Feng Shui & Lava Lamps?

A lava lamp represents conflict — light under liquid is fire under water. (Photo by Martin Lostak on Unsplash)

“Should I get a lava lamp?”

The short answer is, “No.” The longer answer is, “Don’t do that.” The even longer answer is why.

Light under liquid says conflict. It represents fire (light) under water (liquid). I discuss other fire-under-water situations in Feng Shui for Hawaii, where I liken it to something we see here in the Islands: lava meeting the ocean—one of the most conflict-filled situations in nature. Lava lamps put light under liquid for a kinetic lighting art effect.

Fiber optic lights are a soothing form of kinetic lighting. (Image by Barbara Jackson from Pixabay)

Kinetic lighting (light that moves) is usually meant to be attention-getting (like the movement of the light on an ambulance) or artistic (such as moving neon art). There are many kinds of kinetic lighting but the kind to avoid is light under liquid—and that’s lava lamps. A little bit of kinetic lighting goes a long way, and it’s definitely not for everyone. It can feel too restless for a person with a vata aryuvedic dosha. (Deepak Chopra’s Perfect Health has the best test to tell what your aryuvedic dosha is.)

One of the gentlest kinds of kinetic lighting is the kind that has optic fibers on long flexible curved strands. When the other lighting is out at night and that device is turned on and placed in a window with a gentle breeze, it’s quite enchanting—like a visual wind chime.