Feng Shui and the Vision Board
By Victoria Pendragon
The various psychological schools of feng shui may approach the mapping of interior space differently but this they agree on: the images we see profoundly affect us not only consciously, but at a subliminal level. In other words, what you see affects the way in which your life unfolds.
Based on this principal, someone, somewhere came up with the concept of vision boards, usually a piece of poster board upon which are glued numerous images of what someone has conceptualized as a goal – or goals – that they wish to achieve. The result is usually a literal visual translation: a wedding couple, a hot car, palm trees, a beach.
These images of desire are then placed in what is thought to be a strategic location which often turns out to be on the door of the refrigerator or some otherwise unoccupied kitchen wall. The resultant feng shui is dubious.
A piece of art catches your attention; attention = energy. Thoughtfully placed items in a space therefore create a pleasant spatial experience, one in which energy is kept moving at a comfortable, livable flow. There is a kind of feng shui to the two dimensional surface of a work of art as well: composition, the thoughtful placing of color and images on a plane, an arrangement of form or shapes that allows the eye to travel across its surface, occasionally stopping to rest and perhaps contemplate. As with an enclosed space, the goal of a work of art is similar to the goal of good feng shui, the enjoyment of an area.
And that is why the typical vision board makes for poor feng shui.
First of all, the vision board is based on want. In feng shui terms, to hang a picture of want in your living space is to create more wanting because of the psychological effect of the images on your mind. Conceptually, the vision board is supposed to trigger you into imagining that you have what is pictured, but your body does not conceptualize; your body lives in the now moment, so when it sees a picture of something that you do not have, it recognizes that fact and tells itself, “There’s that thing I don’t have,” and so ends up supporting your not having it which is not what you were hoping for.
The mind is a powerful force, but the cellular intelligence of the body has it beat in spades. If you’ve spent a lifetime struggling with money and your body sees a picture of images that convey the illusion of a splendiferous lifestyle, the message it will send itself, no matter what you have trained your mind to say, is, “There are those things that I don’t have.” The body’s intelligence comes first and it trumps the mind every time.
Instead of finding literal images of whatever it is that you are trying to draw into your life, sit down, get quiet, and imagine how having it would feel to you. Once you have an idea of how you might feel, try to find other moments in your life when you may have felt similarly, even if in only small ways, remembering that really it’s a feeling you’re after, not a thing.
For instance, you think that a convertible will make you feel ___________. Fill in that blank, then try to find pictures that, when you look at them, remind you of how you think you would feel in one. A person whose hair is blowing in the wind might convey a sense of freedom that seems similar; a puppy might convey the fun aspect of it. Your body will recognize the feelings and its feeling will begin subtly adjusting your vibration. And that is what you are looking for because it is your vibration, not your wanting, that will draw experiences to you.
If it is a relationship that you are missing; perhaps you might remember how your parents were with each other when you were very young and you’d like to feel like that. Close your eyes and let that feeling grow, really get to know it. Then, holding the feeling in your heart, riffle through your sources for images looking for things that feel like you feel. In this case, an actual photo of your parents would work well. A picture of cake might make you feel very similarly happy, or green grass covered with small flowers, or two cats cuddled up asleep.
Gather as many images, large and small, as you can that make you feel the way you want to feel. Once you have more than you think you’ll need, begin to sort and trim a bit. Then, arrange the images in such a way that they completely cover the surface of a sturdy piece of board like foam core or illustration board. Leave no background showing, everything should be image. The arrangement should have a sense of balance and flow so that your eyes want to move around it from area to area, saturating your rods and cones and stimulating your brain with the good feelings it creates. There will be, purposely, more than you can focus on at once, creating a perfect subliminal effect on your mind.
When you are done, frame the work. You will never improve the feng shui of your life or your space with a piece of dog-eared poster board suspended by scotch tape on a freezer door. Give your work of art a place of prominence and let your body and its intelligence work with you to improve your space and your life.
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Rev. Victoria Pendragon, D.D. is an artist and the author of six books, most recently, Sleep Magic, Surrender to Success, a do-it-yourself guide to cellular reprogramming. She is a thrice-certified Feng Shui consultant and former teacher for the Shamballa Feng Shui Institute. She can be seen on her YouTube series, My Alternate Reality and visited at www.victoriapendragon.com.
