Pronounced, in Cantonese, foong-shoi, and meaning, literally, "wind water", feng shui is a complex Chinese pseudo-science, a form of geomancy, which was widely used in ancient China (and to an extent up to the Cultural revolution) to locate propitious sites for tombs. It evolved into a complex form of town and country planning which established strict rules for the placement of buildings in the landscape. Its primary purpose was to maintain a balance in the perceived forces operating through the living earth. Thus hills would be artificially modified, water courses re-routed and pagodas erected to control the flow of the dragon's breath, or "ch'i". These forces are in constant flux and move with changes in the balance of Yin and Yang and the Five Elements (which are manifested in different topographies). Feng shui has a 'superstitious' side as well and is concerned equally with ensuring 'good fortune' (usually making money) as much as landscape harmony. The more superstitious feng shui is still practised in Hong Kong where it avoided being suppressed by the Communist regime on the mainland.

---