Should Books be Behind Glass According to
Feng Shui

Are you thinking to yourself, "Should books be behind glass according to feng shui?" If so, read on for the low-down on the best place to house books and find out the different perspectives of this tasking problem.

When trying to decide should books be behind glass according to feng shui, first consider what books represent. Usually, books represent knowledge and learning. With that in mind, think about whether or not you need those books on hand. For example:

• Are there any children in the home? If so, it may be a good idea to keep books, all books, readily available. The last thing you want to do is send the message that books are something to look at, rather than use. This can be accomplished whether or not the books in question are behind glass.

• What’s your current situation? What’s going on in your life at the moment? Are you in school? Are you thinking about going back to school, or taking a class just for the fun of it? Here too it may be beneficial to keep books close within your grasp.

• Everything has its place: Just as it wouldn’t make sense to keep cookbooks locked away in a dusty draw (especially for those that regularly entertain), so too it doesn’t make sense to lock books away when you are an avid reader. If you do decide to keep books behind glass, just remember to keep that glass sparkly clean (this is similar to keeping mirrors sparkly clean) and it shouldn’t have any detrimental effects on the home.

The answer to "Should books be behind glass according to feng shui", depends on one’s perspective.

Some feng shui consultants feel that it is perfectly acceptable to keep books behind glass. There are several reasons for this. Among them are:

• Pesky poison arrows: Anyone who studies feng shui knows that pesky poison arrows (formed when two wall corners meet, or any sharp protrusion) can wreak havoc on your sanity. It’s not just the arrows in themselves, but it’s also having to run around trying to "cure" all of them!

Some will argue that adding bookcases to a house just ends up causing you more heartache in end because eventually you’ll have to find a way of combating all of those arrows. Of course, balancing this effect can be done by draping a soft cloth over the offending object. And speaking of objects…

• Large, looming objects: Besides causing secret arrows, many bookcases can be rather large, and large, looming objects can often cause anxiety (one may feel that the walls are "closing in on them" or that the case could fall and injure someone).

While this can be solved by investing in smaller bookcases, it will take more of them to house all of the books, and from there, it’s a short trip to secret arrow madness! In short, you’ve now doubled the amount of poison arrows that you had to deal with.

• They take up a lot of room: This may not be a problem if the house in question has a lot of square footage, but if you are dealing with a relatively small space, this can quickly become a problem.

On the other end of the feng shui spectrum, we have those that argue no. Their chief arguments include:

• Glass creates distance: Why is that? We’ll, consider why most people place things, anything, behind glass. It’s usually to protect it, keep it safe, etc. Sometimes we place valued items, like heirlooms or expensive pieces of art, behind glass so that it can be safely admired.

That glass, while seemingly benign, can actually have a strong psychological impact on the individual who placed it there in the first place. That individual may feel that the object should be admired, but admired from a distance.

• What’s behind the glass, sometimes stays behind glass: Another argument is that what stays behind glass, often remains behind glass. These folks argue that this is not the healthiest way to view books, especially since books contain knowledge.

They think about it this way: Wouldn’t you rather feel that knowledge is a tangible, solid force, with which you can interact with and learn from anytime you choose? Can you imagine having to browse through an impressive collection of books through the distance of a glass window?

• It can be a hassle: It may even get to the point where opening the glass case becomes such a hassle, that you don’t even bother anymore! Think about how tragic that would be for you and all your loved ones.

That said, it’s time to now consider the best areas in the home for books (whether behind glass, or in a bookcase). A lot of different factors come into play here, but here are some general feng shui rules:

• Place books, in a bookcase, in a position where they can easily be seen when entering a home. This is especially important if there are children or current students living in the home because books that are prominently placed encourage learning.

• Second, think about what you use most of the books for. Are they strictly for pleasure reading? Then consider placing them in the self-actualization, knowledge area of the home. Do you use any of the books as reference? Then place those books in a home office (especially if the books in question are related to work).

• Finally, try not to keep too many books in the bedroom. Too many books, especially when kept near the bed, for example, on a nightstand, can interrupt your quality of sleep and keep you up at night.

Furthermore, it’s not a very good idea to read in bed in the first place, but most people love reading before bed time, so it may not be practical to remove all of the books from the bedroom. Keep it to a minimum of one or two and watch the energy of the bedroom improve!

As we can see, placing books behind glass, at least according to feng shui, depends on the individual. The good news here is that the choice is yours! Review the arguments on both sides of this tricky issue and decide for yourself. If you try one and it doesn’t seem to be helping, go ahead and try the other. In fact, that’s the great thing about feng shui; if something is not working, you can change it! Isn’t that empowering?

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