Vastu Shastra is an ancient Indian architectural science that harmonizes living spaces with natural forces. The term “Vastu Shastra” combines “Vastu” (dwelling) and “Shastra” (science), meaning the science of harmonious construction. This 5,000-year-old system balances the five elements (earth, water, fire, air, and space) to promote health, wealth, and happiness. It is believed to be over 10 thousand years old and comes from the Vedas. Ancient Indian Yogis got answers to their questions from the cosmic mind through abstinence, penance, and meditation. They then put this divine wisdom into the Vedas. Vastu is like integrating intangible nature’s energies with your house, thereby fostering relatively more peace, clarity, and harmony in the household. The principles of Vastu lay out the baselines for fostering a harmonious energy field in a structure building with perfectly balanced negative and positive cosmic energies.
The core principles of Vastu designs involve the harmonious integration of structures with surrounding nature by utilising synergized directional alignments and geometric patterns, among various other parts of design theories sourced from the ancient Indian texts of Vastu Vidya. Whether building a home, office, or temple, Vastu Shastra provides guidelines for optimal energy flow. This article explores the different types of Vastu Shastra and their specific aims, providing a comprehensive understanding of how this ancient science applies to various aspects of life and construction.
Residential Vastu
Residential Vastu, or Vastu for the house, aims at creating positive energy in the residential structure of a house or a building so that its occupants can experience benefits from energies like magnetic, thermal, cosmic, light, and wind of the surrounding nature of the property. This type of Vastu covers various rooms in a house. These include the bedroom, kitchen, drawing room, living room, dining room, puja room, children’s room, study room, guest room, bathroom, basement, locker room, servant room, and storeroom. It also encompasses Vastu for doors, windows, balconies, stairwells, above tanks, septic tanks, swimming pools, entrance gates, underground tanks, and borewells. Furthermore, Residential Vastu addresses the Exterior, Interior, Home Colours, Lighting, Construction, and Renovation.
The primary objective of Residential Vastu is to optimize family health and prosperity. Specific guidelines focus on critical areas such as bedroom placement and kitchen direction. For instance, the principles suggest that the master bedroom should be located in the Southwest direction to ensure stability within the household. The kitchen, representing the fire element, is ideally placed in the Southeast zone. The entrance of the home is also a focal point, as it is considered the gateway for energy flow. By aligning the structure and interiors with these principles, Residential Vastu seeks to create a sanctuary where inhabitants can thrive.
Commercial Vastu
Commercial Vastu principles are applied in commercial properties or business properties with the sole objectives of reaping profitable business gains, engaging in commercial activities like selling products or services, and manifesting transparency and flow of positive energy at workplaces. It creates an aura of energetic and hardworking ambience and boosts awareness and workforce productivity. A Vastu-compliant commercial property ensures that cosmic energies—like Rajasic, Tamasic, and Satvik—are balanced to ensure the manifestation of healthy, cordial, transparent, energetic, and adversity-immune properties.
Once a commercial property is structured consistent with the Vastu principles, several benefits start to emerge. These include a flow of fresh and innovative ideas, increased business opportunities, and a boost in the number of new clients along with positive retention of existing ones. It leads to better customer satisfaction, stability of the financial condition in business, and the business becoming considerably immune to the adverse impact of loss. Additionally, it facilitates the easy conversion of leads into customers and enhances the business's competence in rendering excellent customer service.
In terms of specific applications, Commercial Vastu enhances business growth and employee productivity. Key rules include placing the cash counter in the North direction and the CEO cabin in the Southwest. It is crucial to avoid placing toilets near the Northeast, which is considered the wealth zone. Commercial Vastu applies to a wide range of structures, including offices, stores, commercial complexes, multistory structures, institutions, schools, hostels, clinics, hospitals, chemist shops, restaurants, hotels, marriage halls, banks, movie theatres, multiplexes, and shopping malls.
Industrial Vastu
Industrial Vastu principles are applied to ensure that factories or commercial establishments reach their maximum profitable growth by yielding considerable production with the highest quality. This type of Vastu is specifically designed for the Industrial Plot, Industry Vastu, and Factory Vastu. The manner in which Vastu principles are applied in a factory can largely influence the success of the industrial venture. Areas and their respective positions, such as the factory building, main entrance, offices, storage houses, maintenance rooms, etc., must be ensured in accordance with Vastu principles to reap the best commercial gains out of your industrial business.
The aim of Industrial Vastu is to boost efficiency and safety within the industrial environment. Specific guidelines are provided for the placement of machinery and storage. For example, machinery is ideally placed in the Southeast zone, which corresponds to the fire element. Storage areas are recommended to be located in the Northwest, associated with the air element. By adhering to these placements, industrial setups can harmonize their operations with natural forces to achieve optimal output and stability.
Spiritual and Religious Vastu
Spiritual or religious Vastu refers to the application of Vastu principles in places like temples, asylums, and other spiritual or educational establishments to ensure their proper well-being and positive growth in the long run. This category also includes Vastu for temples, astrology, new buildings, housewarming, Dharamshala, and spiritual institutions, as well as Vastu Shanti. The aim of spiritual Vastu is to ensure proper orientation and construction of religious establishments, such as temples or shrines, to make them empowered to withstand mishaps and adverse effects in the future.
In the context of temples, Vastu ensures spiritual energy flow. A mandatory guideline is that deity idols must face East or North. Additionally, pyramid-shaped roofs are recommended to generate positive vibrations. This specialized Vastu application ensures that sacred spaces are potent centers of spiritual energy, conducive to meditation, prayer, and community gatherings.
Vastu in Daily Life
Beyond the structural applications, Vastu Shastra extends into daily life, influencing various personal and professional activities. Vastu is applied for Career, Health, Wealth, Business Development, Student, Marriage, and Prosperity Life. It also addresses happiness, sleep, food preparation, Yoga, meditation, and mental serenity. Furthermore, Vastu principles can be utilized for preventing accidents and for the well-being of trees and plants. This holistic approach integrates the ancient science into the fabric of everyday existence, aiming to harmonize personal energy with the surrounding environment.
Vastu Dosha
Understanding Vastu Dosha is essential in the practice of Vastu Shastra. Vastu Dosha refers to imbalances or defects in the architectural design that disrupt the flow of positive energy. The principles are the foundation of Ancient Sanskrit architectural writings known as Vastu Shastra. Identifying and rectifying these doshas is a critical aspect of ensuring that a structure fulfills its purpose, whether residential, commercial, or spiritual, by restoring the balance of the five elements and cosmic energies.
Conclusion
Vastu Shastra is a comprehensive and ancient science that offers structured guidelines for harmonizing human habitats with the natural world. Its categorization into Residential, Commercial, Industrial, and Spiritual Vastu demonstrates its versatility and profound relevance across different domains of life. By adhering to its principles, from the placement of a kitchen stove to the orientation of a factory floor, individuals and businesses can create environments that foster health, prosperity, efficiency, and spiritual well-being. The ultimate aim is to harness the positive energies of nature to create spaces that support the highest potential of their occupants.