Today you can find numerous and most diverse literature on Feng Shui in bookstores and on the internet. But when reading it, it is striking to realize that the authors’ observations are often very uniform and superficial. Some topics are simply listed under the term of Feng Shui, although they actually have nothing to do with this ancient Chinese science.
Are you looking for more depth and background knowledge? A visit to China where Feng Shui comes from originally is worth it. 
A search for the roots and the original essence of this ancient science can be discovered in China and in places that may strike us (as people from the West) as rather unusual – Graves! The old masters erected tombs traditionally on the most fertile and energetic places. They were convinced that the Qi of the dead is also available for the living people.
On a trip through China, you quickly notice that there are no cemeteries like here in Germany. The tombs are scattered, often not far from the houses of the respective families. For Western visitors, it´s a surprise when they travel through China for the first time, because here in the West, the subjects of death and dying are often taboo or repressed. We want to overcome the grief quickly. Not so in China! The Chinese developed a veritable cult of death. The worship of ancestors is very important even in today’s time and therefore is maintained as a tradition.
Have you ever experienced a family crisis? Then you know how present our ancestors can be and how our problems can be traced back in our own family tree. Did the Chinese from ancient times know about this connection? Is this why grave Feng Shui developed and why honoring the dead is so important in everyday life in China?
The grave stones can reflect the life of the descendants!
The Feng Shui of the graves (often referred to as ‘Yin Feng Shui’ – as opposite to the so-called Yang Feng Shui which is the Feng Shui of the living) aims at burying the body of the deceased in a place with good Qi. So the good energy is passed through the earth to the living descendants
The old tombs give very good indications of how it is with the Feng Shui rules and their applications. If advantageous mountain shapes and waterways enrich the Qi of the place then even a thousand year old grave stone can still look like new.
In choosing the right location for a grave site it is firstly important to pay attention to the nature of the mountains; such as jagged and irregularly shaped peaks or a lack of vegetation as these may indicate unfavorable energies for the descendants.
Even without really believing, it is still an enriching experience to be at an old grave and to consciously feel the location and the environment. Some of these places even have delightfully refreshing and vitalizing effects.
The tombstone itself also tells you a lot of the well-being of the current descendants. Cracks and defects in the tombstone for example indicate that the descendants live a rather unhappy life. 
The famous Feng Shui Master Yang Yun Song (who lived about 1200 years ago) not only built graves but whole cities and houses according to the rules of Feng Shui.
While visiting these places, it is always fascinating to see that these old houses are still habitable after more than a millennium and over time nothing has been lost from the old structure.
In the town of Ganzhou and the surrounding Hakka region, there are many signs and clues that illustrate the effect of this Master’s work. In fact there is even a research center which analyzes how the lives of the people who live in these houses and places was in former times and compares them to how the lives of the descendants are today. The results are highly interesting with many families in the ‘Feng Shui area’ surviving the Cultural Revolution without problems and without much loss of property.
Maintaining freshness in our architecture with Feng Shui
Even old temples (as our churches are in the West) provide an important clue to draw conclusions about the lives of the ancient Chinese.
Some temples have wooden ceilings that look as if they have just been installed.
At other places the monks claim that the ceilings have never had any cobwebs in hundreds of years and therefore it has never been necessary to clean them.
Even here in the West, the experienced Feng Shui consultant can derive much information from the first impression of a house. If houses are fresh and clean then the Qi of this place is usually very positive, which in turn affects its inhabitants in a positive way!
Investigations into the causes of disease and research into methods and ways of how man can protect his health reveals that Feng Shui can greatly help to improve the potential of a place.
People who live in an environment that was personally targeted and optimized with Feng Shui formulas are much more balanced and happier. In turn this supports them to fully exploit both their personal and professional potential.
Master Petra Coll Exposito lives in Berlin and works as a professional Feng Shui consultant for business and private households all over Europe. During her numerous travels abroad she became conscious of Feng Shui and learnt that the laying out of one’s work and living area significantly influences one’s health and general well-being. Out of sheer curiosity, which has long since turned into a firm conviction, she began to train as a Feng Shui counsellor. During that time she met Grand Master Yap Cheng Hai who convinced her to continue with her studies. Today, after many years of study, she holds the highest diploma of Feng Shui Master from Grand Master Yap Cheng Hai and his Master school, as well as being the only accredited Feng Shui Master of the International Feng Shui Association in Germany. The International Feng Shui Association, located in Singapore, has also accredited her as an official trainer. The committee which has awarded her with that title consists of Grand Master Yap Cheng Hai, Grand Master Raymond Lo, Grand Master Vincent Koh and Grand Master Tan Khoon Yong. As an official trainer of the master school, Petra also teaches modules one and two to European Feng Shui consultants. Together with her students she examines historical as well as new buildings from a Feng Shui perspective and presents the findings on her website, as well as in the media. In addition she regularly gives talks, holds seminars and tries to use every opportunity to draw the public’s attention to the science of authentic Feng Shui. Whilst studying with Grand Master Yap Cheng Hai she took classes in Chinese Astrology and utilises that knowledge during her consultations, as well as pure Bazi Suan Ming. Her personal life motto is reflected in the following remark from Lao Zi: “To look for knowledge means to gain, day by day.” Website Feng Shui Institute of Excellence
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