Feng Shui governs realm of the dead for Chinese

Feng Shui governs realm of the dead for Chinese

Text and photos by Mauro Rahardjo

BANDUNG (JP); The Encyclopedia Sinica defines Feng Shui as:
"Feng Shui -- wind and water, the outward and visible signs of
celestial yang and yin; the art of adapting the residence of the
living and the dead so as to harmonize with the cosmic breath."
This means that Feng Shui rules apply to buildings for both the
living and the dead.

Feng Shui principles have their origin in antiquity. It grew
out of the worship of the dead. These rules existed in the old
religion of the Chinese. The deceased ancestors were their
principal patron divinities, who influenced the fate and fortunes
of their descendants in every way.

It was believed that ancestors were to be venerated and that
if their final resting places were placed in good Feng Shui
locations their descendants would prosper and enjoy good fortune
for many generations. Their lives would be blessed with honor,
fame, material wealth, longevity and plenty of male offsprings.

The ancient practice of geomancy is not only a means of
divination, but also a way of foretelling the future based on
external phenomena. There are many cases that support this
belief.

Their are many success stories about men whose ancestors had
good Feng Shui burial places. Zhu Yuan Zhang succeeded in
becoming the first Emperor of the Ming Dynasty soon after his
fisherman father buried his grandfather at a site known as the
Cave of the King. The Chinese also believe that Sun Yat Sen's
outstanding success during the turn of the century was due to the
extremely favorable position of his mother's grave in Clearwater
Bay in Hong Kong.

Fortunes have taken a turn for the worse when the graves of a
family's ancestors were desecrated. This explains why in Taiwan
many wealthy families often purchase the land in front of their
ancestors' graves to guard them against the construction of
anything that may damage their Feng Shui.

According to Basuki Sudjatmiko in his book Hong Shui Nipun, a
wealthy family in Probolinggo went bankrupt soon after the head
of the family was buried in front of his father's grave. A
geomancer from Singapore advised them to move the son's grave to
the back part of his father's, and after this had been carried
out the family was back in business.

In Chinese belief, death is considered an extension of living.
There is also a belief that everything in the universe is
intimately related. In fact, several other mystical philosophies
believe that every movement in the universe gives rise to a
reciprocal movement.

It is important that the deceased be afforded the same or
better comforts than they had during their lifetime, so that the
deceased can report happily to Heaven on the piety of their
children and grandchildren, and ultimately persuade the
supernatural powers to bestow rewards and benefits to their
descendants.

How does the geomancer compute and derive the orientation of a
building or tomb? Firstly, he has to know the date of birth of
the person concerned. With the birth date of the person, he
refers to the luopan or compass to find the correct orientation
of the site.

One Feng Shui rule is that a man's fate is influenced by
astrological predictions in the year of his birth. Chinese
astrologers are supposed to be able to foretell the future of a
person from birth to death by referring to these predictions. The
geomancer then relates the year of birth to the Chinese animal
year: dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, cock, dog, rat, bull,
tiger and rabbit. This order repeats every twelve years.

By computing the order in the cycle of the Chinese calendar, a
person is classified as belonging to one of the following orders
of nature: gold, wood, water, fire or earth. Since the universe
is made of yin and yang and is represented by gold, wood, water,
fire and earth, the balance of these ingredients or elements
affects nature and man's fate.

According to Dr. Evelyn Lip, a Fengshui expert, there are five
factors that govern the choice of a burial place or building
site:

loong: dragon, this represents the location of the burial
ground.

xue: hole, but in geomancy it indicates the foundation of the
tomb or building site.

sha: it symbolizes the surroundings of neighboring environment
of the site.

shui: water, it depicts the streams flowing through of
bypassing the site.

xiang: the orientation or the direction of the site.

All these factors have to be considered when choosing a burial
place or building site. Once they have been decided they will
influence the future or fate of the people involved.

The burial ground must not only have the profile of a good
dragon but also the "breath of cosmic life" -- good air. A lack
of cosmic breath would affect the well-being of the dead and the
fortune of his descendants. Land that is flat, waterlogged or not
backed by a hill is considered unsuitable.

Both shui and xiang (water and orientation) are essential
features in the houses of the living as well as the dead.
According to the geomancer, the buried need fresh air. Without
wind, the air is still; with wind the air circulates. The quality
of shui is believed to be divided into good or bad. Slow moving
water round the house or burial ground is generally believed to
bring good luck. To get an accurate assessment of the entire
external environment is necessary because the location, ground
and quality of the sand do in fact influence the value of the
stream.

Geomancy may have originated from the divination in ancient
Chinese texts some three thousand years old. By means of such
divination techniques as those of the Yi Jing and the theories of
yin and yang and the five elements, the intricacy of the Feng
Shui system is employed to predict and control the phenomena of
nature.

A filial piety which, in obedience to the lessons of ancient
and modern mentors of the nation, takes good care of the graves
of parents and grandparents, has a material reward. By Feng Shui,
the graves are turned into mighty instruments of blessings and
punishments. The spirit of the ancestors are divinities of the
nation in which goodwill and all social happiness is intimately
bound up.

But souls do not dwell in graves only. They also reside in
tablets exposed for worship on domestic altars, and in temples
erected to shelter them. There, too, precisely for the same
reasons, they ought to be made to live under the favorable
influences of Nature. Consequently, Feng Shui is firmly entwined
with house building and the construction of ancestral temples. It
plays an important part even in the erection of altars and
sanctuaries, dedicated to all gods and saints.

Different geomancers have different approaches to geomancy,
but not all approaches can improve Feng Shui. In fact, the most
important factor lies in the moral character of the person
seeking advice. If he is evil or immoral, his good Feng Shui will
not last.

Dr. Mauro P. Rahardjo, is Director of the Research Institute
of Parahyangan Catholic University and an architect who practices
Feng Shui.