The Rise of Vastu Shastra

The Vastu Shastra was written well over a thousand of years but its presence has not been felt as evidently as it is nowadays. It is a part of the Vedas that were written in antiquity. It literally means “dwelling” and it is most usually seen as the residence of both God and man. Its five basics are Vayu (air), Agni (fire), Jal (water), Bhumi (earth) and Aakasha (space) that are together referred to as the Panchabhutas. These panchabhutas have an invisible but constant relation between themselves and aligning one’s property, space and life with these five natural forces will create not only harmony in the life of the person but will also help him in profiting from such congruency. A house design created while keeping Vastu in mind can do wonders for a person’s position in life. According to Indian tradition, the dwelling place is in itself a shrine. Every housing structure is governed by the Vastu Purusha Mandala. This metaphysical plan of the building describes the desirable characteristics for buildings on the flow of energy (Prana). Alienation of the resident beings with the structure is very important under this. The body is considered as a magnet with its head as the North Pole and its feet as the South Pole. Hence, sleeping with your head pointing north is supposed to create repulsive forces with the earth’s magnetic field and causes many a mental and physical problems. Home interiors, and in this case, the person’s bedroom areas are designed and positioned accordingly, so that the bed never faces the north on its bedpost’s end. There are many other such instances, where the position of any and everything within the living premises are governed by Prana or the living force. The mandala features 45 gods in all including 32 outer deities and each deity’s position is taken in mind before devising any architectural house plans. Within the past decade, this particular part of the Atharva Veda has gained enormous importance and likeability among house builders. The popularity has reached such levels that today most house planning and architect agencies provide these services in addition to all their other basic services of devising house plans, home interiors, EMI calculators, material calculators, interior designs, landscape designs etc. It is not a proven art but it has the backing of the Vedas and in India, one doesn’t question the Vedas. However, one should allay all fears of not being able to have their dream house if they start following its principles. Architects and structural designers of today are able to produce excellent designs and house plans even after abiding to the guidelines properly. So if you do plan to build a house, it is advisable to follow the Vastu principles to whatsoever degree they may feel comfortable with.