Vastu does not fully apply to flats- a perspective for 2,3 BHK homebuyers in Hyderabad!

Vastu does not apply to apartments ‘fully’, and this is a fact!! This article is to provide simple facts about the tenets of Vastu that need to be looked-upon logically.

We shall discuss the following-

Let’s begin-

1. Vastu- a ‘fear factor’ or a ‘science to bring harmony in life’

The fear factor-

For many home buyers, especially in Hyderabad, Vastu compliance becomes a top priority while zeroing down on a 2 or 3 BHK apartment. Many a times the Vastu factor takes precedence over other considerations like size, budget, and even the location.

Usually, it is the fear of misery, bad-luck or discord disrupting the family which makes a typical home buyer opt for only a Vastu-friendly home. Plus, no one wants to hear horror-stories from their elders about the all the ills and punishments that wreck a havoc on those who do NOT follow Vastu principles while buying or building their dream home.

Vastu pundits or consultants many a times scare the prospective home buyers and tend to propagate rigid tenets of Vastu which cannot be compromised upon. The threat, as quoted by these fear-mongering Vastu pundits can involve bad repercussions resulting in a cursed and disastrous life for all the family members. If you argue it, they might even smile with contempt/sarcasm, and say, “fine, don’t listen to me, and see what happens to you and your family…” This tends to get very unnerving!

These Vastu pundits at times assume complete control over you, and give you a ‘go’ or ‘no-go’ decision as well! Alternatively, some consultants may be encouraging, and provide you with ‘solutions or corrective measures’ to undo the bad elements that hound a certain home design. A home buyer is then left to choose between the ‘most beneficial’ option/recommendation or go with ‘least beneficial’ alternative.

Either ways, the threat and fear factor becomes larger than life!

With such a mass-following of Vastu, a home buyer simply gives-up, and chooses a so-called Vastu-friendly to obtain ‘pre-ordained blessings’. This play safe mentality is the obvious outcome of this fear factor.

Home buyers want no complications when it comes to the safety of family due to some metaphysical elements harming their loved ones!!

The simplest shortcut, albeit solution is– go for a 100% Vastu-friendly flat, and buy peace of mind.

2. Vastu- a ‘science to have a harmonious living’ based on logical and scientific reasons

Vastu is like a protective shield, to protect our family members from bad luck and bad influences by harnessing the powers of nature and planets. A Vastu compliant flat is deemed to have a curative and positive effect that enhances our ‘quality of life’.

Vastu Shastra revolves around the science of environment we live in. Vastu Shastra is actually meant to integrate architecture with nature while describing the design elements, layouts, their measurements, ground preparations, sequence/arrangement of spaces, and aspects of geometry while making a dwelling unit on a plot of land.

So, it is a PLOT OF LAND, that this entire things circles around. When Vastu was prescribed, apartments technology was nowhere in sight.

The Vastu designs were NOT meant to instil fear, and was meant to integrate nature with architecture based on geometry, symmetry and directional alignments.

Vastu Shastra describes how to achieve harmony with nature for the family members living in man-made built environments.

3. How did Vastu originate

Sanskrit word ‘Vas’ means to reside, stay or live. Vastu in Sanskrit means a dwelling unit built upon a certain piece of land. ‘Vastu Shastra’ is ‘knowledge of dwelling units’ authored by Sage Mamuni Mayan during the Vedic era. Vastu Shastra emerged more than 4000 years ago.

The objective of Vastu is meant to PROVIDE COMFORT by using the right positioning and proportion of the nature’s five elements (pancha bhoota) viz. Fire (agni), Air (vayu), Water (varun or jal), Earth (prithvi) and Sky or Space (Akash). These 5 interplay with the 8 cardinal directions viz. East, West, South, North, North-East, South-East, North-West and South-West.

Vastu Shastra relies on this interplay to eliminate negative energies and to enhance positive energy. The final goal is to positively impact the family residing in a dwelling unit gain prosperity and overall progress.

4. Key tenets of Vastu on the rooms in a house

Vastu tenets are based on the position of the location in the Earth’s hemi-sphere, climatic conditions, and the abundance or lack of sunlight. These help enhance the environment we live-in.

Thus, Vastu Shastra was originally based upon scientific and nature-inspired considerations. Later on, misinterpretations and fear-factor twisted the logic and scientific-reasoning it was envisaged upon.

The dos and don’ts are also based on this scientific reasoning like the direction a particular dwelling-unit (or an apartment) should face, the placement of rooms and so on.

The key element of Vastu is to have good ventilation and good sun-light for all rooms driven by scientific and logical reasoning. This was thought almost 4000 years ago.

Some major tenets you will get to hear regarding which ‘location’ the rooms need to be placed are-

• Master Bedroom for elders- South-west direction…Logic being it’s warmer and Sunny corner, which is healthy for older generation
• Children’s bedroom- East or West…Logic being, these are well-lit, yet NOT too hot, which is good for children, and allows them to study in adequate lighting
• Guest bedroom- North-West corner…Logic being, the guest stays for a lesser period and should be kept away from other family members
• Kitchen- South-East or North-West…Logic being, it’s warm, and Sun-rise corner, airy, good for cooking and killing germs/bacteria
• Hall- North-East….Logic being availability of adequate light through-out the day
• Dining- North or East….Logic being closer to kitchen, adequate lighting, airy
• Bathroom- North-west or West…Logic being elimination of germs/bacteria with adequate warm sun-light
• Plus, sleeping-direction not to be North in any bedroom…Logic being that North direction has a magnetic field that’s bad for the head (flow of blood impacted as it contains iron/haemoglobin that interacts with ‘North pole’)

For a home buyer, Vastu Shastra is only a set of guidelines, and not an inflexible mandate to be followed regardless. Flexibility in the tenets of Vastu Shastra are practical and driven by the benefits (functionality & utility) these recommendations offer.

All these do not apply to apartments, one can choose from various adaptable alternatives of layouts for different homes that are part of taller buildings.

5. What makes Vastu ‘NOT fully applicable’ in an apartment scenario

• By definition, an apartment is suspended in the air and is NOT made on a plot of land. Vastu Shastra was meant for the open plot of land with sunlight and ventilation open from most sides
• Most apartments are clustered, with 2, 3 or 4 apartments per floor.
• This means, that clear directions of sunlight and ventilation are completely blocked in an apartment. The logic of directions loses its meaning because all the directions are NOT open like an open plot
• This is why you cannot judge and reject an apartment based on Vastu tenets

• The only thing that you can do is use the scientific logic of Vastu, and see if the sunlight (natural light) and ventilation are good, and in harmony with your own requirements for a COMFORTABLE LIVING
• For instance, if you have a corridor on the ‘East side’ of your apartment, you may feel happy feeling that you got to buy an ‘East facing apartment’, but that has NO MEANING because you do NOT have sunlight. In this example, the purpose why you were following Vastu to select an ‘East facing apartment’ is completely DEFEATED as you DON’T get the morning Sunlight!
• Therefore, the scientific logic behind tenets of Vastu are rendered non-applicable in an apartment-scenario
• So, before you REJECT an apartment based on STRICT DO’s and DONT’S of Vastu, ask yourself logical questions-
  • Are you actually getting morning Sunlight emanating from the North?
  • Is the South West corner of your flat actually ‘hot’ because of excessive onslaught of sunlight post-noon?
• You need to check the number of sides open to sky, open to free-flowing sunlight, open to winds etc. without depending on Vastu pundits who scare you with rigid ‘Don’s and Don’ts’
• Another example: assume that you are buying an apartment open from three sides (North, East & West), but the apartment is blocked fully since your tower is surrounded by adjacent towers with no scope of direct rays of Sunlight from anywhere. In this case, while the Vastu tenets (dos and don’ts) may be met 100%, but the apartment is in REALITY ZERO on what Vastu Shastra seeks for you on the ‘utility’ and ‘’functionality’ front. So, this so-called 100% Vastu-compliant apartment does NOT make sense for you since it does NOT satisfy the intent of Vastu!!

Finally, the question is NOT ‘whether or not to follow Vastu’? The real question is: How to understand the rationale upon which Vastu Shastra was formulated into a body of knowledge?

As a home buyer in Hyderabad, you must use the wisdom behind Vastu Shastra, and take your own decisions by using the logic of ‘comfort, good sunlight and good-ventilation’ to make an informed decision. Apply the REAL RATIONALE behind Vastu Shastra while your apartment, and NOT become a victim to BLINDLY FOLLOWING the ‘Do’s and Don’ts’ of Vastu. Instead, we need to be encouraged by the common-sense and wisdom that Vastu Shastra is based-upon!

To know about “Understanding Vastu Shastra: Easing the Dilemma of a Home Buyer“.Click Here!