Question #1
Dear Kartar Diamond: My current bed and mattress belonged to someone else before me. Is this bad for the feng shui of the room or anything I can do to improve the chi? The structure includes a headboard but is the prison bar style one. Is there anything I can do to counteract this without replacing it?
Answer: You asked about a bed that belonged to someone else and about the “prison bar” headboard that goes with it.
There is a lot that can be said about using or possessing items that belonged to others. This is why a napkin that John Lennon wiped his face with could be worth thousands of dollars.
People ask all the time whether they should keep furnishings or anything inherited and my response always factors in what kind of person possessed those items and how does the new owner feel about the previous person. Were they a good person? Were they positive? Did you get along with them?
When it comes to a mattress, that is a very personal item. It’s almost like receiving someone’s under clothes. We spend a third of our lives sleeping, and dreaming, and a lot of emotions and energy can get stored in the bed. If you feel fine about the person who owned the mattress, I don’t want you to worry needlessly. But if you can afford a new mattress, that would be ideal.
With regards to the headboard, there are several ways to relate to it. In Feng Shui practice, we like to see someone have a solid headboard, but that is mostly just to mimic a solid wall. To that extent, you don’t really need a headboard. If you want to make the headboard more solid, you could weave some fabric through the bars or go to the extent to upholster it. It’s also possible that your bedroom might need the metal element and if so, the metal headboard could contribute to the metal quota.
The only way to know if the bedroom needs metal long term is to do a Flying Star analysis. That can reveal if metal is good or bad for the room.
Question #2
Dear Uncle Dixer: Is it bad luck to use an old bed that was used by a sick person for a long time but never died in her bed? She died in the hospital.
Answer: If it worries you, you can use some simple Feng Shui “huasha” (transform the harmful) methods to overcome your concern.
You can remove whatever that is left over by giving the bed a good physical clean with some Yin/Yang Water (water that is made with half boiling and half icy water) mixed with some antiseptic detergent. Then, hang a calabash on the bed for the first 100 days. This simple ritual should do the trick to remove your fears. It works in both the “in-the-world” and “out-of-the world” realms of our perceptions.
Kartar Diamond of Feng Shui Solutions® has a full-scale consultancy, including assistance with property searches, design phase and existing homes and businesses. She is the author of three books, 6 ebooks, 36 Cast Study Lessons and more to come. See the books she’s authored or browse through her online Traditional Feng Shui school.