From an Article Written by Nancy Canestaro, D. Arch. first published in Natural Awakenings, November, 2009.
To locate the best areas in your home or workplace to spend time, first determine your element from the listing in the Personal Trigrams Chart (see the attached PDF at the bottom). There are 8 trigrams from the Yijing, Book of Changes (called, Zhen, Xun, Li, Kun, Gen, Qian, Dui, Kan, based on the pronunciation of the Chinese characters). Zhen and Xun are wood energies from the Five Elements. Li is fire. Kun and Gen are earth. Qian and Dui are metal. Kan is water.
How to Read the Charts…
To use the Personal Trigrams Chart, scroll down to the year you were born. (Remember, the Chinese New Year begins on February 4th or 5th. Someone born between January 1 and February 4th to 5th, actually belongs in the previous year in this system. For example, a woman born on February 1, 1948, actually was born in 1947 according to the Chinese Solar Calendar and her Personal Trigram would be Dui/Metal, not Gen/Earth.)
How to Use the Information…
If possible, spend time in one of your three best directions. The directions are rank ordered, with the best direction for sleep (or work) noted first, then the second best direction noted next, and the third best given last. All three directions work. It’s just that the best direction comes first.
Three Best Directions for Sleep or Restful Activity in Rank Order…
East Group (All Trigrams in the set share the same directions, just a different ranking)
Kan/N/Water/1 N S E
Zhen/E/Hard Wood/3 E SE N
Xun/SE/Soft Wood/4 SE E S
Li/S/Fire/9 S N SE
West Group (All Trigrams in the set share the same directions, just a different ranking)
Kun/SW/Earth/2 SW NW W
Qian/NW/Metal/6 NW SW NE
Dui/W/Metal/7 W NE SW
Gen/NE/Earth/8 NE W NW
Three Best Directions for Work or Activities in Rank Order…
East Group (All Trigrams in the set share the same directions, just a different order)
Kan/N/Water/1 SE E S
Zhen/E/Wood/3 S N SE
Xun/SE/Wood/4 N S E
Li/S/Fire/9 E SE N
West Group (All Trigrams in the set share the same directions, just a different order)
Kun/SW/Earth/2 NE W NW
Qian/NW/Metal/6 W NE SW
Dui/W/Metal/7 NW SW NE
Gen/NE/Earth/8 SW NW W
Download a PDF version of this article…Best Directions (with Personal Trigrams Chart) for Sleep or Work