Brief History
Feng Shui can be traced back to 5000 years. Its early beginnings were passed down by folklore and later referred to in surviving written records. Chiang Kai-Shek (October 31, 1887 - April 5, 1975) was believed to have taken Feng Shui documents from China when he retreated to Taiwan, where he ruled the island securely until his death in 1975.
Around 3000 BC, King Fu Xi (伏羲 ) was credited with the River Map (He Tu 河圖), a numerical model of ancient cosmology representing the beginnings of the Universe. He was also credited with deriving the first symbol of 8 Trigrams to depict the duality of the universe.
Fu Xis' diagram is commonly referred to as Early Heaven Trigram (Xian Tian Ba Gua 先天八卦).
Image © Joey Yap He Tu
In the Zhou dynasty, around 2600 BC, the Yellow Emperor, Huang Di (黃帝 ) was said to have developed the compass and the development of the Chinese Calendar (Xia Li 夏歷 ) based on the 10 Celestial Stems and 12 Earthly Branches emerged. By marking the compass with the 10 Celestial Stems and 12 Earthly Branches, space and time met for the first time. The Taoism practitioners used the new invention in their study of I-Ching.
Image © Joey Yap Luo Shu
The Pakua was first used during the Zhou dynasty (1122-207 BCE) to describe patterns patterns of change in the natural world. By the 8th century BCE, the Chinese were using Pakua and the I-Ching to promote the flow of nourishing energy inside a city or a palace; thus bringing the kingdom harmony and wealth. King Wen ( 文王 ) (1121-249 BC) ascribed patterns of change to Fu Xi's Early Heaven Trigram, rearranging it to the Later Heaven Trigram (Huo Tian Ba Gua 後天八卦 ) to depict the cyclical forces that shape the universe. He also developed the Zhou Yi, one of the three Yi Jing that survives in the form of fragments transcribed by Confucius (551-479 BC).
The art of Kanyu (Kan means "mountains"; and Yu means "low places") was developed by the Taoists Huang Shih Kung and Ch'ing Wu during the Han dynasty (206 BCE - 219 CE). They theorized that that geological bodies, particularly mountains and body of water. Physically, mountains are seen as the skeletons of the land and water is the source of life or the Dragon veins. Kanyu was first used only by emperors and nobles to select auspicious burial grounds. Not until the Qin dynasty (265-420 CE) did common citizens started using Kanyu to choose sites for houses (Yang Feng Shui) and burial sites (Yin Feng Shui).
During the Sung dynasty (960-1279 CE), Hsu Jen Wang school was formed using the Flying Stars System (Xuan Kong (玄空) method. Xuang Kong combines a number of principles from ancient Chinese philosophy incluing Ying Yang, 5 Elements (Wu Xing) and Ba Gua. Today, Xuan Kong Flying Stars Feng Shui is used to access the Feng Shui of a building's interior. A house chart indicates the building's Feng Shui potential, strengths and flaws. Advanced knowledge of this method empowers practitioners to predict events that are bound to happen to the occupants in the future. Flying Star can also reveal 'hidden' information and details, such as the character, health, wealth and relationship prospects of the occupants.
Early in the Ch'ing, Jo-kuan Tao-jen founded the Ba Zhai (Eight Mansions) school. With the residents year of birth, a house can be matched with the residents. Also, during this period, Xuan Kong Fey Xing school began to use the principles of Landform Classification, in addition to the compass and the Flying Stars system, to evaluate the feng shui of a building. Today, the San-Yuan, Xuan Kong, and Ba Zhai (Eight Mansions School) remain in practice and are known as the Four Schools of traditional Chinese Feng Shui. By incorporating the various Classics, the study of Feng Shui evolved and became refined to its currect form.
Authentic Feng Shui practitioners today based their practice on two main ideologies: San He and San Yuan. Genuine Feng Shui practitioners apply either only Ba Zhai (8 Mansions) or the Xuan Kong Flying Stars (San Yuan) school of Feng Shui in conjunction with inspecting the forms of the site (San He). Others practice all three systems simultaneously. A skillfull practitioner can pinpoint certain events that previously occurred and are presently happening.
