Chinese cosmology, which plays a huge role in feng shui, believes that everything—whether human, material, natural, spiritual, or cosmic—is connected in a higher pattern of existence.
Feng shui is one way to read and influence one's future in this pattern of existence. But since we can't hope to truly understand existence, a part of us understands that it may not always work or produce direct, tangible outcomes.
Throughout history, Western colonial and media perspectives have often portrayed feng shui’s behaviours as incomprehensible and contradictory. Why would young adults, for instance, ridicule superstitious practices but also choose auspicious dates for their own weddings and other life events?
The answer, we think, is this—while people may not whole-heartedly believe in feng shui, why would we not stack the odds in our favour when something important is on the line? The comfort and control of having done one’s best to keep one’s hopes and dreams in harmony with the universe is still valuable—and rituals are a crucial part of that experience.
In other words, if you get your feng shui right, you might have a higher chance of a favourable outcome—and that's why people continue practicing it.
This also explains why, even in feng shui’s heyday, many people in Chinese societies believed that the rituals and customs would only work if we put in actual effort alongside them.
Thus the saying,