A viewer asks: “Is there validity in the Chinese practice of Feng Shui? Can you help us understand the merits?”

Feng Shui is the perception intuitively of the importance of balance in terms of energetics, and this can be perceived on multiple levels in many settings. When you consider that human dwellings are artificial environments because they are unnatural but rather manmade, this is the reason Feng Shui is needed and has something to contribute. You cannot create nature or a natural setting that will be deeply satisfying to yourself or other humans—that is a divine orchestration. But being a divine extension, you will be very sensitive to the environment you inhabit and will know when it is natural or unnatural, and if the latter, will be yearning for some resolution of the dilemma that this feels like. So finding ways to work on the interior of a home, for example, to create a better sense of security and a kind of artistic complementarity of all the elements present and how they work with one another to be in balance visually as well as energetically, all figures into the art of Feng Shui. The visual elements are obvious to those with sensitivity, but there are intangibles as well that will be perceived intuitively that can be addressed by someone adept in designing favorable interior trappings, and this will be noticed and perceived favorably by people using their intuition even though few will be able to explain exactly what it is that makes them feel better about an interior space following the ministrations of someone adept in the art of Feng Shui, but it is clearly real and something people will appreciate. On a basic level, in terms of a dwelling, it is the responsibility of the architect to make it habitable and attention is duly given to common elements used to make them habitable and at least minimally satisfying. One of the key elements is having enough volume in the interior to not feel too cramped. Another is the presence of windows and the amount of natural light that enters the living areas, as these will have a huge influence on the happiness of the inhabitants because people naturally need and crave the experiencing of natural settings, and when unable to be in nature will feel there is an impairment of their being and this is quite correct. So being able to see the sky through a window or greenery in the landscape, and a sense of the weather and sunlight especially will be reassuring and uplifting. With the ability to have those experiences go into the overall design of the framework for a dwelling, there are many elements of fine‑tuning that are possible within that basic floorplan to help the interior be the best in balance it can be and a positive contributor to human sensibilities. So the art of Feng Shui is in using various visual manipulations and choice of accoutrements that will provide variety and a proper balanced mix of colors and textures to have eye appeal as well as an inner feeling of peace and calm, if not upliftment, and ideally all three, so it can be a significant contributor to ongoing human happiness when this approach to interior design is practiced.