Sleep Talk Blog, Health & Wellbeing
Feng Shui Bedroom Rules Uncovered, Why the Bed Can’t Face the Door
Sep
Table of Contents
Feng Shui Bedroom
The number one good feng shui (pronounced "fung shway") bedroom layout is with the so-called feng shui commanding position of the bed.
The bed can't directly face the door. That's not something we're telling you. No, it's one of the basic rules of Feng shui, the ancient Chinese art and science of creating harmonious environments based on understanding our connection to them and how they affect us. The science concerns itself with chi (the energy of life) and introduces positive changes to open up energy channels, strengthening one's power.
In this guide, we will explore it, including why you can't sleep in line with the door and how you can use it in your own bedroom.
What are the basic principles of Feng Shui Bedroom Rules?
One of the most basic Feng Shui principles and one of the most important ones is the commanding position. It's easy to implement, and you should apply it to the bed, which represents you; to the desk — which is work; and to the stove, which is your wealth and how you nourish yourself in the world. The commanding position rule is that you should face the door without being directly in line with it, i.e., you want to see the door but not be directly in line with it.
There are eight baguas (energy areas), which form an energy map that you superimpose onto the floor plan of your home. The baguas are all configured around the centre, the centre representing overall health and wellness. Each bagua represents one of the following areas of your life:
- Family.
- Wealth and prosperity.
- Health.
- Helpful people.
- Children.
- Knowledge.
- Fame.
- Career.
- Partnerships.
It's best not to address all eight areas at once. Instead, choose the three areas that need the most attention in your life. Work with them in the corresponding position of your home to trigger the energy.
There are also five interdependent elements: wood, fire, water, metal, and earth. Each element corresponds to a different Bagua and must be balanced with the other elements. They all have their qualities, including shapes and colours, that we should associate with them. You can improve an area by identifying the relevant elements and adding something that embodies that element's energy, e.g., a flat, brown rug to bring some earth energy to the room.
Why you shouldn't sleep in line with the door
Positioning your bed in line with the door is the worst possible position, according to the principles of Feng shui. People who practice Feng shui call it the 'dead man's position' or the 'coffin position' because the feet or head face the door and resemble how we carry the dead through open doors from the house. This is a position to avoid at all costs if you can.
Chi enters rooms through the doors and windows. Sleeping directly in line with the door places you right in the pathway of all the forces that enter the bedroom. You should feel safe and secure when sleeping, not worried and vulnerable. If you find yourself sleeping directly opposite the door, you can add a footboard to your bed to increase safety and security.
A footboard isn't always ideal in this scenario, however. You may feel trapped by the footboard or not have the necessary space for one. Maybe a footboard isn't your style or doesn't fit in with the design of your room. Other options include creating a 'shield' by placing a chest at the end of your bed filled with heavy blankets or placing a low screen between the bed and the door. It would be best to put a mirror on the sidewall to see anyone entering the bedroom.
A note on other positions to avoid when it comes to the bedroom Feng Shui
The chi needs to flow; you shouldn't position your bed under a sloping ceiling or a dormer-style one. Avoid placing it under any fan, chandelier, or pendant light. All of this creates pressure. The presence of the bed under a beam cuts the room's energy. Note that paintings above your bed can also disturb the quality of your sleep.
The command position reigns supreme in Feng shui, and you should be able to see the entrance to the room, even though you're not in line with it. Because of this, you should not position the bed along an entrance wall, nor should it go against a party wall. It would be best to have maximum support, which means the bed should be against a solid wall and not go in front of a window.
Feng Shui Bedroom solutions for unfavourable positions
What if you can't avoid an unfavourable position? The good news is it doesn't mean everything's over for your Feng shui. You can still minimise the energy disturbance in the room and let the chi contribute to your well-being. We've already discussed the importance of the command position and what to do if you can't achieve it, so let's look at what to do when you can't avoid other chi-disturbing circumstances.
Bed in front of a window
You never want to have your bed in front of a window if you can avoid it because the energy entering through the window will disrupt sleep. When you find yourself in a situation where the bed must go in front of a window, try to find a high bed. The bed should have a headboard that lends solid support. It would help if you could also walk around the bed so that energy could move freely.
Bed beneath beams
Not only does placing the bed beneath a beam create pressure and dissect the energy, but it can also make you ill because the beam cuts across your body. You certainly don't want that, so if you have no choice but to position your bed beneath a beam or a set of beams, suspend two flutes with red ribbons above it. Angle the ribbons so that the open ends are pointing upwards. This interrupts the beam's cutting effect and allows the energy to flow into the flutes and away from you.
Bed and bathroom door
You never want to face a bathroom door. In Feng shui, bathrooms are where energy leaves the house. The water element's presence — which represents wealth, prosperity, and cash flow — suggests they have good energy. Still, because germs can gather in the toilet area, this part of the house also experiences disturbances to its energy.
If your bed really must face the bathroom door, you should close both the bathroom and bedroom doors. Hang a mirror on the inside of the door facing the bathroom. The mirror will reflect any negative energy leaving the bathroom back into it.
How to Feng Shui your bedroom
There's a lot more to organising your bedroom Feng shui style and managing the life energy flow in your room. Here are some more ways to manage bedroom chi:
Add a headboard
Headboards are an essential element in bedroom Feng shui. They symbolise strength and stability in life, especially in romantic relationships. There should be no perforations in the headboard, so ideally, you should have a solid wood headboard and/or an upholstered one rather than a prison-like bar-style one. It would be best to securely fasten the headboard to the bed to enjoy the most support and strength. Your headboard should also have solid backing, so you should place the bed close to the wall.
Detoxify and declutter your bedroom
Detoxification is important. You want to remove as many chemicals and toxic elements from your bedroom as possible and replace them with organic ones. Using green products and non-toxic cleaning products is a good start. Such products could include organic linen and sleepwear, which leak toxins and gas into our skin. Infusing the room with some sweet, orange oil can lift the room's energy and make it smell slightly nicer.
Clutter is another element to address. Start by looking under your bed. The clutter under there may affect you while you sleep by causing subconscious blocks in your life—letters from an ex, for instance, may influence your current relationship status. The luggage underneath your bed could make you feel as if you're never quite at home. The best-case scenario, Feng shui wise, is to have a clear space under the bed so that the energy can flow freely. Failing that, store only linens and blankets under your bed.
Use Feng Shui-friendly colours.
Different colours take on another significance in Feng shui. It all depends on what you want to achieve with the Feng shui in your bedroom. Light neutral colours, like earthy colours, encourage restful sleep and provide extra support and relaxation. Splashes of red are the way to go if you're looking for more passion, whereas pinks and peaches are the order of the day if you're focusing on partnerships and attracting your soulmate. Meanwhile, blues and greens can promote health and vitality.
Choose restful art
The artwork in our bedrooms speaks volumes about our private lives. If you're looking to attract a partner, and although you should keep in line with your tastes, no artwork you place in the room should depict solo persons or solo objects. When practicing Feng shui with painting in your bedroom, there should be an element of 'pair' about the piece(s). You should also save family photos for other rooms. Keeping the artwork at eye level or higher can increase life force energy.
Lessen the electromagnetic fields in the room.
Electric devices and power lines create electromagnetic fields (EMFs), which can harm your well-being and quality of sleep. When you're having trouble sleeping, you want as few electronic devices as possible. How do you stay entertained? Go back to basics and read. Are you worried about sleeping in for work? Leave your phone outside the room and use an alarm clock instead.
If you keep a television set in your room, cover it up or put it in a cupboard when you've finished using it. This goes for laptops, too. Close the computer and then put it away. In any case, a bedroom should be a place of rest, not work, and you shouldn't have a desk in your bedroom if you want to optimise the space for good chi.
Change the bed
If you or your partner has been seriously ill, this will have brought negative energy into the room. As a result, you'll have to think about changing your bed to get rid of it. If you've found a new partner and have decided to live together, be mindful of any predecessor chi.
Other Feng Shui taboos
As you've seen, the bed's positioning is vital in Feng shui. It's not just about the bed being out of line with the door. There are further Feng shui no-nos besides the ones above. Here are some more Feng shui faux pas to avoid:
Head facing the wall behind a toilet bowl
According to Feng shui principles, when a bed faces the toilet door, the position can cause the loss of wealth and damage the bones and muscles. This is because of the foul smell, moisture, and germs associated with the toilet. If you have a bed on one side of the wall and directly on the other side of the toilet bowl, the position can create confusion, lead to headaches, and cause loss of concentration.
The bed above the toilet or the stove
As you might have guessed, any positioning that leaves the bed in line with the toilet is terrible Feng shui. If you have a downstairs toilet, be careful not to position a bed above it because of its impact on your health. Placing the bed above the stove can harm your liver as it increases the fire element.
Air con above the bed
Air conditioning may provide comfort, but it's not good if it's directly above your bed. The cold air will move towards your body, and your pores will open slightly. This can lead to stiffness, headaches, and colds. Avoid if possible.
Feng shui is an ancient practice designed to enhance your well-being and, in general, your life, based on understanding the connections between ourselves, our environments and how these affect us. A bedroom is a place of relaxation. You can implement Feng shui to manage the room's energy to improve your well-being and life. It's worth a try, and remember, your bed should never be in line with the door.