By Tess Whitehurst
There’s no question that L.A. has great weather and a beautiful natural environment, but so do nearby Laguna, Manhattan Beach and Port Hueneme. So then why did this particular location evolve into the thriving hub of Southern California and mecca for the film industry? Is it possible that the design of the city was based on auspicious feng shui principles?
If you try to answer that question based on the most familiar definition of feng shui—“the Chinese art of placement”—the answer is, of course, no. But, like so many western-adopted words, “feng shui” has evolved to encompass shades of meaning that go far beyond its country of origin. According to many practitioners, today’s feng shui merges practical wisdom and traditional modalities from a number of cultures with western psychology and modern sensibilities, all for the purpose of creating balance, beauty and harmonious functionality. And from that perspective the answer might be yes.
In the late 18th century, Felipe de Neve, the governor of Las Californias, drew up plans for El Pueblo de la Reina de los Angeles. According to Spanish law, throughout the planning he relied upon a document called Reglamento para el Gobierno de la Provincia de Californias. This document advised that one select an auspicious site for a town by observing wind direction, bodies of water, soil quality, elevation, cardinal directions and other factors. It also advised on where and how to place buildings, roads and irrigation systems so that the city would grow and flourish; and so that residents, and in turn their rulers (no doubt the crux of the matter), would prosper and thrive.
Where did all this feng shui-like wisdom originate? The Reglamento was written in accordance with another document called The Laws of the Indies, which was the book containing Spain’s laws for the establishment of their empire as it expanded throughout the Americas and Philippines. The Laws of the Indies was, in turn, based upon the work of Vitruvius, a Roman architect and engineer who lived during the first century B.C.E.
Vitruvius’ famed teachings of architecture, engineering and city planning, which he derived from a number of sources and put into writing to help with the establishment of new cities in the Roman Empire, not only mirror ancient China’s feng shui principles in a number of ways, but also incorporate the principles of western astrology, classical polytheism and sacred geometry. By some calculations, Vitruvius might even be considered the feng shui master of the Roman Empire. Some of his most basic teachings—the “feng shui” wisdom taught by the man behind the guidelines that dictated the initial planning and construction of El Pueblo de la Reina de los Angeles are below.
• Harmony with Nature. Vitruvius was adamant that architects/engineers be versed in all the sciences, including the philosophy and physics of the natural world. He believed they should work with nature rather than against it, so that they would “be able to guard against the damage they do.” He also stated that, “All machinery is derived from nature, and is founded on the teaching and instruction of the revolution of the firmament.”
• Symmetria. According to Vitruvian scholar Thomas Gordon Smith, Vitruvius’ symmetria “is a concept of interconnected elements calibrated to create a sense of beauty that comes from wholeness and harmony of proportion.” Notice how, word for word, this definition could easily describe feng shui.
• Dispositio. The Vitruvian concept of dispositio can be understood to be, in many ways, the same as the application of feng shui “cures.” It has to do with observing what you’re working with (land, materials and surrounding areas) and making changes in dimension and form that help create the appearance of balance and harmony.
• Décor. Applying the Vitruvian concept of décor meant choosing shapes, placement and lighting that enhanced both the nature and purpose of the project. For example, when building a temple or structure that would be consecrated to a specific god or goddess, the architecture and design would reflect the personalities and qualities associated with that divinity—delicate and floral for structures dedicated to Venus or the nymphs, open to the sky for Jupiter, sturdy for Hercules and so on.
Light also played a part in the concept of décor. For example, Vitruvius stated, “There will also be décor of nature in using eastern light for bedrooms and libraries, light from the southwest setting of the sun for baths and winter apartments, and northern light for picture galleries and other places in which a steady light is needed, for that quarter of the sky grows neither light nor dark with the course of the sun but remains steady and unshifting all day long.” Elements of these same principles are used in sustainable building today.
• Firmitas, Utilitas, Venustas. Vitruvius believed that quality architecture and engineering must be governed by three key principles: firmitas (strength, durability), utilitas (usefulness, functionality) and venustas (beauty).
• Musical Harmony of the Stars. An understanding of musical principles was a prerequisite for the serious engineer, according to Vitruvius, for a number of reasons. The placement of resonant vases in a theater or temple, for example, could be precisely calibrated in order to create impeccable acoustics. Mathematical precision and musical theory might also come into play; when planning a theater, Vitruvius suggests that the architect inscribe four triangles within a circle, “as the astrologers do in a figure of the twelve signs of the zodiac, when they are making computations from the musical harmony of the stars.”
Did the incorporation of alchemical principles cause the humble little Los Angeles pueblo to eventually transform into a raging, affluent metropolis? It probably didn’t hurt. Neither did it apparently hurt in the success of San Francisco, Sonoma, Monterey, San Jose, Tucson, Albuquerque, Santa Fe or San Antonio, all of which were planned and constructed in accordance with the feng shui-like, Vitruvian guidelines contained in the Reglamento.
Tess Whitehurst is a Los Angeles-based feng shui consultant. Her first book, Magical Housekeeping, will be published by Llewellyn Worldwide in the spring. Visit her at www.tesswhitehurst.com or www.fengshuimama.com.
Photo courtesy of Ron Reiring
