Space and flow are important factors for virtually any environment. Typically, design concepts such as Feng Shui are reserved for indoor spaces like homes and offices. But did you know you can apply Feng Shui to outdoor spaces too?
And not just smaller personal outdoor spaces. In fact, Brookfield Residential was curious how Rockland Park measured up to many of the aspects that make up Feng Shui. To say the least, we were pleasantly surprised!
Brookfield Residential worked closely with subject matter experts, including the Vision Times (Calgary’s largest circulating Chinese-language newspaper), to better understand how Feng Shui can affect an entire community, and what parts of Rockland Park put the many facets of this practice into action.
Rockland Park’s “Jade Belt”
“Feng Shui, which means ‘Wind and Water’ in Chinese, is a study of the flow of energy of the Earth,” writes the Vision Times’ Jacqueline Chung. “In general, a good Feng Shui site indicates a place with an extraordinarily smooth flow of [energy] that makes everything living on the land flourishes in its best way.”
Rockland Park’s flow follows the bend of the Bow River and is surrounded by seemingly untouched natural green space. Having the river at the community’s face and the foothills at the community’s back is known as a “Jade Belt” and is meant to benefit future generations who will call the area home.
The hills that line the back of Rockland Park include Nose Hill, a smooth face overlooking the community and the Bow River. The hill with smooth surfaces represents the earth element and it’s believed to flow good fortune from the top of the hills to your front doorstep continuously.
With smoothed surfaces playing an important role in Feng Shui, the Brookfield Residential team has committed to removing the sharp corners that can occur between households. This is believed to help neighbours get along better and create a harmonious environment for generations to come.
The importance of the Bow River
The Bow River plays an especially important role for this community – beyond being a beautiful sight for all in the area. Rockland Park sits in the middle of one of the Bow River’s riverbanks, which represents “dragon’s eyes.” This is a source of immense energy in Feng Shui, so long as the land is elevated.
Having “dragon’s eyes” in a lower land area is believed to create a negative atmosphere. Not only does the elevated land help keep the homes safe, but it’s also believed to help those who inhabit the area flourish.
“It is the dream of many Chinese to live on top of such a precious land, that is not only beneficial to the owner's wealth and health, but also helps them to meet noble people and promotes the prosperity of their future generations,” writes Chung.
Bringing fortune to the north and the south
The northwest corner of Rockland Park is space dedicated for retail and other commercial space. In Feng Shui, the northwest represents gold. It’s believed that this gold area will favour business owners and bring good fortune to the people living in the community.
The southeast entrance to the community brings its own good fortune as well. This is the direction of wood and fire. These elements are further balanced by the bowl-shaped storm pond at Rockland Park’s entrance. It’s also believed that those in the summer (who share the fire element) are brought especially good fortune – so long as the Bow River keeps flowing.
Feng Shui centres have been popping up around North America since the late Twentieth Century. Though many of the concepts behind Feng Shui haven’t been updated since they were first conceived, the popularity of the practice can’t be understated. New applications for Feng Shui are still being implemented across the globe, bringing flow and fortune through countless spaces experienced every day, including all across Calgary’s newest north-west gem Rockland Park.