Feng Shui Schools
by Howard Choy

There are many different Feng Shui Schools and each school has its own character and speciality. Sometimes what they say contradicts each other. It is very difficult for a beginner to know the difference between the schools or to make a judgement about the different Feng Shui readings without knowing roughly what each school is about. This article attempts to briefly introduce five of the more popular schools in Hong Kong and S.E. Asia. They include the Fei Xing Pai or the “Flying Stars” school; the Ba Zhai Pai or   the “Eight (Direction) Houses school; the San Yuan Tai, or the “Triple Primaries” School; the “Triple Combinations” School; and the Luan Tou Pai  or the “Mountain Top” school.

To begin, let us look at the origin of Feng Shui. During the Zhou Dynasty (from 11th century BC to 256 BC), the fortune of a dwelling was determined by ‘Zhai Bu’ divination.  For example, to determine the auspiciousness of a grave site, ‘Zhai Bu’ is used to see if there is an underground spring below the burial site. If there is one, then it is not a suitable site. This practice became the embryonic form of Feng Shui.

During the Warring States period (475-221 BC), the study of I Ching became very popular. Chinese cosmology and philosophy like Confucianism, Daoism, the theories of Yin and Yang, the Five Element (Wu Xing), and the Bagua etc., began to take shape. By the time of the Han dynasty (206-220 AD) there appeared written records of Feng Shui consultations. The study of Feng Shui at that time was initially linked with the study of I Ching. The popularity of I Ching and Feng Shui reached their peak during the Han Dynasty.

The word “Feng Shui” first appeared during the Jin Dynasty. Guo Pu, who lived from 276-324 AD, wrote in his book Zhang Shu or the Book of Burial, “the dead should take advantage of the Sheng Qi, the wind will disperse the qi and the water will contain it. The ancients said that one should try to gather the qi so that it will not disperse. The aim is to keep it flowing but contained. Hence it is called “Feng Shui”.

The next golden age for Feng Shui after the Han Dynasty is during the Song Dynasty (960 - 1279 AD). A Song Dynasty Feng Shui master by the name of Wu Jin Luan in his book Yin Yang Tian Gi Shu, or the Book of Yin Yang Celestial Poles wrote that the first Emperor of the Tang Dynasty,  Tang Xuan-Zong, had in his collection a valuable treatise on Feng Shui calculations called The Secret Book of Jade Letters (Yu Han Bi Shu), written by a famous Feng Shui mathematician called Chiu Yen-Han. When the Tang Dynasty fell, a court official by the name of Yang Jun-Song, took the one and only copy from the imperial library with him and hid it in the place of his birth - Jiangxi province. From there Yang, with the knowledge gained from the book, spread the teaching of Feng Shui widely throughout China.

He became so famous that nowadays nine out of ten Feng Shui schools claim that they can trace their origin back to Yang Jun-Song and the Jiangxi school.

Lai Bu-Yi, another famous Song Dynasty Feng Shui master, also claimed that his knowledge was transmitted through the lineage of Yang and the Jiangxi school.

From the Song Dynasty onward, Feng Shui began to split into two major schools, the Luan Tou Pai, or the Mountain Top school, which is commonly known as the Form School in the West, and the Li-qi Pai or Regulating the Qi School, which is commonly known as the Compass School in the West. Those who studied the Luan Tou Pai were known as ‘Xing Jia’ as expert of Form, and those who studied Li-qi Pai were called ‘Qi Jia’, an expert of Qi. A person who was interested in Feng Shui of both schools was called a ‘Xing Qi Jian’, an expert of Form and Qi, or a ‘Yin Yang Jia’, an expert of Yin and Yang.

It does not matter whether you are inclined toward one school or another, in practice, the two usually go hand in hand. Although the Luan Tou Pai is more concerned with the Dragon (Long), the Liar (Xue), the Sand (Sha), and the Water (Shui), that is, the basic elements in the topography of the land, it can not ignore the Five Elements, the Bagua, the Ten Heavenly Stems, and the Twelve Earthly Branches, to determine the auspiciousness of a place these elements belong to the domain of the Li-qi Pai and are grouped under the heading of the Art of Numbers, or ‘Shu Shu’.

As Feng Shui spread, more and more knowledge was gathered, and human nature being what it is, people started to promote their own biases and practiced Feng Shui with a hidden agenda, like using Feng Shui to promote a certain religious or political point of view. A good example of this phenomenon in modern times is the promotion of Tibetan Feng Shui as something new and more esoteric and unique than traditional Feng Shui.

Diagram 1:  The Evolution of Feng Shui Schools

The origins of Feng Shui are unknown.

I Ching

Waring States (475-221 BC), Confucianism, Daoism, Yin Yang Theories

Han Dynasty (206 BC -220 AD), Huang-Lao

Jiu Dynasty (265-420 AD), Guo Pu (The Book of Burial)

Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD)

Sung Dynasty (960-1279 AD), Yang Yun-Sung

Ming & Jing Dynasty (1368-1949 AD), “Fei Xing” “San Yuan” “San He” “Ba Zhai” “Luan Tou” “Li-qi Jia” (Compass School) “Xing Jia” (Form School)

In order to get a comparative understanding of each school, let us look briefly at the working of the five representative schools mentioned and see how each school would locate the “Cai Wei” or the “Wealth Position” in a house. We use the Wealth Position for comparison, not because we are greedy, but because most people would like to use Feng Shui to improve their quality of life. So why die for money when you can have money come to you!! Besides, wealth does not mean only money, but well-being.

1. “Fei Xing Pai” or the “Flying Stars” School  

“Fei Xing” is so-called because the “stars”, symbolised by the numbers 1 to 9, “fly” through a fixed sequence of changes based on the “Luo shu” diagram or the magic 3 x 3 square (see diagram 1 and 2). The Luo Shu has a magical quality to the Chinese. The numbers all add up to 15 in all the directions. Fifteen is important because it is a number half-way between the Lunar cycle.

Diagram 1:  Luo shu
Diagram 2:  “Flying” pattern (forward direction)

Generally, the “flying” transformation is based on a cycle of 60 years called a “yun”. One yun is made up of three “yuan” of 20 years. When required, the transformation can be based on a number of shorter cycles of one year, or even shorter still, with a cycle of only one month. Some punters even use the “Fei Xing” to help them work out the odds of winning a race in the following week!!

The “Flying Stars” school believes where ever the “Ba-bai-xing” or the Eight-White star lands, that is where the Wealth position is located. The Eight White Star is also called the “Zuo-fu-xing” or the “Left Reinforcement” Star, it is considered an auspicious number, relating to wealth and prosperity. Also the Eight White Star is the “Sheng Qi” star, of the 7th Yun cycle which we are in at the moment.

Because the cycle of transformation changes every year or even every month, the position of the Eight White Star changes. For example, in the yeqr 1996, the Yi-hai year is the Sixty sexagenary cycle, the Five Yellow Star is in the centre position and the Eight White Star is in the NE position. Therefore, according to the yearly cycle calculation, the NE location is the Wealth position for 1996.

Eight White Star

Diagram 3:  “Flying Stars” pattern in Yi-Hai year (1996)   

The following year (1997), the transformation changes with the Six White Star in the centre. The Wealth Position changes and will be located towards the west, where the Eight White Star is located.

Diagram 4:  Flying Star pattern for the Wu-yin year (1997)                     

Another way of calculating the Wealth Position based on directionality and a yuan cycle of 20 years can be obtained by looking at the relevant “water” star location. By “water” star, it is meant the directions where the house faces. Where the house sits is the “mountains” star.

From 1984-2003, it is called the period of “Lower Yuan of Seventh Yun” (note:  3 yuans of 20 years makes one yun of 60 years). Where the Seven Star flies to is the “cai wei” or the Wealth Position.

Diagram 5: Flying star pattern for a house that sits on the north and faces the south in the 7th yun cycle

The “water” star seven flies to the north, therefore north is the wealth position for a south-facing house.

Also because the “mountain” star of 6 and “water” star of 8 are located in the same sector, the SW is also an auspicious direction. For the 7th cycle, the number 8 represents the future and the number 6 represent the past. So it is good location in SW to have the “back” sitting on the past and the “front” facing the future.

Looking for meaningful relationships between numbers is the art of the interpretation of  the “Flying Stars” school.

2.  “Ba Zhai Pai” or “The Eight (Directions) Horses” School

Compared to the “Flying Stars” school, which is time-based, it is relatively easy to locate the “wealth position” using the Eight Houses (Ba Zhai) method. Look for the relevant “Sheng Qi” direction and you will obtain the “cai wei”.

By calculating the “Ming Gua”, or “Trigram of Life” of a person, based on the year of birth (Chinese lunar calendar), you will know whether a person belongs to the “West Four Life” or “Xi-Shi-Ming” or “East Four Life” or “Dong-Shi-Ming”.

Diagram 6:  Showing “West Four Life” directions in circle and “East Four Life” directions in square

“West Four Life” has “Ming qua”, numbers 2,6,7, & 8. Their favourable directions are SW, NW, W & NE respectively.

“East Four Life” has “Ming gua” numbers 1,3,4 & 9. Their favourable directions are N, E, SE & S respectively.

Your “Ming gua” number is also your “Sheng qi” direction and this will also be your “wealth position”. For example, if your “Ming gua” number is 2, then the SW is your “Sheng Qi” direction and your Wealth Position . The other three directions, NW, W and NE are also auspicious but not as good wealth-wise.

Another method of working out the wealth position using the “Eight Houses” method can be determined by the directionality of the house. By working out what direction the house faces and sits, you can locate the “Sheng Qi” star and that is the wealth position for the house.

The idea behind the “Ba Zhui” school is that you can change the luck or auspiciousness of a house by changing its directionality. Choice of location, siting and orientation become an important issue in the “Ba Zhui: school.

The Eight Stars are the eight houses or directions. Four of them are auspicious and four of them are inauspicious. The follow is a list in their order of preference:

(auspicious no. 1) “Sheng Qi” - Vitality (life-giving qi)

(auspicious no. 2) “Yuan Nian” - Longevity (extended years)

(auspicious no. 3) “Tian Yi” - Health (Heavenly cure) 

(auspicious no. 4) “Fu Wei” - Prime (position to look out)  

(inauspicious no. 1)  “Jue Ming” - Death (stop life)

(inauspicious no. 2) “Wu Gui” - Five Ghosts (five ghost)

(inauspicious no. 3) “Liu Sha” - Six Sha (six evil spirit)

(inauspicious no. 4) “Huo Hai” - Disaster (disaster)

Because of its flexibility and its relatively easy to apply, the Ba Zhui school is one of the most popular school in Hong Kong and SE Asia.

3.  “San Yuan Pai” or the “Triple Primaries” School

The Daoist regards the “San Yuan” as the three principles of Heaven, Earth and Water so the relative position of water in a house becomes an important consideration in the “San Yuan” school.  There is a well-known “San Yuan” Feng Shui saying: “Shui yi shuai wei wang”, or “Water should be weak or declining for it to be prosperous!”. In other words, locate water in an unlucky position and it will be auspicious.

I will explain further with an example: in our time, the lower three yun of the 7th yuan cycle (1984-2003).

Diagram 7:   Wo shu diagram for the 7th yuan cycle

West, where the number 7 is located in the Luo Shu shown above, is the lucky position called “Zheng Shen”, or the “Original Spirit” and east (number 3), directly opposite to west is the unlucky position called the “Ling Shen”, or the “fragmentary spirit”. According to “San Yuan” theory, if you can see water from the east, you will be prosperous.

The SW where the number 2 is located is also considered lucky because it is in a position of the “Illuminated Spirit” or the “Zhao Shen” position. To locate the “Illuminated Spirit” you need to remember the special relationship between the number 1 and 6, 2 and 7, 3 and 8, and 4 and 9.

From the “Ho tu” diagram:

Diagram 8:  “Ho tu” diagram showing movement of yin and yang numbers.

Where the movement of yin and yang are shown by following the even (yin) and odd (yang) numbers, there is a special pairing of yin and yang numbers. Note that the movement can be blocked by the cross direction of the NE/SW axis.

To help you remember these special pairs, there is a Ho tu song that goes like this:

“One and six share the same origin. Two and seven walk the same way. Three and eight are friends. So are four and nine”

So to work out the wealth position, you should look for the “Zhao Shen” or the “Illuminated Spirit” location. Let us try the same calculation for the 8th cycle (20 years after 2003).

Diagram 9:   Luo shu for the 8th cycle

Because of the 3 and 8 pairing, the 3 Star to the east is the wealth position. If water is located to the SW it will be auspicious.

4.  The “San He” or “Triple Combination” school.

The “San He” school works on the basis of the twelve animal signs as related to the twelve directions. Note the Chinese compass divides the circle of 360o into 24 sub-divisions of 15o each.

Diagram 10:   “The Sun He” combinations

For example, if your animal sign is a pig (born 1947, 1959, 1971), then the sheep and the rabbit are your allies and the direction of your wealth position are SW/S (sheep) and East (rabbit).

If you locate the front door, master bedroom and the stove in these locations, then you will have success and help from friends and your superiors. If you have the water element in these three locations you will improve your wealth. If you put an alter (or religious icon) in these locations, your family will be peaceful.

Diagram 10: The six harmonic combinations

The harmonic relationship between the horse and sheep, monkey and snake, rooster and dragon, dog and rabbit, pig and tiger, rate and buffalo, are also auspicious. This is called the “Six combinations of auspicious location”

Again, it will be auspicious to locate the front door, the master bedroom or the stove in these locations.

However, you have to be careful of the or “six combinations of direct kill location”. These are the positions (opposite each other in the Twelve Earthly Branches on the Feng Shui compass.

Diagram 12:   The six “direct kills” or “zhong sha” combinations.

For example, if you are born in the year of the rat, your (Tai Sui) or Grand Duke location is north. So you should avoid locating the door towards the south. In your Tai Sui year, avoid locating the alter in the “six combinations of direct kill positions”. That is, if you are a rat, in the year of the rat, do not locate the alter in the southerly direction.

Another example: if you are a rooster (west), “Zhong sha” or “direct kill” is east (rabbit) - an inauspicious location.

Your “Xiang Xing” or “mutual punishment” is west (rooster), which is also inauspcious. However, you can locate the front door in the west, because it is your birth location.

Your “San He” auspicious locations are SE/S (snake) and NE/N (buffalo).

Your “Liu He” or harmonic position is SE/E (dragon).

Diagram 13:  “San He” readings for a person born in the year of the rooster.

5. “Luan Tou Pai” or “Mountain Top” School.

“Luan Tou Pai” is also known as the “Xing Jia or form school.

Form school is much older than the compass school. People who practiced Xing Jia were called “Di li Xian Sheng” ( “Master of the principles of Earth”).

According to “Luan Tou Pai”, the wealth position is where the qi assembles, or where the “Jue qi” position is located.

Generally, where you walk into a room, the “jue qi” location is usually towards the corner. The Chinese believe that where the qi assembles, so would wealth. Because water contains qi, therefore water is desirable near the house as well.

DIagram 14: “Jue qi” locations

Another way to assemble the qi is set up an ideal Feng Shui siation like that of an armchair facing the sun with the back and sides protected and have a distant view of water. To this end, Feng Shui experts trace the dragon view and look for the dragon lair by noting where the “sand” and the “water” are located.

Diagram 15:  An ideal Feng Shui model where qi assembles

“Surrounded with mountains and embraced by water there is affection where the qi assembles”