By JULIA O'MALLEY
jomalley@adn.com
Published: February 25th, 2008 12:05 AM
Last Modified: February 25th, 2008 05:04 AM
"For every one of us, we have our self elements. For me, green is an energizing color."
A decade ago, Aurigue, a mother of four from the Philippines, found herself bankrupt, injured and out of work. She resurrected her life, she said, by changing the energy in her house using feng shui, a practice that involves changing the arrangement and colors in rooms based on Chinese astrological calculations.
"It was a tremendous change. It really gives me a sense of peace and comfort," she said.
Books fed her interest, and led her to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, where she studied at the Institute of Feng Shui. Soon she began advising friends, and then, in 2006, she opened Feng Shui Alaska, offering consultations, crystals, Buddha statues, New Age music and espresso.
Feng shui may have faded from fashion Outside, but not in Anchorage, where interest in her business continues to grow, she said. So far, Aurigue says, she's helped a hundred clients rearrange their homes and businesses to bring good luck, good health and prosperity. She charges 80 cents a square foot.
"Every time you fix things, you're activating more of the good energy," she said.
This month is especially busy because it marks the beginning of the year of the rat in the Chinese astrological calendar. Aurigue's been telling a lot of new year fortunes, though she prefers to call it "destiny analysis."
In general, the year of the rat is a good time to begin things: romances, marriages, having children, new careers. But in terms of calamities, the forecast is not too good. Across the world, people can expect floods, mudslides, earthquakes and strange weather, spurred by the warming earth.
"Don't live too close to water," she said.
There are remedies: Water in a southeastern corner helps activate prosperity. A big metal object at the south side drains the bad energy.
CAUTIOUS CLIENTELE
Many who come to her are middle-aged women looking for a change. She advises painting front doors red, placing metallic objects in certain spots, incorporating new colors into wardrobes and moving beds away from the door. Some come secretly, asking her about help with relationships gone cold and dreams of changing careers.
"For a lot of people it's all about their wealth and their love life. The third is their health," she said.
Customers often ask Aurigue to be discreet because they fear feng shui conflicts with the Christian church, but Aurigue, a Catholic, assures them it is a science. A priest even came to bless her shop, she says.
"This is not based on religion. First is your god and whatever you do with your faith," she said. "Then earth luck, which is based on feng shui, how you arrange the energy in your environment."
In early February, after consulting with other feng shui masters around the globe, she read the fortune of the city for the coming year. Among the highlights:
• Anchorage will have a cold spring; it may seem like it never comes and then it will suddenly be summer.
• Those living in East Anchorage will be most prosperous; property values will hold steady; businesses will do well.
• Those in South Anchorage can expect more crime and should be on guard against legal problems, health problems and marital issues.
• In the northwest, look out for illnesses, especially among family breadwinners. And, there could be some legal issues.
• Those living in the north should have a good year; many will get promotions.
Deborah Fachko's interest in feng shui brought her to the storefront last year. Aurigue detected she was deficient in her water elements. Fachko added blue to her clothing and home.
"It helped me to become healthier emotionally, mentally and spiritually," she said.
Ginny Jacober, a retired interior designer, took Aurigue's advice about hanging a crystal in the center of her house. It seems to lighten her mood, she said.
"I feel just like when you get up and have your coffee."
RELIEF FROM SUFFERING
Aurigue's feng shui awakening came after an injury caused her to lose her job and her family spiraled toward financial ruin. She realized that her house wasn't a true rectangle shape because the front door was inset, carving a square out of the southwest section of the home. The southwest section is the mother section.
"Which is why I was suffering," she said.
She had an uncle plant a garden around the entry-way using flowers in auspicious colors to fill in the missing part of the rectangle.
"I got my job back, and we were able to move into a bigger house," she said.
Don't buy it? Like any belief, it's an act of faith.
Feng shui makes people think about bringing balance to their lives, she said. It discourages clutter, in the home and in the mind. Change takes internal work, not just rearranging furniture.
"You need to change your attitude first, then you change your environment," she said. "If you have good intentions toward other people, good will come."
Find Julia O'Malley online at adn.com/contact/jomalley or call 257-4591
Anchorage woman turns bad energy into good: Comments
February 25, 2008 - 10:42am
She is right on the money!! : )
"You need to change your attitude first, then you change your environment," she said. "If you have good intentions toward other people, good will come."
Attitude **IS** everything....and we do attract what we get with our attitude.
Dr. Viktor Frankel was a Jewish survivor of the holocaust and wrote a wonderful book called "Man's search for Meaning." This is a good read if one is trying to truly understand "attitude."
For those of us who have studied it in depth, Feng Shui is an exact science, as is astrology. Think of it as 'math.' You must learn the basics and move forward from there. It takes many years and hours to grasp the concepts. Just because you don't understand calculus doesn't mean it 'isn't' ; )
As with all concepts in life, take what you like, and leave the rest.
February 25, 2008 - 12:43pm
Bad energy into good. Whether we know it or not we all practice feng shui to some degree. Why do people spend more time selecting clothng than picking a mate? Balance of color with a person's own colors and what makes them happy. Try paint your bedroom black and see what happens to your attitude, this is measurable. Try sending your 5 year old boy to school wearing pink. See what happens, this is measurable. When you get a floral arrangement, you select it to match yourself or the person you are getting it for and it is arranged in a logical fashion and it has meaning. Send your spouse black roses and see what reaction you will get, this is measurable. Balance of life. You take time every day to fix your hair and do your makeup, why? To balance your self, your image, and how you think other's will percieve you. Try and wear black lipstick and spike your hair before you go out the door. You will be noticed. It is not a religion, but it is a science. If you surround yourself with good and happy people, flowers, good soothing music, nice paintings and pictures, bright colors, pleasant aroma, and good light tasty foods you will have a positive change in attitude. Try it.
February 25, 2008 - 11:08pm
Interesting the direction things can take in a day.
Putting the energy back on a positive track where it feels the best....I believe Feng Shui is an exact science. I use it everyday in every way. I do not 'worship' it or smoke it. ; ) (truly laughing out loud at some of the comments here)
Yes, there are inexpensive books out there to buy. I can say this with a smile ... if I were having brain surgery, I'd hire the physcian with the advanced degree instead of the one with no experience who read the do it yourself version shortly before the operation.
This is all about unblocked free flowing energy folks. A happy heart and healthy outlook on life are 'good Chi.' (Chi is life force energy and what Feng Shui works to balance.
Ask any cancer patient who is in remission what helped the most...Eastern or Western medicine,science, and philosophy. You will most likely find a wonderfully balanced individual who is able to say they benefitted from all~
Mt Griz.... you might be surprised if you do some committed research on the origins of Feng Shui. Those prosperous wheat farms and cattle ranches in the Big Sky Country use the science, both in planning and in practice. ; ) I know that you don't agree with me, and I'm truly okay with that.
February 25, 2008 - 6:47pm
Science of Psychology
In a sense, it is a science. The science of psychology has taken note that colors do adversely or positively effect people in various ways. We sub-consciously create certain associations with colors; red for anger or exuberance, blue for peace, yellow for happiness. The associations change, depending on the characteristics of the person, but color preferences are used as key aspects of personality. The clothes we choose to wear are other keys; the conservative dressers, the flamboyant ones, the ones who follow the latest fads, the ones who insist on always wearing their old, comfortable blue jeans, all make declarations concerning their personalities. Changing our outside environment can certainly affect the way others perceive us, consequently affecting the way we see ourselves.
Other exterior forces; sounds, scents, patterns and arrangements, trigger memory associations; some of which are pleasant, some we wish to leave alone. In this manner, we are also influenced. Most people find harmonious sounds and patterns soothing. Hermann Hesse once said he felt every home should contain a Chinese garden, no matter how small the space to place it in. It took awhile to reflect he meant, there should be a pleasant, harmonious aspect to your environmental arrangement to rest your eyes on and cause quiet reflection.
As far as the predictions are concerned, well, some people read cards, divine tea leaves or throw coins. There are those who take comfort in feeling someone can read their futures, and there are those whose instinctual summaries of what the future holds are pretty accurate. I don't judge them any more than I judge people who light candles for the dead or have their babies baptized. It's all in what you believe in life.
