Success, creativity and good health through Vastu

People from all over the world have reported health and financial problems after moving into a new home or making home improvements.

by Michael and Robin Mastro — 

Our homes, when carefully oriented, have the power to give us comfort and security and to be one of our best investments. We spend a great deal of time and money to accomplish this, but how do we really know if we are creating a positive and life-supporting place to live and work?

People from all over the world have reported health and financial problems after moving into a new home or making home improvements. Unknowingly, they may be doing more harm than good. Vastu Shastra, the architectural science with roots in ancient India, takes into account environmental factors we may be unaware of, yet which influence the quality of our lives.

Vastu is the oldest and most complete system of architecture. It involves assessing all environmental influences that affect us, such as geopathic stress, the five elements (earth, water, fire, air and space), and the sun, moon and the planets in our solar system. It considers building orientation, placement of rooms, proportions and measurements, slope and shape of the land, location of bodies of water, and other environmental and geopathic influences.

According to Vastu Shastra, the sun creates different qualities of energy on its path from east to west. These various energies influence and enhance different functions and activities that correspond with specific areas of your home. The entry of a house or room, the place you prepare and cook your food, where you sit while eating, the direction in which you sleep, which way you face while studying, the placement of bathrooms, and areas for socializing and meditating each are more optimally supported in specific parts of your home than in others.

Vastu not only takes into consideration the environment in which we live, but also how our environment affects the health of our bodies and our ability to create in the world. The earth is a magnetic force and is composed of the five elements, as is our brain. The thalamus is the relay center for all sensory and motor signals (except smell) in the brain. Neurological research has shown that firing patterns of neurons in the thalamus function differently depending on which direction one is facing.

Our mind, then, is the interactive result of the effect of the magnetic field in our brain cells. By placing our bodies and environments in alignment with the magnetic axis, we can think and act more in tune with nature, which can benefit us in the most amazing ways. Our actions and decisions will be successfully supported by the forces of nature, much like swimming with the current of a stream rather than against it. We all know or can imagine what it is like to swim upstream, meeting with resistance to our success.

Two forces of nature influence everything in our lives: the positive magnetic energy coming from the north and the positive solar energy coming from the east. By aligning ourselves and our environments with these two forces, we improve the quality of our lives which will become evident through better health, improved productivity and creativity, more fulfilling relationships and financial success.

Here are some simple suggestions you can begin to use today to enhance these areas of your life:

1. For greater financial success, sit facing north when paying bills or working on anything related to money. Positive magnetic energy from the north supports left-brain analytical and financial thought and will be beneficial when you align yourself to this force of nature.

2. To improve your creativity and the ability to “think outside the box,” sit facing east. This is good for students as well as anyone who wants to get into “the flow” of expanded creative energy. The positive solar energy mentioned above comes from the east and supports right-brain creative thought.

3. To improve digestion, sit facing east while eating. The solar energy from the east has many benefits for our health. One of these benefits is that it aids in the body’s assimilation of the nutrients found in food.

4. Positioning the head of your bed to the south, you will experience deeper, more refreshing sleep that will improve your health and productivity. The reason is that positive magnetic energy comes from the north. Blood contains iron, making the body magnetic with the positive polarity in the head.

Sleeping with your head to the north has the same effect as bringing two positive ends of magnets together — it causes them to repel. This magnetic response disrupts bodily functions, making the rest you receive less than perfect for your health. Sleeping with your head to the south eliminates stress and improves health by giving you deeper, more refreshing rest, allowing the body to recharge and refresh itself.

We live on this earth, but we also live in a sea of electromagnetic and cosmic influences. Our actions are affected by every shift in the cosmic atmosphere. Every particle of energy in the universe is linked to the next. Designing and/or using the principles of Vastu Shastra in pre-existing homes or offices creates environments that are more open to life-supporting influences and protects against harmful influences.

Unfortunately, most contemporary architecture is based on function alone. Even so-called green architecture may only take into account forces of the sun, wind, water and climate, but not planetary, geomagnetic and geopathic forces. Homes and offices that have been designed or corrected using the principles of Vastu Shastra are not intended to “conquer” the environment, but to obey the forces of nature.

When we plant a seed, all five elements must work in harmony for the seed to sprout, grow and remain healthy. Too much or too little of any element, whether it is the quality of earth (soil pH), the amount of water, wind (air) or sun, will inhibit its growth.

Just as the balance of the five elements affects success in nature, the balance inherent in our environment affects our success in the world. Vastu takes into account all influences to create an environment in harmony with nature that supports a happier, healthier, more balanced life.

Michael and Robin Mastro are the authors of Altars of Power and Grace and The Way of Vastu. Robin has a master’s degree in whole systems design. Michael is an architect/builder who has built buildings for Microsoft and Boeing and has consulted for NASA, Intel, World Bank and Oracle. www.vastucreations.com,  [email protected] or 206-328-0122 .

Reprinted from AzNetNews, Volume 25, Number 4, August/September 2006.