When most people hear the term “Feng Shui,” their thoughts are immediately drawn to rooms being rearranged by experts of the practice. However, Feng Shui is much more than that: It is a culture.

This tradition has impacted the lifestyle of junior Nina Mohanty as she recalls her first interaction with the art.

“My mom is Chinese, and she’s into feng shui, so we’re definitely into that in our household,” said Mohanty. “We even had a professional ‘feng shuier’ come and arrange our furniture when we first bought our house as well as when we got a lot of new furniture.”

Mohanty has also “feng shuied” her room to allow the flow of peace within her living space.

“My room is set in a way that ‘chi’ can flow easily throughout the room,” said Mohanty. “My desk is by my biggest window so as to promote the stimulation of chi for thinking.”

Despite her experiences with this practice, Mohanty is not a true believer in the concept.

“I am not so ‘gung ho’ about it. I definitely think there should be a ‘flow’ in a room, but that could just be a combination of my OCD-ness and my love of interior design,” said Mohanty.

She also does not follow the proper technique of a feng shui with regard to her schedule, which her mom credits as the reason for her aches.

“For me, I don’t really arrange my activities in a certain way,” said Mohanty. “To be honest, my schedule is probably the farthest opposite of feng shui. My mom says I hurt myself because my body was complaining and my chi was not positive.”

Mohanty credits her Chinese heritage for her raising using this technique of creating flow throughout a space.

“Feng Shui is more of a culture thing as well. If I was not Asian, I probably wouldn’t believe in it much either!” said Mohanty.

Still, her household goes as far as the furniture in the rearranging of their possessions.

“This [rearranging] might be because my dad is Indian and so it’s not such a predominant aspect of my life,” said Mohanty. “But I know many Chinese families that feng shui their entire life.”

Despite this, Mohanty still believes in the deeper meaning of the art.

“I think there has to be [a deeper meaning]. Otherwise, so many people wouldn’t do it,” said Mohanty.

Mohanty strives to gain the positive chi, which will create the peaceful atmosphere in her daily activities.

“For Chinese people it’s important that your chi is positive,” said Mohanty, “and that’s what feng shui is all about.”