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Day 2 [China Excursion-Extension] : Big Yang House, Small Yang House
Reported by Bernice Low
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The highlight of today’s practical audit was perhaps the biggest possible Yang house one could imagine: the home of the Emperor.
Students of the Mastery Academy China Excursion 2005 paid a visit to the famed Forbidden City in Beijing for their first audit of day 2 of
the China Excursion Extension Option.
The Forbidden City is a sprawling large complex, constructed in the 1400s by the Ming Emperor Yongle. The Qing Dynasty eventually
moved its capital from Shenyang to Beijing after overthrowing the Ming Dynasty.
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The students took a reading at the entrance of the Forbidden City although perhaps, a luo pan was not quite necessary since the
gate is named Wu Gate, hence, telling us immediately that the direction on the luo pan of that particular facing is Wu. Students proceeded into the crowded Forbidden City.
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At the halfway point, Joey paused to drop a gentle hint to the students as to what they should be keeping their eyes open for. He reminded them
that the Forbidden City is located on a flat-land Dragon and in flat land dragon, the most important thing is Water. And with that student were left
to their own devices to try and figure out the Feng Shui of the Forbidden City.
Joey shared his analysis with the students at the top of Jinshan Hill (Coal Hill) which is located behind the Forbidden City and on a clear day provides
an excellent vantage point for the structure and layout of the Forbidden City and the surrounding landform. Unfortunately, this year, the weather was
uncooperative and the misty conditions made it difficult to see any of the surrounding hills around Beijing.
But, as Joey reminded the students, “Don’t let what you can’t see, interfere with what you can” and that not being mentally psyched out by the fact that no
forms are visible. Students were given an important practical lessons here: if you can’t see the forms, use another method. Even though we know that the
Forbidden City has been built based on the special axis in relation to the special incoming dragons (mountains) in the distance and the vein approaches from
the Rising Phoenix formation, today’s weather did not provide us with any clear visuals.
The key to successfully practicing Feng Shui as a professional is to be able to switch to different systems to arrive at the same conclusion, depending on the
circumstances. Hence, if students could not see the forms, they could utilise Xuan Kong or Xuan Kong Da Gua to analyse the Forbidden City.
Incidentally, Xuan Kong classes will be held upcoming in Mumbai soon and after seeing the Forbidden City and how Xuan Kong needs to be used when it comes to
large structures, no doubt many students will be enthusiastic about the upcoming course. Students are reminded that Xuan Kong here does not refer to the
‘flying stars’, but Xuan Kong’s Ling Zhen Shen and Gua Yun principles based on Flatland Dragon principles. Long Men Ba Da Ju is also part of our consideration
when it comes to qualifying the environmental structure.
The key to the luck of the Emperors in the Forbidden City lies in the Water that runs around the City and the luck cycle. The water favours Emperors using
the palace in Upper Periods and is not favourable in Lower Periods. Joey also revealed that there is a very special Ju Men (Huge Door formation) of the
vicinity river formation that goes around the Forbidden City. This formation, coupled with the unique formation of mountain ranges as explained by Joey,
is basis of the Forbidden City’s Feng Shui. However, it is also because of this particular formation that in certain periods of time, brought the downfall
of the feudal empire.
A ride around the Hutong
A bonus this year for the students that stayed back for the China Excursion 2005 Extension was a rickshaw ride around a hutong.
In the days of the Ming and Qing Dynasty, the hutongs were where the homes of high-level Imperial mandarins, military officers and princes were located.
This was in the outer part of the Forbidden City.
Following the revolution in 1949, most of these hutongs were seized by the government and then designated as public housing. Today, many of these
buildings have becoming private homes, with often an entire family occupying one room in the hutong and another room used for cooking and a washroom.
Why then were students take to view a hutong? Students were understandably perplexed. The buildings are tightly built together and often in the old days,
Imperial officers and mandarins had no choice as to where their homes were – these were often designated by the Emperor.
The local guide assigned to provide history and understanding of the hutongs informed the students that the hutongs have excellent Feng Shui and that
like the Forbidden City, the Feng Shui in these areas is very auspicious. Of course, he provided no reasoning to his conclusion, a good enough cause for
students to not take his words at face value. One should also be objective in evaluating the Feng Shui of a place, be it Yin or Yang House, large structure
or small structure
As Joey pointed out to the students, the hutong is an excellent example of how to utilise classical Feng Shui in its truest sense. Many of the hutongs were
built prior to the practice of Flying Star Feng Shui. So how then was classical Feng Shui deployed in these homes? Through simple methods of locking and
distributing Qi in with curving roads to avoid sha Qi and protrusions and indentations of the walls, doors and path ways in the home to draw in and lock in
the Qi. Of course to harness the Qi, one has to study the very unique river formation in which Joey has described during the discussion. Finally, most of these
homes utilised strict BaZhai or Eight Mansions Feng Shui, basing the Feng Shui predominantly on the House Gua and the Favourable and Unfavourable Sectors.
Since a house here usually holds more than a 100 residents, it is clearly not possible for the house to be built just to suit a particular person’s ‘Life Gua’.
The evening ended with an acrobatic show and a chance to dine on a Beijing specialty, Pekin.
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