hema

Developers who build according to Vaastu guidelines can make more profit selling fewer houses.

Builders and real estate negotiators should understand that the ancient science could be incorporated into their site and house designs without compromising on their profits.

In India, several new housing schemes in Jaipur and Chennai have included Vaastu principles in their projects and have attracted a strong response from house buyers.

During the Vedic period (2500BCE-200CE), the Indo-Aryans used Vaastu in town planning to shape settlements into various categories, depending upon the characteristics of the population.

Vaastu was applied not only to residential buildings and temples but also military barracks, marketplaces, ports, administration buildings and palaces. Many of these places have stood the test of time.

Vaastu goes beyond architecture: great masters have recorded that its principles encompass the geological, geophysical and, above all, cosmological and celestial aspects.

The demands of Vaastu and Feng Shui from China for housing developments are logical and both the sciences encourage developers to be more conscious of the environment when putting up structures.

Incidents of housing schemes that are abandoned half way through construction, landslides and mishaps occurring at the construction stage, and completed houses that prove difficult to sell could be attributed to poor Vaastu practices and builders being insensitive to the environment.

• When selecting a site, developers should choose land that is square or rectangular in shape and ensure that the land is higher than or at the same level as the road.
• Also, the land should be fertile and the soil colours should be black, pale green, yellow or red. Land infested with ant and worm hills should be avoided.
• Having natural bodies of water like a river, lake, pond or waterfall located in the northern and eastern stretch of the land is favourable because this will create tranquillity and a pleasant environment.
• Such features in the western and southern quadrants of the land are inauspicious and residents will fall sick frequently and experience dullness.
• Ideally, tall structures like apartments and condominiums should be placed in the southern and western quadrants and the north-eastern area should be allocated for a park, playground, field, swimming pool or manmade lake.
• A row of terrace or individual houses should have roads on all four sides.
• Avoid placing garbage bins in the north-east (spiritual corner) and south-west (prosperity quadrant). Recommended quadrants are north-west and south-east.
• Drainage outlets at the site should be located in the north-west and south-east and sewage pond should not be located in the south-west and north-east.
• Developers should not build houses at the T-junction because such an inauspicious location will not benefit the dweller owing to the negative flow of energy hitting the house.
• Any land that faces a T or Y junction should be turned into a playground, garden or park.
• For the interior of the house, the main door should be located in the centre, and all locations are fine except the south-west.
• Architects should design the master bedroom so that it spans the southern and western region of the house and place the kitchen in the south-east or north-west.

Most of the Vaastu recommendations can be included in the site plan easily; the biggest challenge for developers would be reducing the number of houses built on certain portions of the land to ensure the designation of amenities are Vaastu friendly.

Feng shui consultant Henry Fong, is of the opinion that incorporating Feng Shui compliance into a housing development could mean developers might have to spend more money or perhaps even end up with fewer houses to sell.

However, this can be offset easily by selling the houses faster (to buyers who believe in feng shui) and, likely, at a higher price.

Fong said, in feng shui, the location of the surrounding “mountain” and “water” in relation to the house is very important.

“The placement of the main door, kitchen and bedrooms is also a key factor and it would be great if the houses are designed based on the ancient rules.”

Residents staying in housing schemes that comply with Vaastu or Feng Shui principles can be assured of health, wealth, happiness and peace of mind.