Previously an interior designer, it was Poonam Sethi’s discovery of feng shui and Vaastu that led her into the practice of healing. After mastering a plethora of healing methods, she left her earlier career in the early 1990s to help those in distress. Reaching out to scores of people in need, Poonam adds colour and hope to their lives, helping them achieve their dreams. This week, we spoke with the author of “The Power of Feng Shui” about what she does and why she enjoys doing it so much.
What exactly does a holistic healer do?
A holistic healer is one who guides and suggests non-medical healing therapies, for which faith and surrender are each a must.
Please tell us about the different services you provide.
Tarot is an old Egyptian science that doesn’t just tell you your future; it helps you create your future through knowledge, empowerment and enlightenment. Through tarot, you learn how to actively create incredible outcomes. It makes you aware of your choices and outcome patterns. Many of the world’s most renowned psychics have gotten closer to their spiritual connections through the ancient art of tarot, which describes your joys, problems, conflicts and issues. It identifies life patterns, pinpoints areas where change can lead to better direction, and directs you towards success. The cards show you what you need to see, and are more than simply ‘fortune telling’.
Colour therapy is a complementary therapy, evidence of which dates back thousands of years to the ancient cultures of Egypt, China and India. Colour is simply light of varying wavelengths, so each colour has its own energy that resonates with the energy of the seven main chakras, or energy centres of the body. If you can imagine the chakras as a set of cogs or wheels, they are rather like the workings of a clock or an engine; each needs to move smoothly for the device to work properly. Good health and well-being are achieved through a balance of all these energies. Colour therapy re-balances and/or stimulates these energies by applying the appropriate colour to the body.
Feng shui is the ancient Chinese art of space arrangement. It uses universal principles and the laws of nature to etermine how to organise your environment to be happy, healthy, prosperous and free. Feng shui draws knowledge from nature and the universe to produce environments that promote wealth, health, love and happiness. It suggests arranging spaces to reproduce the signs of nature that we recognise as life-nurturing and safe. This provides us with positive feedback about our lives. Feng shui can help you create a home or work environment where you can feel safe, in greater harmony with your surroundings, and in greater control of your space.
How did you find yourself in this line of work?
Since I was young, my parents have told me that I’ve had psychic powers; I was different from the other kids, they said. I married very young, and like many others, I went through tough times. When I was all of 18, a Greek tarot reader saw my cards and told me that I would do the same thing in the future. I started with a simple deck of cards, guiding my own friends before eventually reaching out to thousands across the globe.
You’ve been doing this for close to three decades now. What changes have you seen over the years?
I have been practicing for 25 years. In all this time, people have certainly changed, but their sets of problems have not. It’s just that today, I’m dealing with people who have new priorities and high levels of stress. And I feel that’s something which is becoming a major global issue.
What is the most common problem you encounter nowadays?
There is no such thing as a common problem. Every person comes to me with their own, and I try my best to help them out; give them a place to smile.
What are your plans for the future?
I have many, including helping people with the plague called ‘stress’ and trying to open more healing centres around the world. In simpler words, I want to make people smile! – as told to Anahita
