Make Your Kitchen a Prosperity Magnet
by Melissa Cook • New York City

Prepare to open your “feng shui eyes” to attract more prosperity and creativity into your life.
Once you do, you won’t take your personal spaces for granted ever again. That’s because feng shui (pronounced fung shway) wakes up what you intuitively already know—that the way we live is a reflection of who we are.

Feng Shui is the ancient Chinese practice of arranging our physical environments to enhance the quality of our lives. Room layouts, design, décor, colors, shapes, symbols, possessions, and personal intentions all affect how we live in a space.

When you begin to see how your environment can affect your quality of life, then you will learn how to make your living space an active partner in your life to effect positive change. For example, kitchens are ancient symbols of prosperity. They are the place where we prepare the food that nourishes the family. When we eat well and maintain good health, we can more easily attract abundance.

Here are a few simple tips that can make your kitchen a “prosperity magnet.” The central focus of your kitchen should be the stove, which in feng shui is associated with prosperity because it radiates life-affirming energy. Magnify the radiant effect of your stove’s burners by placing a mirror behind the stove. If your stove isn’t against a wall, place a steel kettle on the burner: It will achieve the same reflective effect. To enhance the power of your stove, use all of your burners regularly when cooking. We sometimes get in the habit of using the same two burners over and over again.

In addition, keep your countertops clean and neat and ready for the next meal. Ask yourself if you have adequate room to prepare meals. If you don’t, put away or let go of appliances that you don’t use at least a couple of times a week.

When cooking, make sure you’re in “the command position,” which in feng shui means having a view of the door. If you don’t have a view of the door from your stove, hang a mirror so that it reflects the doorway. The command position confers power and it’s the safest position to work in.

Because our kitchens are associated with health and well-being, put away knives and trash. The sharp edges of knives emit sharp arrows of energy that can actually push prosperity away. If the first thing
we see upon entering a kitchen is an open trash receptical, then all our efforts to summon prosperity may go into the trash! Either use a bin that has a top or place your trash can behind closed doors.

Avoid standing under heavy pots and pans that are suspended on a rack over your head. Pots and pans in this position push energy downward and can affect your physical well-being depending on how long you stand under them. You can get headaches or shoulder pain and even lose your concentration.

Flowing water is also a symbol of prosperity, but if it’s flowing down the drain, your prosperity may flow along with it! Fix dripping faucets as soon as possible.

Place symbols of health and prosperity in your kitchen. A colorful arrangement of fruit or flowers, artwork that represents health and well-being, photos of you and your family feeling their best, or a personal symbol that lifts your spirits can all act as energetic focal points that attract positive energy. The end result is a kitchen that enhances your feeling of prosperity.

Melissa Cook is a graduate of the Western School of Feng Shui and the Parsons School of Design. She is the founder of Inner Vision Feng Shui, which consults for homes and businesses. She may be reached at
(212) 876-7483 or (631) 653-8583 and by e-mail at innervisionfengshui@yahoo.com.