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The next step in practical feng shui is to familiarize yourself with one of the most important, and effective, feng shui symbols that can be used on your floor plan.

This is the Lo Shu Square, which is a ninesector grid, each containing a number from 1 to 9. The numbers are arranged in the grid so that when any three numbers are added, they add up to 15, which is also the number of days it takes the moon to grow from a new moon to a full moon, and vice versa. The Chinese Taoist scholars regard the Lo Shu as a magic square and believe that it provides the key to unlocking many of the secrets of feng shui’s other important symbol, the eight-sided Pa Kua (see here and here.)

According to legend, the magical Lo Shu Square of numbers was carried on the back of the celestial tortoise and brought to the attention of the Chinese Emperor, Fu Hsi. So today, the tortoise is revered as an auspicious creature whose body and shell are said to conceal special design motifs that contain all the secrets contained in heaven and earth.

I started writing books about feng shui soon after I picked up the shell of a dead turtle that had been washed up on the shore on a seaside vacation trip to Pangkor Island with my family. That was in 1992. At that time I failed to note the significance of that omen, and although I brought the shell back home, I discarded it soon afterwards. I only realized the symbolism while one day meditating by my pond where my pet terrapins lived (terrapins are domestic tortoises and turtles are the marine relations of the freshwater tortoise.) It was while I observed the patterns on the back of these playful creatures that the significance of that symbolic find struck me.

Later, as you go deeper into your practice of feng shui, you will discover how important and clever the Lo Shu Square of numbers is when it comes to both hiding and revealing the secrets of formula and compass feng shui. For now, just familiarize yourself with the Lo Shu Square, its numbers and directions, and how it can be used to demarcate the layout of your floor plan.