COMMERCE CITY — House cleansing practitioners like feng shui practitioner Eiko Okura say the best way to make the physical, backbreaking spring cleaning rite more meaningful is to pair it with an emotional ritual. The two acts can go hand in hand during this season of rebirth and renewal.
Okura charges $325 for a complete feng shui consultation, which includes space analysis, design advice and healing or cleansing ceremonies.
Some house cleansing happens naturally, when seasonal warmth prompts people to throw open doors and windows to let in freshness and light. Emotional cleansing goes one step further by encouraging residents to seek positive energy in their homes.
House cleansing rituals and symbols vary from one culture to the next. American Indians, for instance, burn dried sage to push out negative energy with its aromatic smoke.
More commonly, ceremonies use sound in the form of bells, drums or chanting. Candles, incense and herbs are also fixtures in cleansing ceremonies.
Okura mails notes to her clients each spring to encourage them to take stock, both of tangible gains from the past year, like a new computer, as well as any emotional or intellectual changes.
“It’s very important to know what you are getting rid of and what you are wanting to come back into your life,” Okura said. “If not, then you are always the victim of life’s circumstances.”
“Clients do not need to believe in feng shui for it to work,” the interior designer said. “You simply need to be willing to accept the unknown.”
Erin Payne of Denver does a house cleansing ceremony whenever her home needs it, not just in the spring.
The Isis Metaphysical Book Store clerk organizes, cleans, vacuums and dusts about once a week. But whenever she feels drained, she completes a full ritual with uplifting sounds (bells, drums or chanting) and aromas (incense, candles and herbs).
“Every inch of my home that hasn’t been looked at in months gets a metaphysical cleansing,” Payne said. “I’m usually exhausted when I’m done, but I’m much more at peace.”
San Diego feng shui expert Cathleen McCandless says people tend to request metaphysical house cleansing before or after moving, during romantic or professional challenges, or after someone has been ill or died in the home.
Ellen Whitehurst wrote “Make This Your Lucky Day: Fun and Easy Feng Shui Secrets to Success, Romance, Health, and Harmony ” (Ballantine, $13.95). She said house cleansing falls in line with the country’s current “greening.”
But in her book and seminars, Whitehurst distinguishes a “house blessing” from a “house cleansing.” A cleansing removes lingering psychological debris left by previous occupants. A “house blessing” calls for spiritual health and harmony in the home.
“(House blessings are) a unique and wonderful way to share your heart with someone, to say that you want them to have a wonderful life in their new home or office,” Whitehurst said. “I’ve even done dorm rooms.”
One common misconception is that a house cleansing is associated with the occult, but That’s untrue.
“Every single orthodoxy,” she said, “has a way of blessing a new addition, such as christening a child or christening a house.”
Sheba R. Wheeler: 303-954-1283 or swheeler@denverpost.com
Spiritual shelter
Anyone can perform an emotional house cleansing as long as the intent is to strengthen relationships and connect with nature.
Cathleen McCandless, the owner of San Diego Feng Shui, stresses that feng shui is not a religious practice but a study of people in their space. She provides clients with this do-it-yourself house cleansing list.
1. Do a traditional spring surface cleaning.
2. Open all doors and windows, including shades.
3. Take down negative photos.
4. Get rid of dead or dying plants.
5. Put out fresh flowers.
6. Light a candle.
7. Burn incense or use essential oils.
8. Put on inspiring music.
9. Say a prayer.
10. Declutter.
Ellen Whitehurst has blessed the homes of such celebrities as Joy Behar from “The View.” Her book, “Make This Your Lucky Day,” includes this advice for completing a house-blessing ceremony after moving into a new home.
1. Eastern traditions use water as a cleansing agent. Add nine pieces of orange peel the size of a quarter to a bowl of fresh water. Walk around inside the house in a clockwise direction, starting at the front door, flicking the water from the bowl everywhere from the ceiling to the baseboards.
2. Orthodox traditions call for clapping out bad energy that collects in the corner of each room. Everything in nature travels in a spiral, but energy can get stuck. Clap three times loudly in the corners to disperse the energy and then open doors and windows to allow the bad energy to leave.
3. A third option involves putting spring water in a regular spray bottle, then adding 10 drops each of lavender and tea tree essential oils. Both are known disinfectants and have antibacterial agents. Walk around the home spraying the mixture, especially in corners. If you use this method, it’s not necessary to open the windows and doors, as the oils will disperse and absorb any negativity. Sheba R. Wheeler
