If you answered ‘yes’ to all these questions, that’s great!   If not then take a look at your personal Success, Health, Relationship and Wisdom directions.

You have 4 personal feng shui directions that support these areas of your life and they’re different from the general feng shui directions.  Because your four personal directions are specific to you they are much more effective at helping you attract what you want in these areas of your life.

If you don’t know what your four personal directions are you can find them in your personal 2012 Flying Star Feng Shui Report.  Once you know those four directions take a look at each of those areas of your home.

Is the window in your Success direction stuck shut?  This can keep you stuck in a job and prevent you from getting a promotion or better job.

Do you have dead plants in your Health direction?  This dead energy can keep you from feeling your best.

Do you have squeaky doors in your Relationship direction?  This can bring people who like to argue or disagree even about silly things.

Be sure to check all 4 of your best directions today, clean these areas up, fix anything that’s in disrepair and make these areas as appealing and useful as possible.  The more you lift the energy here the better your Flying Star Feng Shui activations will work when you put them up on Feb. 4, 2012.

This month may very well start out with a bang due to the Disaster/Windfall Star combination in the center gua.  This area of feng shui tends to set the ‘theme’ for the month and when these two Stars meet they create injuries and accidents.  It’s also possible some people may gain an unexpected windfall or opportunity but it’s likely to be due to some unfortunate circumstance, like getting a severance package offer due to job layoffs or an inheritance due to the passing of a relative.

Southeast – This area is going to bring financial challenges to banks, investment firms, credit card companies and other financial institutions.  This is going to be the trend for the year and this month we’re likely to see news that sets the tone for what’s to come.  At a minimum, you’ll definitely want to get your yearly Flying Star remedies up for 2012.

South – The Stars here indicate career change and with the south being the area of entertainment and fashion expect to hear news of celebrities you know in those industries, particularly women, who decide to quit their jobs, change companies or take on new roles they’ve not tried before.

Southwest – This area can be challenging for mother/son relationships or work relationships between older women and younger men.  It’s a good month to listen and keep your sense of humor.

East – This area can bring disagreements between family members and members of government.  Expect the mud slinging in the Presidential debates to really heat up now.  Also, use your feng shui remedies this month to help dampen this energy.

West – This area is great for travel and romance.  If you do travel go somewhere fun rather than relaxing because the west is all about being playful.

Northwest – This area has a double metal clash and can create arguments between men.  Travel related accidents are more likely now, too.

North – This is the career area in feng shui and with the Illness Star here it can make finding work challenging right now.  This is a good month to write your resume or come up with new ideas to make your current job better.

Northeast – This is another direction that’s great this month.  It’s perfect for celebrations, marriages and other joyful occassions.

If you haven’t already seen it be sure you read my entire 2012 outlook here: http://flyingstarfengshui.wordpress.com/2012/01/01/new-year-feng-shui-preparation-2012/

Although the Flying Stars for 2012 don’t officially ‘land’ in their new directions until February 4, you can start feeling their effects up to 9 weeks earlier which would have been the end of November last year.  This is because feng shui works in cycles of 9 (9 minutes, 9 days, 9 weeks, 9 months, etc.) and this can mean you feel the Stars earlier than their actual date of transition.

Unfortunately, some friends of mine have felt the effects of the Conflict Star moving into the area of Marriage this year.  Two of the couples split up between Thanksgiving and Christmas and a third since New Year’s Day.

Admittedly, their relationships were rocky to begin with.

In one case, the wife was always taking her children places without her husband.  They never spent time together as a family much less as a couple.  There’s only so much time a marriage can work this way before you become strangers living under the same roof.

The second couple was having financial problems.  They lost their house.  Her business was struggling to survive and he didn’t make enough on his own to support their high spending lifestyle.  I think the marriage just collapsed under the weight of all the debt.

The third couple I didn’t know as well but I do know it was a second marriage.  Perhaps they just knew from past experience it wasn’t going to work.

I have two other friends who, after a couple of years of being separated already, have finally decided it’s time to make it official.  It’s not suprising this decision would come at the same time the energy of the Conflict Star is moving in.

This year you may see more of your friends, family members and co-workers experience this same fate due to the Conflict Star on Relationships and Marriage.  This Star brings arguments, disagreements, jealousy and, in a worst case scenario, divorce. 

Keep in mind the Conflict Star doesn’t just affect marriages it also affects couples who are dating, business partnerships and children’s relationship with their friends. 

The challenge with the difficult Stars like the Conflict Star is that you can’t eliminate their energy but you CAN reduce their energy.  One way is to avoid spending time in the gua that the negative Star sits in.  This year the Conflict Star sits in the SW so try to keep this area quiet and spend time in guas with better Stars like the west.  You’ll also want to avoid sleeping in a room that’s in the SW area of your home, too.

In addition to keeping the SW quiet you can use your Flying Star feng shui remedies for 2012 which you can get by clicking here.

Mitt Romney & Rick Santorum

Last night was the first step in the Republican Party’s efforts to select a nominee for their party and Mitt Romney won by a very slim margin over Rick Santorum.  Only 8 votes separated the winner from the runner up.

That made me wonder to myself, “What do the Flying Stars have in store for these guys in 2012?”  And I came across something interesting.

Back in 2008 when so many people were hoping for positive change from the U.S. Presidential election little did anyone know that both Barack Obama and John McCain shared the same Flying Stars. 

Obama’s Success direction happens to be McCain’s Relationship direction and McCain’s Success direction happens to be Obama’s Relationship direction. 

The same is true for Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum: Mitt’s Success direction is Rick’s Relationship direction and vice versa.

 When this happens it’s very hard to determine who might win an event but what I discovered from the 2008 election is that the Flying Stars on the Relationship direction have a greater impact than the Stars on a candidate’s Success direction.

That being said we also need to keep in mind that 2012′s Flying Stars aren’t even here yet.  They won’t be in their new position until early February and that changes the landscape for the entire Republican party, not just Mitt and Rick!

But because these two are the guys getting all the press though we’ll just focus on them right now.

During 2012 Mitt will have the Conflict Star on his Success direction while this same Star will sit on Santorum’s Relationship direction.  What’s the key in getting votes?  Getting people to like you.  If you have the Conflict Star on your Relationship direction it means you’re more likely to draw anger and arguments from those very people whose help you need. 

That’s not good for Santorum.

Romney, on the other hand, has the Abundance Star on his Relationship direction which is the same Star that sits on Santorum’s Success direction.  The Abundance Star is the best possible Star to have working for you when you want to gain clients, which in Mitt’s case is voters.

But what about the November election? 

What Stars are on Mitt and Rick’s Relationship direction for that month?  As it turns out Rick has what’s called ‘bullfight sha’ on his Relationship direction which adds fire to the Conflict Star for the year.  Not what you want at election time.

Mitt has a Star combination that creates success against competitors so if it turns out that Romney gets the Republican nomination he has a better chance of winning the November election than Santorum.

What about Barack Obama?  Well, at the time of the 2012 election he has a Flying Star combination that says he’ll be changing jobs.  Yes, that’s literally what the Star combination means: job change/endings.

And on his Relationship direction is the Disaster Star for the year along with the Relationship Star for the month.  This indicates problems in getting people to side with him which is not what you want as a candidate when people are choosing between you and someone else.

So, if it comes down to Romney v. Obama the Flying Stars indicate Romney has much better odds of winning. 

We still have a long way to go yet so it will be interesting to watch how it all plays out.

If you want to know what your Flying Stars have in store for you for 2012 click here!

So, rather than not post this month I’m giving you the January 2012 bagua so you can see what energies are likely to apply themselves this month.

Keep in mind that in feng shui SE is wealth, S is fame/entertainment, SW is marriage/partnerships, E is family/government/health, Center is the month’s ‘energy theme’, W is children/creativity/technology, NE is education/religion, N is career/future and NW is helpful people/travel.

This will be good practice for those of you who want to learn how to read Flying Stars!

The rest of  you can still find a detailed January outlook along with all the activation and remedies here: January 2012 Flying Stars

Some of you are already feeling the effects of 2012′s Flying Stars based on the e-mails I’ve been getting from you.  The reason for this is that feng shui works in cycles of 9 (9 directions on the bagua, 9 Flying Stars, etc.) so it’s possible that you felt the Flying Stars’ energy as early as December.

If that rings true for you then go ahead and start preparing for 2012′s Stars now.  If not, feel free to wait until Feb. 3 to prepare as the new Flying Star year begins on Feb. 4, 2012.

Here are some ways you can prepare:

1.  Take down the Flying Star activations and remedies you put up for 2011 and clean them off so they’re ready for 2012.  Clean your crystals in salt water and then let them soak up the sun during the day so they’re re-energized.  Clean out your wind chimes with lavendar water and let them air dry.  See if you need to fertilize plants you used in your feng shui or whether you need to replace them with new ones.

2.  Clean your windows inside and outside.  If you live in a cold climate where washing the outside of your windows would be crazy right now then wait til it warms up but at least clean the inside.  Windows let in the Flying Star energy and dirty windows block this from happening.

3.  Clean your front door and front entry way as best you can.  If you live where it’s warm then get some of that cleaner you attach to your hose and hose down your front entry way and door.  Repair the door knob and lock if necessary and get a new doormat to welcome the new year.  Never use a doormat with your family name on it unless you want your family treated like a doormat. 

4.  Replace your A/C filters, water filters and other filters you may have in the house.

5.  Make sure that windows open easily, sliding doors slide easily and doors are in good working order.  If they’re not then fix them so they work properly.

6.  Get rid of dead plants.  Dead things bring dead energy.

7.  Clean out your pantry, closets, junk drawers, kitchen cabinets and garage.   Clutter, trash and unused items block the flow of chi (pronounced chee) or energy in your home and can prevent you from receiving all the benefits you deserve.

These seven things will go a long way toward bringing in the positive energy of 2012′s Flying Stars so try to get as much done as you can. 

To read my Flying Star outlook for 2012 just click here.

The thing I love about these yearly books is that you get to see ahead of time what opportunities lie ahead for your relationships, your finances, your career, your health and your spiritual growth from a feng shui perspective.

As much as I love writing this book each year what I love even more is being able to offer more personalized advice so this year I’m skipping the book and doing something different.

Will your career be supported by the Abundance or Relationship Star in 2012?  Will the Transformation Star bring big changes in an important relationship of yours?  Will the New Beginnings Star give you great ideas that help you this year?

You can find out in your 2012 personalized Flying Star Feng Shui report.

Because 2012 has such a mystical air to it already it seems unfair to offer you a general outlook for this year.   In your e-mails to me you’ve been asking for more specific information and so I want to give that to you.

Rather than printing a book I’m offering you a personal outlook based on 2012′s Flying Star feng shui.  This way you get more detailed information to start and plan your year. 

In addition to your personalized outlook you’ll get all of the yearly Flying Star activations, where to place these activations and how to energize your feng shui to bring the best possible results!

And because you’ve told me you have certain questions you want answered I’m also giving you the opportunity to ask me about a specific area of your life.  Whether you want to know how a new business you’ve started will do this coming year, whether an intimate relationship is in the Stars for you or how a health issue is likely to turn out for you this is your opportunity to ask!

The new Flying Stars year begins on February 4, 2012 so you have time to prepare now!  Find out more about your personal Flying Star Feng Shui 2012 report by clicking here.

But like any year 2012 will have it’s bright spots, too, at least from a Flying Stars perspective anyway.  So let’s take a look at the big picture because the 2012 Flying Stars make their grand entrance on Feb. 4, 2012 (although their effects can be felt as early as 9 weeks before then since feng shui works in cycles of 9):

Let’s start with the center gua because the Star that sits here sets the ‘theme’ for the year.   In 2012 this is where the Windfall/Unexpected Opportunities Star falls and this is a much better Star to have here than 2011′s Robbery/Violence Star so already 2012 is off to a better start than 2011!

Since the Windfall Star sets the tone for the year this indicates that there will be sudden financial ‘gifts’ and opportunities throughout the year that people and even governments aren’t expecting.  The key to this Star is to take advantage of it when it comes knocking because once it’s gone so is your chance to benefit from it.

Now, the flip side to that is the Disaster Star will be sitting in the area of Wealth and Banking this year which means that globally there will be a lot more problems with the banks, investments are likely to generate losses and money will be lost in unexpected and unpleasant ways that could rock the entire financial system.  If there was ever a time to hide your money under a matress this is the year to do it.

Since we’re already talking about problems let’s look at the the Star sitting in the Helpful People/Travel area.  It’s the Robbery/Violence Star which tells me there’s a good chance that airfare will go up and the cost of services offered by helpful people (consultants, doctors, etc.) will go up too.

The other side of this is that industries like airlines, auto manufacturing, air and space related services and products, travel and cruise lines are likely to spend more money than they take in this year.  With this Star it’s even possible to see one or more companies in these industries go bankrupt. 

And since the Helpful People area also encompases leaders we could see corporate CEOs and other leaders take a cut in pay this year and/or even get caught stealing money from their companies and shareholders.

On a happier note the New Beginnings Star will be sitting in the area of Fame and Recognition which means we could see many more new faces in the areas of acting, singing and entertainment.  Some old favorites are more likely to either exit this arena or be put out to pasture. 

This Star has a tendency to bring both endings and new starts so if it happens to be in your personal Success area you can expect to see changes in your career this year. 

The Conflict Star will be visiting Partnerships and Marriage which is unfortunate because this Star means more couples and business partners will be quarrelling in 2012.  Most likely it will be over money since the Disaster Star sits on Wealth.  Since this Star also brings lawsuits we can expect to see an increase in divorce, restraining orders and other legal actions this year.

Given that relationships are going to be tough it may seem odd that the Relationship Star sitting on Family indicates that families are more likely to get along and even expand.  But with the Conflict Star on Relationships and the Disaster Star on Money the positioning of the Relationship Star appears to point to the fact that more families will be moving in with each other to consolidate resources or accomodate new living situations brought about by divorce.

This coming together indicates families will become closer despite the circumstances that bring about these new living situations.

Because in feng shui the area of Family is also the area of Government don’t be surprised if countries start working together in some aspect.  It could be to try to solve financial problems, to come up with ways to prevent war, or anything else where it makes sense to collaborate rather than stand alone.

In the U.S. and other countries we’re likely to see groups like the House and Senate come together to try to reach agreements too.  Hard to believe, I know!  It will be short lived, though, because in 2013 it will all fall apart again.

The Abundance Star sitting in Creativity and Children is wonderful!  This is a sign that people in the arts (dancers, singers, performers), writing, technology and anything else creative should do really well this year.  So if that is you and you’ve been working hard but not seeing much financial reward this is the year that could all change for you.

The Illness Star sitting in the Career area can be tough because this Star asks you to work hard but doesn’t offer much in the way of rewards for your efforts.   What it looks like is that people who do have jobs will be working hard but on a broad basis will not see raises, bonuses or promotions this year.   This ties in perfectly with the Disaster Star on Money and the Robbery Star on Helpful People because Helpful People includes bosses.  The money is just not going to be there this year.

The last area to look at is Education and Wisdom which is where the Fame Star sits.  This means education, colleges and learning will be in the spotlight this year and with the Abundance Star on Children in 2012 it means that whatever changes come about as a result of the Fame Star’s scrutiny into education the students will benefit.  This is a good thing.

Since this area is also tied to religion it also means that churches, temples, synagogues will also be in the news.  For them it could be good or it could be bad.  We’ll just have to wait and see but my gut instinct is that it will not be good because the Violence Star sitting Helpful People also includes gurus and religious leaders.  It’s possible for someone high up in religion to steal money from their followers, commit a violent crime or have a crime committed against them. 

All in all we have an interesting mix of news coming in 2012 but certainly not the ending of the world. 

Like any year, 2012 will be what you make of it and your feng shui activations can help you make it a good one so be sure to use them!

My recommendation is to activate your personal feng shui directions to maximize your good energy  in the coming year and make sure you add your monthly feng shui to those directions to create the best year possible for yourself.   Get your 2012 personal feng shui plan here: Flying Star Feng Shui Report

May 2012 be a prosperous and happy year for you and your family!

Probably the most frequent question I get is, “Where can I learn how to use Flying Star feng shui for making predictions?” 

Well, the answer is, “I don’t know.”  The truth is that I learned by taking classes with Feng Shui Masters who taught either Flying Stars, Compass feng shui, Water Dragon method or some other specialized type of feng shui but none of them taught how to use Flying Stars for predictions.

The way I learned how to do that was after taking classes for about five years I noticed that a couple of the Feng Shui Masters would send out e-mails that included predictions.  Most used something called Ba Zi to do this which is a very complicated type of Chinese astrology requiring calculation of Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches in relation to certain dates.  I called it the Calculus of predictions and it never made sense to me.

The other issue for me about Ba Zi is that it’s not very accurate for being so complicated.  Even the best astrologers could only give vague information and not very useful information at that.

So in my never ending quest for ways to apply feng shui information I stumbled upon the writings of a Feng Shui Master who appeared to be combining the monthly Flying Stars with compass directions.  Jackpot!

Although the Master never disclosed what they were doing or how they came up with their predictions, I could see it plain as day.  It all made perfect sense to me.

What was even better is that I could do the caculations and predictions myself because I already knew all about Compass and Flying Stars feng shui.  This was a fabulous discovery!

Since I have yet to see anyone teach how to blend these two types of feng shui I thought I’d give a crash course here for those of you who know both types of feng shui so you can work on creating your own predictions.

You really only need 2 things to do this type of predicting:

1. an understanding of Compass feng shui (i.e. what element goes with what direction and what each direction means)
2. where the Flying Stars sit, what each Star means and what element makes up the Star

Once you have that you’re all set to create your own predictions!

Let’s take a look at a couple of 2011′s Flying Stars and see how to interpret them.  This year we’ve had the Disaster Star sitting on the area of Family and Government.  The Disaster Star is earth energy and the Family/Government gua is wood.  In feng shui wood pulls the nutrients out of the soil (earth) and weakens it.   This indicates that although there will be problems globally for families and governments they will not be as bad as they could be if the Disaster Star was energized by wood.

So, overall the Disaster Star would be expected to bring about disruptive and potentially destructive events for families and governments in 2011 and it has.  We’ve seen numerous government protests, the assasination of leaders, the overthrow of many governments and the continued loss of jobs, homes and benefits to families worldwide.

The good news is that 2012′s Stars will bring different energy to this area because the yearly Stars change every February 4.

Another Star we can look at is the Windfall Star sitting in the area of Wealth and Banking for the year.  The Windfall Star is metal energy and the Wealth/Banking gua is wood.  In feng shui wood and metal clash so although Windfalls are good there is likely to be a negative perception about them.

This, too, has been the case in 2011.  Bank of America was on the brink of disaster when Warren Buffet and others stepped in to save it from ruin; clearly a windfall for the company.  However, the public has had enough of the bailouts for banks and other financial institutions while families continue to go into bankruptcy, lose their homes and have trouble feeding their children.  Thus pops up Occupy Wall Street – the wood/metal clash in action.

We also saw three wealthy hedge fund managers (Banking/Finance) from Connecticut win $254 million in the Powerball lottery (Windfall Star) a few weeks ago.  Another perfect example of the Flying Star in the SE this year.  Even this event created conflict when the media and public began speculating that there was a 4th behind the scenes person who was the real winner but was not coming forward.

So, you see, when you know what the Stars mean, what the directions mean and what the elements are you are well on your way to creating your own predictions.

Just for fun you may want to look at the other 7 Flying Stars and see if you can recognize events that have happened this year as a result of these Stars’ presence in the different areas of the ba gua.  Once you feel that you have a handle on this try predicting events for 2012.

In a few days I’ll be posting my Flying Star Feng Shui outlook for 2012.  Compare what you’ve come up with and at the end of 2012 we’ll see how things turned out.

Have fun!

Over the years Joni and I have kept in touch and in the course of our conversations about classical feng shui and vedic astrology she asked me if you could look at astrology in terms of feng shui.  At the time I was fascinated by the question and began looking at the various houses in astrology and how they could be compared to the feng shui ba gua.  The result was what I called ‘astro feng shui’ but I didn’t really know what to do with the information.

Then lo and behold about a year ago I came across an article by a woman named Simone Butler who practices western feng shui and western astrology and she had done exactly the same thing.  What was even more amazing is that she called it astro feng shui, too!  What I found interesting is that she used the new moon to activate different feng shui guas each month.  You can see her article here.

Because classical feng shui and vedic astrology are different than the western versions, the houses and corresponding guas (or directions) are a bit different, too, so my perspective is different than Simone’s.

Here are the astrological houses and the directions they’re tied to in based on traditional Chinese feng shui:

First house – This is the house that represents you personally and your physical characteristics.  In feng shui this is the east, which is the area of your roots and foundation.

Second house – This is the house of money you earn and is represented by the SE in feng shui, the area of wealth.

Third house – is tied to theater, art, drawing, writing, music and other creative endeavors as well as lower education.  All of these things belong in the west in feng shui, the area of creativity and children.

Fourth house – represents home, real estate, mother.  These are all things tied to the SW area of the feng shui ba gua.

Fifth house – This is the house of children, speculation and creativity and, like the 3rd house, is also part of the west.

Sixth house – health and habits which belong in the center gua.

Seventh house – relationships, marriage and partnerships all of which are represented by the SW in classical feng shui.

Eight house – change, wisdom and spiritual growth.  These are tied to the NE area of your home in feng shui.

Ninth house – Higher learning, spiritual gurus and teachers which are also represented by the NE.

Tenth house – is the house of career and fame which are represented by the north(career) and south (fame) areas of your home in feng shui.  When the new moon lands in the tenth house activate both of these directions.

Eleventh house – represents friends, groups and organizations as well as money that comes in large amounts.  All of these things are represented by the NW area of the ba gua.

Twelfth house – represents foreigners and foreign travel, outer space and spiritual liberation.  This house is also tied to the NW in feng shui.

If you know your personal vedic houses you may want to see which house the new moon lands in and feng shui that area of your home on the day of the new moon.  You can find your vedic chart and the sign of the new moon each month on Joni’s website here: www.galacticcenter.org.

If you prefer western astrology and feng shui then use Simone’s recommendations.  Either way I think you’ll like the results.

Good luck!