The Feng Shui...
of Your Bathroom
by P.K. Odle, The Feng Shui Advantage
The majority of bathroom Feng Shui DO’s and DON'Ts in popular books are merely Feng Shui ‘folk beliefs.’ Therefore, I would like to clarify what are the actual Classical Feng Shui guidelines about your bathroom. Here are the facts …
- If you can see into your bathroom when coming into your house or from your bed… keep the bathroom door closed or at least ajar. This is a sanitation issue that goes back to when families used chamber pots before indoor plumbing was available. Back then, you wouldn’t want your guests to enter your house and see the chamber sitting next to the door. Neither would you want to roll over in your bed and see the chamber pot. That’s why they had little cabinets with doors to store them when not in use. It’s still important today to block the view of your bathroom from your bed and your entrance. It doesn’t matter how beautifully you’ve decorated your bathroom, because no matter how often you clean your bathroom… by nature it’s still the least sanitary room in your house.
Speaking of beautifully decorated bathrooms… feel free to be creative and do as you like, because you spend very little time in your bathroom. However, the only color that isn’t good to paint your bathroom is GREEN. The reflection of green in the mirror affects the lighting, which makes most people look ill. Here the color green has nothing to do with the wood element affecting the Feng Shui energies… it’s just that the majority of people look ill with a green wall behind them when they look in the mirror. How would you like to look ill when you’re not? Green is OK for accent or towel colors, just not for the wall color.
- Your bathroom drains and toilet lids have nothing to do with your prosperity! Who do you know that earns a living in their bathroom? Even plumbers make money in other people’s bathrooms and not their own bathroom. The reason you want to close your toilet lid BEFORE flushing… is to keep the germs in the bowl. Did you know… when you flush your toilet with the lid up the germs travel 6 feet in every direction from your toilet bowl? Are the towels you dry your hands and face with that close to your toilet? How about your toothbrush?
On the TV show “How Clean is Your House” they’ve sent several people’s toothbrushes to the lab for testing to show how many and what kinds of germs are on them. In every case, fecal matter was among the bacteria that showed up on the toothbrushes. Think about it… either they were rinsing those toothbrushes in their toilet bowl or leaving their toilet lid up when flushing. Which do you think they were doing? Here’s an excellent way to break the habit of flushing with your toilet lid up is to… simply picture your toothbrush in the bowl and that image will have you closing your toilet lid BEFORE flushing in no time.
Unfortunately, public restrooms seldom have toilet lids and most people barely wash their hands… let alone close the toilet lids before flushing. To deal with this dilemma it’s best to wash and dry your hands, and then use a paper towel to shut-off the water and open the bathroom door.
- The cleanliness of your entire house is a vital factor in Feng Shui and clutter makes it difficult to keep the house clean. Clutter creates a paradox, ‘which came first… a cluttered house or a cluttered mind?’ When you de-clutter your house you’ll find that your mind is also less cluttered. Anything you don’t love, use or have a purpose you’re saving it for would be considered clutter. As you’re de-cluttering ask yourself “How is holding on to this benefiting my life?” or “Can I find this information easily on-line?” If there isn’t a good reason to save it… pitch-it, give it away or sell it on eBay. After all, one man’s trash is another man’s treasure. Imagine what you could do with the extra money. On another TV show, “Cash in Your Attic” people are auctioning off things they have stashed away to finance remodeling and redecorating projects.
Until February 4, 2024 it’s vital that you keep your NE area, both inside and outside… clean, uncluttered and well lit. Otherwise your children will be disobedient, plus it has a negative affect on your finances, health and other relationships as well. Also, if your house is missing any part of the NE section… install a light at the point that would complete the missing portion and keep it lit 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and 365 days a year to avoid similar problems.
- Unless your bathroom has an outside entrance there’s NO need to remedy the Feng Shui energies in your bathroom, because you don’t spend enough time in there for the energies to affect you. The energies that are most important are at your outside entrances, because they affect the overall Feng Shui of your house. You spend a third of your life in a relaxed state in your bedroom, which is why your bedrooms’ Feng Shui energies are the 2nd most important. Your living room and home office energies are the next most important, because that’s where you spend the majority of your waking hours. Kitchens are also important if you cook at home frequently or spend a large amount of time in your kitchen for any reason.
- Like any other outside doors and windows… any outside doors and windows in your bathroom can trigger any of your 15° Personal Directions, such as...
You’ll spend extravagantly or have uncontrollable expenses that consume your money, if you use doors or windows that are located in the 15° of your personal ‘Consuming’ direction from the magnetic center of your whole house. You'll need to keep those doors and windows closed to hold-on to more of your money. Being able to look through the window or door isn’t a problem, because Feng Shui relates to how Qi is moved by the currents of Wind & Water.
If those open doors or windows are in your 15° ‘Lonely Pillow’ direction… they’ll keep you sleeping alone. Your ‘Lonely Pillow’ direction not only relates to the 15° location from the magnetic center of your whole house, but also from the magnetic center of your bedroom or bedroom suite including the attached bath.
- ‘Lonely Pillow Syndrome’ can also be triggered by the direction of your headboard and the location of mirrors, which includes mirrored closet doors… as well as bathroom mirrors. In general large mirrors in your sleeping area keep you from having a good night’s sleep and should be removed or hidden behind sheer curtains. However, mirrors in your ‘Lonely Pillow’ portion of your house must be removed or blocked from creating a reflection to stop them from interfering with your love life. If you can’t remove mirrors from your ‘Lonely Pillow’ areas… then attach ‘frosted privacy window film’ to the mirrors, which is easily removed when you move.
Speaking of mirrors, Classical Feng Shui only uses mirrors to make a small space appear larger or to bring more light into a dark area. Therefore, there’s no reason to put mirrors between your toilet and your bedroom or any other room. After all… the Qi from one room doesn’t affect the Qi in another room.
© 2006 P.K. Odle. All rights reserved.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
P.K. Odle is a celebrated classical Yi Jing Feng Shui consultant and the Executive Director of the world-renowned American Feng Shui Institute®, where she has taught since 1998. She created The Feng Shui Advantage's "Lifetime Keys Personal Directions Self-Mastery Toolbox." To learn more about using the ancient Chinese science of Yi Jing Feng Shui to improve your Health, Relationships and Finances... through 16 weeks of FREE TIPS subscribe to her award-winning eNewsletter, The Feng Shui Advantage MONTHLY, at http://www.FengShuiAdvantage.com. The next issue could change your life!
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