It was a businessman who was at his wit's end who approached me after a recent corporate talk I did for a long-term client of mine.

“Master Joey Yap, I really  need to ask you something about my house,” he blurted.

“I have had so many bad things happen to my family.

“I had a near-death experience when I had a freak accident just few weeks ago. My car was a total wreck I was glad to get away with minor injuries.

“My financial situation is also a mess. I had invested a lot in acquiring a project for which I was the main contractor but at the eleventh hour, the project was given to a competitor.

“I can't even begin to explain how much stress this has all caused me. And it's all because of this Six Harms Water.”

The gentleman in question, let's call him John, had apparently had his property Feng Shui'ed by a friend. The friend had attended a feng shui  practitioner's course conducted by a local Master.

The friend was keen to put his knowledge to practice, especially after having paid a fortune to learn certain “secret techniques” that were supposedly taught to select students.

After looking around his house, John was told by his friend that he had a Six Harms Water Liu Hai Shui  problem.

Six Harms Water is based on the concept that houses facing a certain direction, should they have a water entrance (such as a drain or a road), coming in at a particular direction, will violate the San He Water formula.

The theoretical effects of the Six Harms Water include sabotage, backstabbing and lots of destructive rivalry and unhealthy competition.

Big name, but no real power

The Six Harms Water theory is a theory culled from a book published by a Taiwanese author, Master Kung Ren Zhang.

Copies of this book can be bought for less than RM80 at any reputable Chinese bookstore that carries books Chinese Metaphysics.

Now, the name sounds drastic and frightening, which no doubt explained John's panic.

In fact, Six Harms Water (see diagram) is not a Feng Shui formula but a theory extracted from BaZi  application. For those of you who are not familiar with the term, BaZi  is a form of Chinese Astrology.

The theory, as described in the Taiwanese book by Master Kung, entitled Essentials of Yang Dwellings , was not meant to be a water and road assessment method for feng shui  application.

This fact was verified by the author himself when I spoke to him a number of years ago during the course of my research.

He had included the formula in his book only as a matter of completeness but has never indicated that it was an appropriate Water method for feng shui  application or that there were documented results to support its application.

San He Water Formulas came under two categories – the Shuang Xiang Double Mountains and Fu Xing Fan Gua Shui Fa  Assistant Star Transformation.

Both these groups have sub-categories but Six Harms Water Liu Shai Shui  is not mentioned in any of these original San He  classics.

Furthermore, San He  formulas – unlike the Six Harms Water – are based on the concept of Zheng Yang Zheng Yin  principles. You need to understand why does it work?

In what situations do you apply it and in what situations would it be detrimental to apply this knowledge.

So is there such a thing as Six Harms?

Yes there is, but not “Six Harms Water”. The ‘Six Harms' is in fact a concept used in BaZi  studies.

Hence, it is only applicable to a person's BaZi (destiny) chart – it is meant to be used when analyzing a person's life.

Although BaZi  and feng shui  complement each other, they are still separate studies. Taking a BaZi  concept and applying it as a Feng Shui  formula is like trying to play tennis with a badminton racquet.

So in fact, this Six Harms Water theory is just a big name, with no real substance to it. It's not even a correct theory for Feng Shui application.

Now, back to John and his problems. Once I managed to get him away from the paranoia about the Six Harms Water, I was able to give him the proper feng shui  explanation for his problems.

It seems that John had inadvertently undertaken minor renovations in the Northwest part of his home this year. The Northwest, in 2005, is where the malignant 5 Yellow Star is located.

This star, aggravated when the renovations took place in the area, brought about all the negative effects and resulted in all of John's problems.

Once February 4, 2006 rolls around things should improve and get better.

Trade secrets available at the corner bookstore

As for John's friend who had paid a fortune to find out the secret assessment technique, the fact is that he had been royally duped.

He paid for something which is not only an open “secret” but is openly available for a fraction of the price at the corner Chinese bookstore.

So I gave John the book that contained the Six Harms Water method along with the other water formulas that the friend had purportedly learnt from the expensive Feng Shui class, like Yang Ren  (Frightened Goat Water) and Wu Gui Yun Cai  (Five Ghost Carry Treasure).

Hopefully, he will be able to gain a better understanding of and insight into San He  by reading the source itself.

Incidentally, if John's friend had been familiar with BaZi , he might have perhaps been suspicious then of the formula.

BaZi  and Feng Shui  in fact complement each other and most professional Feng Shui  consultants will use BaZi  in tandem with their Feng Shui  consultations.

There are no “secret techniques” or “secret formulas” in the study of Feng Shui  any more.

People are seduced by the idea, no doubt from the many years of watching Cantonese TV serials where guild trade secrets, from Kungfu to Feng Shui , are passed from teacher sifu  to student or disciple, when the teacher is on his or her deathbed, in the form of some papyrus paper book.

It looks romantic on TV, but honestly, it doesn't happen that way anymore. Even Shaolin Kungfu today is taught to anyone and everyone, as long as tuition is paid. What more Feng Shui  secrets?

The real value lies not in the formulas themselves , but in the interpretation and application of these formulas. That information is rarely found in books.

The true trade secrets of the industry are the knowledge, judgment, skill and experience of a teacher in using these formulas, in the appropriate circumstances, and knowing how to apply them in tandem with the landforms in the area.

Someone who possesses a formula may not always possess the wisdom and knowledge of how that formula should be used.

If you do pay for information, it should be for information on the application and theoretical reasoning of that formula, rather than just the raw information.

Most of these secret formulas sold at exorbitant prices are found usually almost word-for-word from easily available Chinese books.

If you do intend to study Feng Shui  or Chinese Metaphysics, and find yourself paying for sheets of paper with directions or placements but no information to qualify these formulas (such as where it can be applied, when does it not work, why will it work, what's the reasoning behind it and, more importantly, what is the origin, etc), you should be suspicious.

A good consultant in any field, is well-versed with the theory behind the practice, and the practice behind the theory. Chinese Metaphysics, like any other science of repute, is a scholarly and practical science.

Remember, just as a flapping white coat should never be evidence of a doctor's expertise and ability, so a Chinese collar and white hair are not evidence of superior knowledge or wisdom in a Feng Shui master.