Time cycles in Feng Shui
What is time?
Defining the passage of time may seem simple. For our age, it is represented by the ticking of the hands in the clock, the hastily made appointments in the diary, the holidays marked in the calendar…
However, human beings have been trying to define time in a simple and unambiguous way for millennia.
Looking to the past, Pythagoras claimed that time represented the rhythm of cosmic movement, and was cyclical; later, Aristotle defined time as ‘the measure (expressed in numbers) of a movement with respect to the before and after’.
Thus, for Aristotle, time was linear: past, present and future.
If you think about it, we still see it that way today.
In fact, the Aristotelian conception of time was so incisive in the history of Western philosophy that it remained valid even in the medieval and renaissance periods. Time, understood as a movement from before to after – thus as being distributed along a straight line – has survived into modern times.
Currently, recent scientific discoveries have brought to light another view of time. In particular, in quantum physics, it seems that the concept of time in the microcosm does not exist: a particle can travel into the past, as well as into the future and vice versa, effectively nullifying the very concept of a timeline.
But we are not subatomic particles, so we still have to place a value on time….
What about the East… how was time conceived?
The cyclical nature of time, as intuited by Pythagoras, is a concept that has been present in Eastern philosophies for many centuries, particularly in Taoism.
According to Taoist cosmology, the existence of everything in the universe (including time and the universe itself) follows a cycle.
Nothing has a beginning and nothing has an end.
To simplify, let us imagine time distributed along an infinite spiral: each turn along this spiral represents a time cycle.
Just as we can observe the cyclical nature of seasons and days, it is not difficult to imagine large time cycles composed of groups of years, where each of these is associated with specific characteristics and a specific energy.
In Feng Shui, we use precisely this view of time and thus analyse different types of time cycles, which periodically repeat themselves, ad infinitum. But not only that: in Feng Shui, time and space have a strong correlation.
For example, when a Feng Shui master speaks about the ‘Water Rabbit’, he may be referring to a time cycle that is annual (we entered the year 2023, the year of the Water Rabbit on February 3rd), monthly (the month of the Water Rabbit), daily (the day of the Water Rabbit), but may also refer to a specific direction in space (the Rabbit is associated with the east direction; the Water Rabbit is a specific sub-sector of the east sector).
The space-time relationship is the basis of a Feng Shui expert’s work.
When a Feng Shui expert analyses a house, he observes and decodes its structure on a spatial level: the position of the house with respect to access routes, surrounding buildings or environmental conformations, main entrance door, etc.
In addition to this, he also studies the influence of the time component on the house:
– when was it built?
– what energies influenced the construction of this house?
– in which time cycle was it born?
A villa built in the late 19th century has quite different connotations from a villa built today, don’t you think?
Beyond the materials and technologies used, the ‘spirit of time’ is embodied in the house, and the house carries it as the years and decades go by. Cycles of time have always been used by the ancient masters.
Time cycles Feng Shui – Feng Shui Yun 9
The origin of time cycles applied to Feng Shui dates back to 2,576 BC: the calendar used was the Hsia calendar, based on sexagesimal cycles, i.e. 60-year cycles.
Shao Yung (1011-1077 A.D.), one of the most important masters in history, developed a more in-depth method of analysing time cycles: he divided a great cycle of 180 years into 3 eras of 60 years; each era in turn is divided into 3 cycles of 20 years. A 20-year cycle is called a Yun. In a great cycle of 180 years, therefore, there are 9 Yuns (Periods), numbered in ascending order from 1 to 9 – like the 9 Ba Gua Palaces.
Yun 9
Yun 9 (2024 to 2043) is the last 20-year cycle of the yin Metal Snake era (⾟⺒ 1984-2043). In 2044, we will enter another 60-year era (the yang Water Horse) and the first 20 years (2044-2063) will be Yun 1, or Period 1. We will thus begin another great cycle, also consisting of nine 20-year Yuns.
Yun 9 is a period that will bring great changes and will have the feel of closure: everything that has been started must be brought to completion. After the end of this cycle, we will have a new rebirth with Yun 1, a 20-year period of re-foundation.
To relate time cycles to Feng Shui, we use the San Yuan style. The aim of this style is to capture the energy changes over time in buildings and homes.
To describe the energy change of buildings over time, the San Yuan style uses the division of time into periods (Yun) associated with the 9 stars of the Ba Gua Luo Shu.
What changes from Period 8 to Period 9?
We said that time cycles repeat themselves; therefore, we can analyse the previous Period 9 in history to imagine how things might evolve in the coming years.
The last Period 9 was between 1844 and 1863.
In this twenty-year period, we can recall the unification of Italy in 1861, two of the three Italian wars of independence against the Austrian Empire (1848-49, 1859, the third in 1866); moreover in 1861, Turin was declared the first capital of the Kingdom of Italy.
In Europe, in 1848 we find the Hungarian revolution and in 1845-49 the great famine in Ireland.
Overseas, in Period 9 we can observe major movements too: in 1844 the Dominican Republic gained independence from Haiti, in 1861 the American War of Secession broke out, in India in 1849 the Indian uprisings to gain independence from the British crown began.
On a technological level, in 1844 the first telegraph line was built between Baltimore and Washington; in the world of publishing, the rotary press was invented, which allowed thousands of copies to be printed quickly, and colour printing, which allowed four-colour printing. In addition, the first rechargeable battery was made, and the world of music discovered its first saxophone.
It was a convulsive period, full of transformations and rapid changes.
So, what will the next Period 9 (2024-2043) bring us?
Globally, Period 9 will bring major changes: it will be a 20-year period of evolution, of transformation, of revolution, bringing sudden and unforeseen changes.
Science will make great strides forward, particularly in information sciences. That is why, in Period 9, it is important to follow the changes carefully and to stay up-to-date.
Young women, and generally ordinary people, will be the protagonists of this period of evolution. Period 9 also brings a large dose of unpredictability, so it is important to follow the spirit of the times and be fluid: we must accept change and be able to adapt quickly.
Many aspects of today’s society may change, to be perceived in a new light.
One of the key words for Period 9 is: rapid and unpredictable evolution.
From the Feng Shui viewpoint, on a spatial level, the incoming new energies bring about an upheaval of certain arrangements in the energy structure of dwellings.
In Feng Shui, the orientation of the dwelling influences the inhabitants decisively. Some orientations, which in the current Period 8 are very beneficial and bring harmony and serenity, will change their characteristics, becoming drained.
Almost all possible orientations change their influence dramatically in Feng Shui Yun 9. For example, the northeast-southwest orientation, considered static and stagnant in Period 8, rises to new life in Period 9, even becoming too active in some cases.
The flying stars change their value and influence: some from favourable become unfavourable and vice versa. Consequently, their interpretation must be revised for some existing houses, or updated for new constructions.
For example, star 2, also called the Heavenly Doctor (associated with health and sickness, vitality and regeneration, as well as diseases, miscarriages and abdominal problems), changes its influence in Period 9 to become favourable.
In fact, the stars always have a double aspect (positive and negative), which changes according to the period of analysis. Specifically, star 2, which in Period 8 is unfavourable (and therefore mainly manifests its negative aspects), in Period 9 becomes favourable, becoming the Star of Healing and Fertility.
Period 9 will be followed by Period 1 (2044-2063), a twenty-year period of rebirth and re-foundation.
The important influence of Feng Shui Yun 9
In conjunction with these changes, a Feng Shui audit of any home or workplace is always recommended – all the more so if you intend to buy, build, move into a new home or carry out a major renovation.
At the same time, it is also important to know the characteristics of Period 9 in order to know how to build, design and address a client in this period.
Our home can either protect us from negative influences or activate them. By properly preparing our home for Period 9, we will be able to welcome favourable influences and reject unfavourable ones. This is especially important in Period 9, given its characteristics of instability, unpredictability, transformation and rapid evolution.
In the Course Designing with Feng shui in Period 9,
we focus on flying stars calculated according to the San Yuan style, within the framework of the Compass School. This will make it possible to learn about all the variations and possibilities available to design correctly in Period 9.
Given the importance of the transition from Period 8 to Period 9, it is essential to know a number of key information about Period 9, even for experts and students who do not know the San Yuan style in depth.
The Course Designing with Feng Shui in Period 9 is set up so that it can be easily followed even by those with little basic knowledge of flying stars. In fact, the knowledge required for this course are: the Trigram School, the Early Heaven Sequence (EHS) and the Later Heaven Sequence (LHS), the Ba Gua Luo Shu and the 24 Mountains.
We look forward to your next in-depth article on Period 9!
Feng Shui Yun 9
