By Kartar Diamond

We've seen some pretty impressive compasses in the movies recently. Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean has a compass which points to lost treasures like the Black Pearl. And in the The Golden Compass , it provides a portal to another dimension.

In the summer of 2008 Bejing Olympics, the stunning opening ceremonies included a presentation honoring the origin of the compass, which was invented by the Chinese, and no less revolutionary than their invention of paper.

And yet, we now have some Feng Shui practitioners in the Western world who do not even think that the compass is relevant in a modern day evaluation. This of course is mostly propaganda, spread by marketing entities who want to sell the dumbed-down version of Feng Shui, which can be learned in a weekend course.

In truth, the use of the compass in a Feng Shui analysis reveals so much pertinent and personal information about the space that it makes my head spin to think that some people consider the compass calculations to be arcane or only useful in the building of new structures.

In contrast, a company in Portland , Oregon has just manufactured a computerized compass the size of a cell phone, with pre-programmed calculations to make the modern Feng Shui consultant's job easier. They just need to point the electronic compass at the house or building in question, with instantaneous read-outs of what kind of chi exists in these areas.

Life is full of comparisons, and is the root of Yin-Yang theory which includes the study of opposites and extremes. Directions are also relative comparisons as well. Your “east” is someone else's “west.” Without using a compass, 75% of the information available to us in Feng Shui cannot be revealed. One timely example is the fact that everyone has a “Consumer” direction, based on their birth year. If you should happen to sleep with your head pointing in that direction or enter your house in that direction, it can make it harder to save money and the direction will also drain you of your energy. In these difficult economic times, that certainly doesn't sound like an irrelevant or arcane piece of information. Just knowing about this Consumer direction and where it is located in one's house, a person can avoid it altogether or use certain remedies to compensate.

There are many instances where a specific direction will affect the quality of your sleep, your overall health and energy levels, your ability to attract or repel relationships or career luck, as well as directions that can help you win a lawsuit or avoid a burglary! The last time I checked, these were all things that people were still interested in or affected by, and not circumstances that were only a part of ancient Chinese history.

Learning how to use a compass might take all of five minutes and in my books there are sections on how to take an accurate reading. There are just a few precautions to be aware of, such as not standing too close to any metal objects, like cars, when taking a reading.

Once you know what direction a structure faces, all the directions can be identified within the floor plan, which can serve as a map to where one's best and worst directions are located.

To conclude with a general tip for 2009: It is the Year of the Ox and the Ox direction is associated with North/Northeast. It is a 15-degree sector that ranges from 23-37 degrees on the compass. If you stand in the middle of your home with a compass and walk a straight line to Northeast, you will see what area this is in your personal space.

The Ox direction of your home is not a good area to remodel or demolish in 2009 as it could bring on extra delays or accidents. At the same time, we happen to be living in an Era (Period 8 from 2004-2023) when the whole direction of Northeast (23-67 degrees) is considered very strong and receiving good energy over this 20 year period. Keeping the Northeast section of your home or business very clean and organized is one way to harness this good energy and attract even more.

For more information on traditional feng shui and Kartar Diamond’s services, go www.FengShuiSolutions.net    Her latest book, The Feng Shui Matrix: Another Way to Inherit the Earth includes many techniques for increasing your personal wealth and creativity.

© Melt Magazine 2009