As any real estate agent will tell you, the cost of a house depends on a range of factors. Size, layout and location are all key considerations. But the

se days, especially in California, a house’s feng shui may also be figured into the price. In fact, feng shui is so big on the west coast, that a homeowner may tear down walls or even relocate an entire building to improve a home’s asking price.

　　就如所有房地产中介会跟你说的，房子的价格取决于众多因素。大小、格局和地点都是重要的考虑项目。但现在，特别是在加州，一幢房子的风水也会被算进价钱里面。事实上，风水在西海岸相当风行，房屋拥有者可能会拆除墙壁，甚至迁移整栋建筑，以提升房子的要价。

　　The expression“feng shui”is often translated as“Chinese geomancy”in English. But geomancy means divination according to geographic features, so the translation is not entirely correct. A better way to describe feng shui might be to say it is about aligning one’s surroundings in order to enhance natural energy flow. According to feng shui principles, if the surroundings are harmonious with nature, the person in the surroundings will be in harmony with nature also.

　　“风水”这种说法在英文中通常被翻译成“中式土占”。但是土占意指根据地理特征来占卜，所以这个翻译并非完全正确。一个比较好的形容风水的方法可能要这样说，风水是为了校准某人的周遭环境以提升自然能量流。根据风水原则，如果周遭环境与自然协调，处于其中的人也会与自然协调。

　　How do you know if the feng shui in your home is good or not? Many people bring in a“feng shui master”to tell them. This expert may advise the placement of mirrors in certain areas, tell you where water should flow and where it shouldn’t, and change the position of your bed. Sometimes he will suggest even more radical changes, such as the relocation of your front door.

　　怎么才知道你家的风水好不好？很多人找“风水大师”来告诉他们。这位专家可能会建议在某些地方放置镜子，告诉你哪里该有流水、哪里不该有，还叫你改变你的床位。有时他会建议做更彻底的改变，例如改变你家前门的位置。

　　“I was pretty skeptical at first,”said Tom Martins, a freelance writer in San Francisco, whose wife hired a feng shui master to look at their home.“He told me to change my office layout, and I did it, mostly to humor my wife. But it had an almost immediate effect on my work. Not only was I better able to concentrate, but I suddenly started getting more work than I could handle.”

　　“一开始我很怀疑。”旧金山的一位自由作家汤姆·马汀斯这样说，他的太太聘请了一位风水师来看他们的家。“他要我改变办公室的格局，我照做了，多半是为了迎合我太太。但是这几乎马上对我的工作就产生了影响。我不仅更容易专心做事，还突然开始接到很多工作，多到我无法应付。”