Reference · Concepts
Core concepts
Every entry below is a self-contained reference page: a direct answer up top, the Chinese terminology with pinyin and characters, the classical sources, and honest notes on where tradition ends and evidence begins.
What is feng shui?
The meaning of 風水, where the practice actually comes from, the major schools, and what the evidence does and does not say.
The bagua map
The eight trigrams and nine life areas, their I Ching origins, and how the compass and BTB schools place the grid differently.
The five elements (wu xing)
Wood, fire, earth, metal, water — the generating and controlling cycles, with full correspondence tables.
Kua numbers & lucky directions
How Eight Mansions feng shui assigns you a personal trigram, East and West groups, and eight directional energies.
The commanding position
The best-known placement rule for beds and desks: see the door, don't line up with it, keep solid backing.
Prefer to start with something interactive? The free Kua Number Calculator finds your personal directions in one click — with the entire method documented on the same page.