Five Elements: How They Work Together (and Against Each Other)

How the productive and destructive cycles of five elements determine the energy in your home

Part 1: The Five Elements That Shape How a Space Feels

Reading now: How the Five Elements Work Together

Part 3: Using the Five Elements to Fix What Feels Wrong in a Room

Now that you know what the five elements are and where they come from (Part 1), there’s one more essential step before we start applying them. These elements don’t exist in isolation, they constantly interact. They support each other, and they weaken each other. Understanding these interactions is the key to knowing what and how to change in a home when something feels off. Even though there are many variations in the interaction of elements, we can sum them up in two fundamental ways of relating called element cycles.

The first cycle is called the Productive Cycle, or the cycle of Creation. This is where each element supports the other, being supported in turn. Below is a graphic that illustrates this cycle. It helps to think of elements in practical terms such as their expression in nature or even in various household items. For example, if you want to make fire (Fire element), you need wood (Wood element). If you want your plants (Wood element) to stay healthy, you give them water (Water element); to cut something, you use a knife (Metal).

WOOD creates FIRE

FIRE supports EARTH

EARTH supports METAL

METAL supports WATER

WATER supports WOOD

The Productive cycle of elements resembles a harmonious family. Everybody finds a way to love and support each other; the energy is peaceful and life-sustaining. Understanding this cycle will help you strengthen specific elements that are need in specific bagua areas of your space in a subtle, powerful way. Now, what is the cycle that follows the Productive cycle? It is the Destructive one, of course. This is the way of relating where each element is either destroying the other, or making it really weak.

The Destructive cycle an equally important cycle to understand when you deal with a space that has a stubborn presence of an element that is detrimental to someone’s emotional well-being. We know there can be no creation without destruction, so here is how the intelligent rage of the Destructive Cycle of the feng shui elements expresses itself:

WOOD weakens EARTH

EARTH weakens WATER

WATER puts down FIRE

FIRE melts METAL

METAL cuts WOOD

If you want to go a bit deeper, I will tell you that there are variations to each cycle. For example, in the Productive Cycle of elements, Wood can be supported by both Water and Earth; while in the Destructive cycle Water not only puts down Fire but also weakens Earth and Metal. I do not want to overwhelm you, though, just leaving the door open for you to explore the depths, intricacies and variations of each cycle when ready. Before we look at the practical applications of the five elements theory in a home, it is necessary to know the qualities of each element, along with its specific expressions in decor items, colors, shapes, images and more.

You can explore each feng shui element here: 

Wood | Fire | Earth | Metal | Water

When ready, here are examples of using feng shui elements in a home.