Rating
The grande dame of feng shui writing has expanded the scope of her prolific writing. She explains the ancient Chinese traditions of Buddhism and Taoism. She also covers Chinese astrology and numerology and feng shui. This book is a mini-encyclopedia, with some fabulous chapters of special interest to feng shui students. "Setting up an altar: the household shrine" is an entire chapter on setting up a Chinese Buddhist altar. When I was a Zen monk, I was a sacristy assistant. I read with interest her information on the placement of the central figure. "The rule of thumb is to have your table or shelf so that all Buddha statues placed on it are higher than any person standing upright in the vicinity of the altar." The chapter "Mantras, hand mudras, and mandalas" will especially interest Buddhists. The hand mudra section is extremely well illustrated. One third of the book is devoted to feng shui, and she lives up to her reputation.
Sterling Publishing Company, New York, www.sterlingpub.com, (800) 805-5489, 2001, 1-58663-163-2, 256 pages, color drawings, paperback, $19.95