Geomancy

Living situations and relationships influence one's life. Places and people may be beneficial and nourishing or harmful and depleting. Geomancy is the study of earth. It is fundamentally about a sense of place. Geomancy is a way of living in harmony with one's given region and locality. Geomancy relates to both natural and humanly-constructed environments. Fengshui 風水, the Chinese term for geomancy, literally means "wind" (feng 風) and "water" (shui 水). On the most basic level, geomancy is concerned with the ways in which wind and water flow through landscapes. By extension, geomancy is concerned with the smooth flow of qi through places and structures, with qi having similar movement patterns as wind and water. Expressed simply, geomancy is concerned with the free circulation of qi through places, through both external and internal landscapes. It is an energetic perspective on land. It is about good design and integration, which facilitates enhancement of pure and beneficial qi circulation. On a personal level, one attempts to establish and maintain harmony and beneficial patterns of interaction between self and place. Each region, landscape, and living-place has specific qualities and effects. Through Daoist practice, one becomes more attentive and sensitive to such influences. One begins to become more energetically aware and attuned with place. Each aspect of place, mountains, forests, rivers, and so forth, has distinct characteristics and exerts specific influences on specific types of people.