• In :
• Personal Growth

June 2008

By Ajay Poddar

Follow these basic guidelines for a harmonious and happy habitat

The most preferred plot shapes are squares, circles or rectangles. For work and dwelling units, square and rectangular shapes are preferred, since it is easy to define and construct definite spaces for specific activities within them. A square leads to efficient use of space and a feeling of comfort, since a person standing in the centre can perceive all sides equally well. It also enables good circulation of energies and functional movement. A rectangle with a ratio of the two sides as 1:1.614 is considered the most beneficial for circulation of energies as it perfectly houses the classic spiral shape, a simulator of high and infinite energy. Round shapes can be used for public monuments and to define shapes within as well as outside buildings, namely, columns, arches and staircases. For overhead beams, and in the case of columns and staircases where design or functional requirements do not allow a round shape, it is beneficial to round off the edges.

Plots that have irregular shapes or are many sided are best avoided. In the case of the former, space usage becomes inefficient. In addition, one quadrant either north-west, north-east, south-west or south-east is reduced in size and importance. The use of multisided plots creates jagged energy flows and agitation. You can imagine a ball bouncing in the space to imagine the agitation that can be created. The only exception is the case when the shape is elongated in the north-east. This is so, because the energies of the earth flow from the north-east.

The slope within the plot and the building and the relative heights of the different parts of the building are also governed by these energy flows. The north and the east should be lower and the south and west, higher.

Vaastu practitioners talk about the dosha or fault in a plot. Prayers are performed and offerings made to neutralise these effects and change the energy flows.

Surrounding areas
While we can take care of matters within our plot or structure, what do we do about the surrounding areas? How severely do they affect us? Can we do something to mitigate negative effects of say, a mountain in front of the house in the north, or a pit behind the plot in the south, or a very tall building surrounding our habitat? Their effects may be negative and would have to be examined on site and simple corrective measures taken without actually filling up the pit or demolishing the mountain and the other buildings around.

The areas around a plot or a house have to be examined to check whether there are high tension lines near them, and if certain types of trees, graveyards or a place of worship are nearby. If so, either we should decide to take another plot or house, or carry out energetic corrections to isolate their ill effects/negative radiations. High tension lines have been known to reduce immunity to cancer.

Many people would believe that a public temple, a church or a mosque adjoining a house or within the boundaries of a house is auspicious. However, this is not so. Sounds preposterous, even blasphemous, doesn’t it?

The energies of such monuments are so strong and overpowering that a normal human body cannot be subjected to them constantly. Moreover, these monuments are visited by a constant stream of devotees who cause tremendous energy turbulance around the house. These energies are largely negative. Such structures should be at least 10 to 15 metres away. If this is not possible, some virtual barriers have to be created.

Effect of materials
The excessive presence of materials like quartzite and granite in a plot can create negative energies, and need to be either removed from the site of construction or their effect has to be neutralised by other means. An effective way is to use lime powder to layer the entire foundation or base of the structure to neutralise the effect of negative radiations and create good conductivity for the earth’s energies.

Within buildings the use of natural materials like rubber for insulation, vegetable paints for painting, lime mortar for brickwork and marble or various types of limestones for flooring and cladding is considered most desirable. Excessive use of synthetic material or derived products creates energy blockage and retards natural flow of energies within the structure, and generates static charge.

It has been found in the study of older buildings in Europe that the usage of natural building material was almost 70 per cent and the balance was vegetable material, whereas in recently built houses, the use of hard and synthetic material has shot up to 60-70 per cent. Synthetic materials obstruct the natural flow of energies in spaces like they do on bodies.

Use of reinforced concrete in floors, beams, columns and slabs causes a cage-like effect, which is also known as the Faraday Effect. This phenomenon is caused by an excessive number of positive ions being released in the atmosphere since the negative ions are drawn in by the steel reinforcement. As we know, an excess of negative ions in the atmosphere is beneficial for the body. This effect can be countered to a large extent by using lime mortar in the foundations and walls.

It is also important while using materials like wood, lime, stone slabs and marble to study the grain structure of the same and try to place it in the same orientation as its place of origin. The craftsmen who used these materials in earlier times did ensure that this orientation was respected. Imagine your door to be a tree and the tree to be placed upside down. Improper placement causes reversal in energy flow, which causes discomfort and ill-health. In ancient forts, the steps were constructed with the negatively charged surface of the stone facing outwards. The steps were also high and narrow. The idea was to make it difficult for an invading army to climb up quickly and subject it constantly to negative radiation. This made it easier for the defending army to fight the invaders.

Granite and mirrors should be used only on the external façade of the building, if at all, and not within work chambers, bedrooms and other living and working areas. Mirrors bounce back energies and should not be placed in front of the bed since sleeping areas require calm and tranquil energies. They should also not be placed facing the entrance of the workplace as they would bounce back the energies trying to enter inside.

It is often seen that children and sensitive adults avoid sleeping in that part of the bed cut by a mirror. When a mirror is in the centre of the bed shared by a married couple, they find themselves away from each other on either edge of the bed in the morning though they may have slept close to one another in the centre at night.

Excerpted from Empower Yourself – New life solutions for health and well-being, by Ajay Poddar. Published by Penguin Books, India.

Contact: poddar.ajay@gmail.com