How to: Choosing a good Feng Shui Consultant
Some key
considerations to take note on choosing a good
Feng Shui Consultant
by
Jon Sim
Recently,
I attended an old-friends gathering. During the
get together, one of them ask me this question
- How to go about choosing a good Feng Shui Consultant?
Well, I shared with them some pointer and we had
some pretty interesting discussion. So, I thought
I should share them with you too.
When
getting a house, most people will usually engage
the service of a Feng Shui consultant for an assessment
of their new home for good luck, especially the
young couples and first-timers. So, what are some
key considerations to take note? Here are some
common questions you may like to ask.
Question
#1: How much should I be paying?
In
the past, consultation fee are given in token
of Red Packet (no fixed price). But gone are the
red packet days... Today, cheque payment is probably
one of the most popular methods of payment. Some
even accept credit card and online payment.
So
how much is considered reasonable? In the market,
consultation fee can range from $488 to $1388
(for a HDB-4 room). Expect different rates for
different type and size of houses. In general,
consider first your budget on which you will be
comfortable with and then work around it but whatever
it is, make sure you employ a master who is trustworthy,
typically if you are engaging his service for
House Selection. Regret is not about how much
you pay for the consultation fee but for the price
you pay for the house. If the Feng Shui assessment
is wrongly done, you will have to stick to living
in a house with bad Feng Shui. It's not like buying
of clothes that you can easily buy another one
if you regret on the design you bought.
Question
#2: How do I know who to choose?
First
of all, don't have this wrong perception. Don't
assume that the most expensive one will offer
you the best and similarly, don't assume that
the older the master age is, the more skillful
he is.
Understand
which school of Feng Shui the master is from.
I am not going to explain too much on the technical
part and get you confused. But to note, traditional
Feng Shui can be generally categorized into San
Yuan or San He Feng Shui. Any others that employ
the use of talisman or religious rituals, those
do not belong to the traditional or pure Feng
Shui.
You
can or rather you should ask about their lineage,
the origins of their Feng Shui knowledge and skill.
It is common for many masters to tell you that
that skill is imparted to them from their parents
through grandparents but yet they never mention
names. A reputable school of Feng Shui with lineage
will always be open and feel honored to explain
to customers who they are, with proof of their
lineage or certificate of graduation. You can
then read up more on the lineage and decide on
their trustworthiness and dependability.
Question
#3: What do the service include?
Find
out what the package consists of.
Apart
from the assessment, does the package include
date-selection - the date & timing for Renovation
& Alteration of the house-layout and Actual Shifting-in.
And how are the dates actually selected? Are they
generic dates simply taken off the Almanac? When
we talk about date-selection, we look at detailed
& accurate dates. Here, we refer to advance Xuan
Kong Da Gua (XKDG) or Qimen dates. To base date
selection on the Almanac is not enough especially
if your house is affected by annual and monthly
affliction. So, remember to enquire on how the
date selection is done. Again, a trustworthy and
skillful master will be open to his customers.
Though they might not be able to explain the complex
technical part to you but they definitely can
tell you clearly the method (with names) they
are using e.g. XKDG. If one tell you, oh I am
using very special very special method and yet
not able to tell you clearly the name or term
of the method, it is fishy.
Is
there a final follow-up? All consultation should
generally provide you a report or house-layout
plan after the Feng Shui assessment. After which,
there must be a final follow-up inspection. This
is an important procedure which all masters must
practice, it is their professional responsibility.
Why? What is something went wrong during the renovation?
A final Feng Shui inspection has to be done to
ensure all things went well before the owner shift
in. You couldn't be the one doing the final inspection
yourself right? If you know how to, why engage
the master's service in the first place?
Question
#4: Will I need to buy additional Feng Shui items?
Apart
from the assessment, would you need to buy Feng
Shui items at additional cost? That would depend
on the Master you are engaging, what nature of
Feng Shui practice is he adopting. If you looking
at the pure Traditional Feng Shui, there is no
requirement for any additional Feng Shui items.
To
conclude: You pay for what you think it's deserving
and who you be happy working with. Most importantly
you be fair to yourself, you are the one paying
for the service afterall. So never be afraid to
ask. A trustworthy master must be approachable,
willing to share with you and open with their
background.
Last
but not least, at the end of the day, result is
what we are looking at. You may wish to find out
on the works the Feng Shui consultant has done,
the successful cases they have handled. Don't
just look at how big the project is but also how
many successful cases there were. Commercial projects
are usually subjected to confidentiality though.
Nonetheless, you can always ask around for feedback
from friends who have employed the consultant's
services.
Remember,
you are engaging the service to help improve and
better on your life.
Article
brought to you by Jon Sim, Art-of-Fengshui.com.
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