For Thanksgiving, invite all the blessings of the earth element
Traditionally, Thanksgiving has been the most ingrained and domestic holiday with earth as the dominant element according to feng shui principles. The current trend of turning it into a business holiday by opening stores on Thanksgiving is unfortunate and contrary to its inherent meaning.
Tao connections, derived from historical data, remind us that Thanksgiving is a holiday to connect with nature giving thanks for an abundant harvest, but also to get closer and connect with indigenous habits and inhabitants. The Pilgrims and Plymouth Rock are commemorated as the first Thanksgiving Day celebrated in 1621, then declared a national holiday by President Lincoln in 1865. However, historical data points to an earlier Thanksgiving celebration on 9 December. September 1565 in St. Augustine, Florida, the city founded by Pedro Menéndez de Avilés 52 years after Ponce de León discovered the First Coast in 1513. It is possible that the pilgrims of 1621 did not eat turkey, but it has been documented that the Spaniards in San Agustín, celebrating with the Tumucua Indians, ate wild turkey, crocodile and cooked. In honor of what our ancestors accomplished, Thanksgiving must remain a holiday to uphold peace and togetherness, stability and nurture.
Fall is the harvest and gathering season as we begin to think about moving indoors. The threshold is the transition space in this migration from the outside to the inside. It is interesting to note that our entrances are the most decorated and celebrated spaces in the fall season. Even those who never use the front door, because the garage or side door is more convenient, suddenly turn their attention to the front entrance.
Somehow all the senses get their due with our fall decorations. We show symbols of harvest and abundance, pumpkins and corn, maybe even grape leaves. We light up because the darkness of the afternoon begins to appear. We indulge in the generosity of Mother Earth as we come together and nurture friendship and family relationships. Our mommies, pumpkins, corn and straw decorations are all earth colors. We salivate at the prospect of a crispy turkey with stuffing, pumpkin, and pumpkin pie. Yellow and gold dominate. Pumpkins in their many variations are vessels of the earth element. The bottle gourd has long been a Chinese symbol of self-containment and self-reliance. The gourd, signifying an abundance of blessings, appears in many ancient paintings from Taoist and Buddhist traditions. Displaying a dried pumpkin in and around the house bodes well.
With our Thanksgiving holiday we observe and receive all the benefits and blessings of the earth element. The closer we are to the earth and nature, the more integrated we will be with life. The people of yesteryear were integrated with their environment. The food they ate was freshly harvested; the objects they made were local, vines to make baskets, gourds for pots, straw for mats. Earth is the only element of which there is no shortage in the whole world, including the qi energy of the earth. Earth represents a stability based on earth and is the fundamental element from which everything else is born. It is from the support of the earth that wood grows. Earth helps retain water for life to occur. When we refine the earth, we find metal. And if we dig deep enough, we find underground caverns of molten fire. When land meets land, mountain ranges are formed.
Feng Shui Tips for Thanksgiving
• Prepare for Thanksgiving with a short meditation to help you feel grounded and centered.
• Savor all the sensory experiences of Thanksgiving by allowing time for each one and not getting carried away to the point of excess.
• With land as the dominant element, consider adding the other elements that sustain land in the productive cycle.
• Remember that square shapes, where appropriate, are grounding and stabilizing
• Add flowers and vegetables to the wood
• Add fire with tea lights, candles, and indirect lighting to create a mood
• Everything white and round is metal, as well as accessories in gold and silver.
• Your best drink glass will add water
• Add symbols that connect with nature
• Activate the three bagua sectors that resonate with the earth element: health in the center, relationships in the far right, and self-cultivation with wisdom and knowledge in the lower left.
• Add more water by taking a moment of introspection and reflection with gratitude to our ancestors for granting us a tradition that honors the togetherness and blessings of this land.
