|
|
What is Feng Shui? Feng Shui is the secular name for Kan Yu, which is explained by the Eastern Han [25 - 220 CE] writer Xu Shen [author of Shuowen Jiezi] as: "Kan is heaven's dao; Yu is earth's dao." Heaven's dao indicates heavenly bodies and earth's dao indicates earth principles. Yi Xici Zhuan: Yi Jing's Appended Judgments Commentaries [second chapter of part 2, by Confucius] says, "Look up in order to observe heaven, bow the head in order to examine the earth."] In the study of Feng Shui, looking up to observe the heavenly bodies (the movement of the sun, moon, and stars) is a lesser part, but bowing the head to examine the earth's texture (the terrain of the mountains, rivers, water, and earth) is the greater part. This is the reason that Kan Yu is also called "Dili" [Dili means earth principles or earth texture]. Therefore, previous generations of Kan Yu books often used Dili as a name for KanYu. Then, why is Kan Yu or Dili called Feng Shui? This is chiefly due to the influence of the Book of Burial, written by Guo Pu [276-324 CE] during the Jin Dynasty. The classics say: 'When qi rides the wind, it is scattered; when it encounters water, it is retained.' The ancients collected qi to prevent it from being scattered and guided it to assure its retention. Thus this ancient science was called Feng Shui.
|