What is the Forensic Scientist’s view of Feng Shui?

This is my view as a trained Scientist who carried out research at the highest level and worked as a Forensic Scientist in the Metropolitan Police, London (New Scotland Yard) for 20 years.

I am trained to examine exhibits in the following manner before reporting them as evidence.

Examine case exhibits and information objectively.
Critical analysis
Verification
Background research
I have spent many hundreds of hours studying the available text on Feng shui, made trips to the Far East to speak to teachers, trainers and practitioners of Feng Shui practice and more. Mainland China and Taiwan is the natural home of Feng Shui. Hong Kong is a clearinghouse for information on Chinese Metaphysics.

These are the various points that I would like to raise for discussion.

The Chinese have always used Energy (Qi) as the mechanism for their methodologies.

Feng Shui is no exception. You read the text. You hear people talk about this subject. It is always about Energy (Qi).

So, where does this Energy (Qi) come from?

It is accepted that Energy (Qi) is present in the exterior environment (outdoors). When we are outdoors, we can feel the fresh or stale Energy.

When you examine the text in the sourcebooks of the various Feng Shui Formula:

These three books use the formulae to distribute the various types of Energy to different parts of the interiors. I could not find any reference to bringing Energy into the property.

Therefore, if you apply the formula, it only considers the current amount of Energy without any input from the exterior environment.

Therefore, there is no consideration of getting the exterior Energy into the property.

If Feng Shui is about increasing or improving the energy levels inside the property, these three formulae do not contribute to increasing the amount of Energy within the property.

Traditional Feng Shui

The approach of Traditional Feng Shui, like Chinese culture, is holistic. The methods start with the analysis of the Energy in the external environment. Then, it looks for the best source of Energy and prepares a route for the Energy to travel into the property.

The path of the Energy has to meet the main entrance so that the Energy can enter the property.

Hence, this is the importance of the location and size of the main door. It is the entrance for the Energy to enter the property.

Once this Energy is in the property, it increases the total amount of Energy in the interiors.

Comment: To a scientist – the knowledge of the mechanism of the process is essential.

This is probably the most crucial consideration in a Police investigation. It is the credibility of the information and its source.

Eight Mansions Formula: This was an intentional corruption of the original Eight House Formula.

In the Tang Dynasty, the King of Korea requested the secret Feng Shui formula. Rather than provide details of the original, a corrupted version was handed over as a gift from the Chinese Emperor.

This Eight Mansions Formula is relatively well publicised. The original Eight House Formula has been kept hidden.

Flying Star Formula: This Formula was written by Shen ZhuRen after studying the positioning of Chinese Tombs. The books were written in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1912).

The Feng Shui of Chinese Tombs is classed as yin Feng Shui. This is very different to the Feng Shui of property for people. This is yang Feng Shui.

Triple Gate Feng Shui is a method used originally by a Buddhist monk called Lin Yun in Hong Kong. As I understand it, it is a spiritual version of Feng Shui.

From the text I have read, there is no mention of how to bring he Energy (Qi) into the property.

Traditional Feng Shui

This is a lineage system. The practice knowledge is handed down from one generation to the next. This not only involves theory, practicals, internship and on-job experience. This procedure can last ten years or more.

The Master (or trainer) is passing on the established and proven methods that have been used for centuries by the previous Masters within the lineage.

Comment: A origins of the method needs to be established for use as this adds to the credibility. This is the procedure to determine the continuity of credible information.

In the West, the predominant practice method is the Feng Shui Formulae.

I always compared a Feng Shui formula to a pre-cooked meal. The simple reason – you do not know what has been added to the pre-cooked meals. Do you know the names of the additives and what they mean and do?

With Feng Shui Formula, you do not know how it was derived, its origins or the accuracy of the interpretation for application.

Traditional Feng Shui

The main elements of Traditional Feng Shui are Energy (Qi) and the basics of Chinese Metaphysics – Yin/Yang; five elements, PaKua, LoShu

Comment: It is better to know the exact details of what you are dealing with.

I have researched many of the Feng Shui consultant training programmes. Most are classroom-based courses have not mentioned practicals let alone internships.

Feng Shui is a practical subject. Therefore, to fully appreciate the subject, you need practical experience to feel and see the topic.

If you are training to be a Feng Shui consultant, you need an internship and on-Job experience. Working at a site is very different from the comfort of the classroom.

Traditional Feng Shui

There are site practicals, homework practicals and visits to various sites from the start. As the course progresses, there are visits to various cities of the world, practical cases, internships and on-job experience. It is a complete training programme, just like the real world.

When I trained to be a Court going Forensic Scientist, I had to work as an Assistant for two years before going on a course to be a Reporting Officer even though I had BSc and PhD qualifications. The course was rigorous and ended with a mock court appearance. It was an example of thorough training.

There is nothing worse than a poor performance in Court that will embarrass the Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis. All hell will break loose.

Comment: It is only when you go to a site that all the person’s senses come into play. I have a much better understanding of feng shui after site visits and aided with comments from an experienced feng shui consultant.

Most of the teachers and trainers of feng shui courses do not have long experience as Feng Shui consultants.

They are usually experienced teachers.

And they are teaching or leading practitioner courses.

Traditional Feng Shui

The trainers have spent a lifetime doing feng shui consulting. They are imparting their practice knowledge to the next generation so that they can be better consultants than the previous.

Comment: It is a common practise for a trainer of a practical subject having practised that skill. How do you teach car driving? Bricklaying? How do you know whether you have learnt the appropriate knowledge, the right interpretation and doing it correctly? The strength and weakness of a particular method. How do the methods overlap or assist one another.

You need practical experience before you can impart your knowledge.

When you learn a practical subject in a classroom, you do not have feedback of whether you are doing it right, wrong or how to improve.

Traditional Feng Shui

Practical sessions are involved early in the course. This is the time that you learn to use your senses to feel, see, hear, touch, smell and your intuition to feel the subject. It is with sheer practise and the hours spent that you get to know the subject and gain feedback.

There are some colleagues that can see or feel the flow, accumulation and distribution of Energy. This is the ideal feedback mechanism as Energy (Qi) is the key to Feng Shui. With this, you know when you are on the right path.

Comment: This feedback system is part of the scientific system that the world has embraced. This has led to huge progress since the industrial revolution that started in the 18th Century. It is through this system of feedback that we know whether we are on the right path. We do not need to be preached to.

Most classes accept any student as long as they can pay. The more students who pay, the better the remuneration for the teacher.

Traditional Feng Shui

Students are selected according to the criteria of the Master.

Comment: The top Universities like Oxford, Cambridge, Imperial College, University College London select the most suitable students for the course.

All organisations select their staff. The civil service (UK Government), Metropolitan Police, Google, Apple etc have rigorous selection procedures for employment.

There are many books and articles on Feng Shui by writers who have the best of intentions to show their knowledge of the subject, but they have not been able to verify their writings.

Their work has been based on the three source books and repeatedly interpreted by different writers and authors. The resulting text has not been verified by practical tests.

Traditional Feng Shui

The training knowledge has been verified by the years of practice of the Master (or trainer or coach). This is not published as this is kept confidential.

Comment: The training system and the knowledge of established organisations are all verified and shown to work. If it did not, the whole system would collapse as the students would be wrongly trained and show poor performance.

As a rule, the training manuals are not published and kept confidential

The published methods from the above three books are just published methods. The published interpretations of the methods have not been verified by practical tests.

Traditional Feng Shui

There are standard procedures specifically for raising the levels of Energy (Qi) in the property. Procedures for restaurants and coffee shops near junctions are reproducible.

Increasing the level of Energy (Qi) in a property is also reproducible.

These are evidence proven procedures.

Comment: Scientific proof is a procedure formed in the West. It is rigorous. However, China did not use that. They were more pragmatic – is it evidence-based or not. They are more interested in – Does it work or not.

Much of the systems we use in the West is evidence-based.

Does it work or not.

Is it reproducible or not.

Just look at the methods of the NHS. They use evidence-based procedures not methods proven by science. It they did, there will be very slow progress and the waiting list would lengthen.

I have noticed the positioning of some teachers marketing their courses. They are pitching the course that goes to such a high level of knowledge which has such a level of complexity. No other teaching course can match the information that they are teaching.

Complexity does not mean it works. Complexity means that there are more things to consider, and more things could likely go wrong.

Comment: From the scientific point of view. It is not the complexity of the process that makes you a better consultant.

It is the results from work for the client that matters.

Complexity can impress the novice, but the client wants results.

It is always simplicity in itself.