, clean, uplifting environment.
While there are many shades of white, including those with hues of blue, pink or yellow, pure white, especially in the Western portion of the home supports creative endeavors. Considering using white in kitchens, art studios or writer’s dens. The color white in offices can give the feeling of openness to ideas.
Feng Shui practices recommend the use of white specifically in the Western and Northwestern part of the home and should be used in contrast with other colors. When used in the Eastern or southeastern part of the home, it should only be used as an accent color.
White has been known as a healing color in Feng Shui, spreading healing vibrations throughout the area in which it is used. It is a soothing color for the psyche, so use in a bedroom, area where meditation or relaxation occurs is wise. In fact, Feng Shui practice has directed patients with cancer to focus on the color white, as this color inhibits the growth of cells. Another place in the home where white would be appropriate is the bathroom. Relaxation in a tub of warm, sudsy water, with the cleanliness of bathing, combines the sense of tranquility, calmness and and purity that the color white represents in Feng Shui.
The color white is used to provide harmony in love relationships, with children, for people who tend to be caregivers and those who help others, in creativity and travel. White is the perfect color for a child’s room, again, representing purity, but also protection, a sense of freedom, thoughts and spirit. A child in the forming years of life can benefit from all of these characters in addition to the sense of creativity that the color white supports.
It is recommended that if you are the type of person who is overly critical or have a difficult time expressing emotion, the color white, in Feng Shui, should be avoided. Too much white in a room can exude a sense of coldness and may provoke anxiety. Again, the most important aspect of Feng Shui is balance. White is a perfect color to blend with many other colors, especially colors with Yang properties, to achieve this sense of harmony, peace and balance in one’s decor.