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Preeti Mehra

Those who cannot afford to break down their houses to redo them to suit Vaastu principles need not. Altering the interiors could help.

Will pyramids on the bedroom walls enhance your chances of a promotion? Will the uncut crystal on your child's table help him or her improve academic performance?

Will the wind chimes on the doorway bring familial harmony and keep away `the negative energy'?

In short, can altering the interiors of your home bring positive changes in your life?

Vaastu and Feng Shui expert, D.K. Narang, says yes and no. A civil engineer and architect, he believes that Vaastu and Feng Shui are not based of superstition and nor can you follow the practices straight out of a book.

"That's what the problem is today. People read books on Vaastu and Feng Shui and start using the principals without realising that these are sciences that need interpretation and are deeper than what meets the eye."

To set the record straight, Narang started the Vaastu Science Research Foundation and conducts seminars and workshops on the subject. He also teaches the two subjects to both amateurs as well as those who want to make it a profession.

In fact, Narang's contention is that if a home is not made to Vaastu standards, it need not necessarily be broken apart to conform to the standards. Besides, many cannot afford such a luxury.

Instead, good results can be obtained by rearranging the furniture, the rooms and adding specific elements to the interiors.

The clients who come to him face a variety of problems such as marital disharmony, trouble with kids, property etc.

There are others who want to achieve financial success or elevation in their business or profession.

As a consultant, Narang visits their homes, studies the ground situation and offers remedies that could often be Vaastu yantras and a combination of Feng Shui, colour therapy and aroma therapy. Though he emphasises that in the Shastras remedies are not mentioned, a combination Feng Shui and the therapies and an analysis of Vaastu helps to find answers beyond breaking down structures. "Initially, Vaastu was concerned with shapes of plots and levels. Today, we are incorporating the principals into modern architecture and design," he says.

He gives an idea of some of the broad parameters used to alter interior decoration, but warns that each case needs to be studied individually. Where the furniture is concerned, he asks people to avoid metallic beds or wrought iron sofas etc., as they create a magnetic flux.

Bedsheets should be of plain, soothing colours, so that the mind is at ease before going to bed and the head should never be turned to the north while asleep.

Narang has a lot of faith in the power of crystals, specially the raw, uncut ones.

Keeping one in the bedroom and the kids' room can help maintain harmony between couples and children.

Though crystals are not part of Vaastu, his experience is that they help to absorb the negativity.

He also recommends them being washed in salt water once a month to rid them of the negativity that they absorb.

The Feng Shui holistic lamp is another hot item. A bowl containing semi-precious stones, a candle, coins, water and flower petals represents the elements and helps maintain harmony.

Wind Chimes can also be used effectively to reduce negativity.

But what matters is the number of chimes, the material they are made of and where they are placed.

The science of using pyramids seems to be a favourite with him.

He gives examples of clients who used pyramids to nullify the effects of bad Vaastu construction very successfully.

"It's become a trend to bring home turtles, frogs, crystals and place them anywhere.

There's no point in doing that, the combination has to be effective and should combine all the elements," he says, as he displays his table full of Vaastu and Feng Shui products.

There is no doubt that the products sell, so do the two ancient sciences in this age when it's a trend to go back to the basics.

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