In the West feng shui is generally called the art of placement. However, as traditionally used in Chinese and Japanese military and business strategies, feng shui is also an art of timing. Time is inextricably tied to space; time moves through space; there is no time without space.
Timing is the essence of strategy. Successful strategy involves discerning patterns and rhythms of change, and seizing the right moment for action. Feng shui is a study of the patterns of chi that enables one to manifest optimum conditions in one’s environment.
Time implies change. In Chinese philosophy the principle of change is called chi. Chi moves in space. Time moves in space. Chi is cyclical. Change is cyclical. Cyclical changes are seen most readily in the seasons and the times of day.
Chi expresses its cyclical nature through two alternating phases, called yin and yang. Think of yin and yang as minus and plus, night and day, winter and summer, north and south, down and up.
In Chinese philosophy the cycle of chi is inseparably linked with the concepts of the Tao, the Tai Chi, or Great Ultimate, and the five elements: Water, Wood, Fire, Earth, and Metal.
Following Chinese philosophy, knowledge of the Tao and the Great Ultimate is central to the art of strategy. Lao Tzu alluded to this, saying, “Thirty spokes unite about one nave; but it is on that empty space that the use of the wheel depends.” The Great Ultimate is calm and clear in the midst of change. When you truly center yourself, you are at one with the Great Ultimate. Acting in accord with the Great Ultimate, you are in accord with the Tao; and being in accord with the Tao, you have all the elements and processes of creation available to you. As Lao Tzu said, “Tao is the storehouse of all things,” and “Tao produces all things.”
The Tao
Tao literally means “the way.” It is that which is common to everything in the universe. Tao is absolute reality, the true meaning of which is beyond words. It is the essence of your very being. Lao Tzu says of Tao,
There was something undefined yet complete before heaven and earth. Still and formless, it stands alone and undergoes no change.
It reaches everywhere and is inexhaustible. It may be regarded as the mother of the universe. I do not know its name. I call it Tao.
Making an effort further to name it, I call it the Great. Great, it goes far. Having gone far, it returns to the point of origin. Therefore the Tao is great.
The Tai Qi, or the great ultimate
It is said that Tao produced the One. What is meant by the One is the Tai Chi, or Great Ultimate. The Great Ultimate and Tao are essentially one thing seen two ways. Tao implies absolute reality; the Great Ultimate implies relativity. Chuang Tzu calls the Great Ultimate “the pivot of the Tao.” The pivot implies turning; turning implies opposites. Opposites are relative to each other. The Great Ultimate, therefore, is the ground of relativity. In terms of personal experience the Great Ultimate represents the ability to perceive differences and similarities and to establish relative values. Essentially, the Great Ultimate denotes the faculty of perception itself. If the Tao is the essence of your being, the Great Ultimate is your awareness of being.
