The FIRE Element in Feng Shui
February 14, 2009 – 11:02 am
The Tiger lily
FIRE: (9) Fire, the transformational energy of life, is the most volatile of the five essential elements and must be carefully understood and respected. Fire gave man the ability to control his environment, to cook food, to forge weapons, to light the darkness and to heat his home.
Fire is associated with the colors Red and Orange, Triangular shapes (like a flame), upwardly pointed structures, a Southern direction and the season of Summer.
When FIRE burns it produces ash which restores and enriches the EARTH. Therefore WOOD feeds FIRE and FIRE feeds EARTH.
FIRE also melts METAL and is controlled by WATER.
Indoors, FIRE is associated with the kitchen of the home, where good food is prepared and families are nourished. Think about all of the fast food restaurants that are painted red or orange. Subconsciously, these colors make you hungry. Conversely, a blue kitchen is not advised unless you desire to lose a great deal of weight. Even so, the color could negatively affect the overall energy of the house, making the inhabitants feel tired, bored or unmotivated.
FIRE colors also lend themselves well to areas of the home that lack warmth but one should use these colors very carefully. Like the actual flame, too much FIRE can be dangerous, bringing discord to a relationship, mental anguish to the inhabitants or excessive feelings of anger. Modern designers use rich red colors as a means of bringing warmth, but “do-it-yourselfers” often miss the mark.
Take the dining room, for example. A red dining room might make you feel hungry at first, but it will not allow you to enjoy your food for long periods. The other reason fast food restaurants are painted red is to get you in and out quickly. A more appropriate choice for a dining room would be a softer, earthier tone since FIRE feeds EARTH.
Candles and other lighting are often recommended as FIRE remedies to bring warm energy to a space. In fact, the easiest way to incorporate FIRE energy in a positive way is through proper lighting. Interior lighting is one of those vital components too often neglected. FIRE lighting is best used in an upwards direction, with the light pointed toward the ceiling of the space. That way it can be more easily and indirectly dispersed, covering a broader area.
Bright, shiny colors are also referred to as FIRE colors, even if they are not red in hue. This is another way to incorporate FIRE without getting burned, especially in rooms that only need a little fire. In areas like bedrooms and play areas where a softer FIRE symbol is needed, purples and pinks do quite nicely. Another trick is to incorporate FIRE shapes in repetition. Pyramid shaped paperweights, pointed edges on curtain valences and books leaning toward one another on a shelf to form an assymmetrical triangle are all subtle tricks that add FIRE.
Flowers are the one of the best ways to bring warmth and FIRE energy to the home. The brighter the colors, the more energy they contain. You can also bring them indoors to warm up a cold corner of the room, but make sure you keep them fresh. No one likes to look at a vase full of wilting flowers. Plants with bright color foliage like crotons and bromeliads work equally well adding the WOOD element into the mix.
