A bedroom is a sanctuary. It’s a place where you rest, where you feel warmth and comfort, where you feel safe… But if that’s not the feeling you get when you’re there, then something’s got to change.
New sheets, walls painted a new color, or different tactics for better sleep—these are all great (and perhaps necessary) things you can do. However, there is one thing you can try that may not be so obvious: feng shui bed placement.
How does it help? How do you do it? And what’s the best way to do it?
All great questions, and with a little help from feng shui master Marie Diamond, you’re well on your way to having a bedroom that’s the best room in your house.
What does feng shui say about bed placement?
Your bed is the centerpiece of your bedroom. Even in feng shui, it’s the most important piece of furniture because it directly influences your well-being.
The thing is, the bed is where we spend most of our time. One survey found that the average American spends 11 hours a day lying on their bed—that’s nearly half of one’s lifetime.
So it’s no wonder, as Marie highlights, it’s “a place that is important for your health; it’s important for your romance; and it’s also even important for your abundance.”
Where your bed is placed affects the flow of qi, or life energy, in the room. One example Marie shares in her Mindvalley Quest, Feng Shui for Life, is that if you sleep under a slanted ceiling and it’s really low towards your head, “your energy is compressed, and people feel less lucky under such a slanted area.”
That’s why bed placement in feng shui is so crucial. It’ll allow for a healthy movement of qi and remove negative energy that may be weighing you down.
Do’s and don’ts of feng shui bed placement
“Whatever you have in your space, your unconscious mind takes it as reality,” says Marie.
This is especially important to keep in mind when it comes to your bedroom—this is where you nurture your success, health, relationships, and wisdom. What’s more, the energy in this space has direct access to your subconsciousness while you are sleeping.
Take it from Sarah, a Mindvalley member from the United States, who changed her bedroom layout and saw the changes in her life.
“I discovered my bed was in the worst possible direction for me and had other negative feng shui energies associated with it,” she shares on Mindvalley Stories. “By moving my bed, I had an immediate improvement to my energy, spiritual life, and better flow of energy.”
So here are some things you can do and things you should avoid doing:
Do’s
- Place your bed in a commanding position—you can see the door without being directly in line with it.
- Have a solid, sturdy headboard.
- Incorporate the five elements—wood, fire, earth, metal, and water—in your bedroom decor.
- Place nightstands on both sides of the bed.
- Keep the area under your bed free of clutter.
Don’ts
- Don’t place the bed with the foot directly facing the door.
- Avoid placing your bed directly under beams or windows.
- Don’t have sharp corners pointed toward the bed.
- Limit the use of TVs, computers, phones, and other gadgets in the bedroom.
- Avoid placing mirrors directly facing the bed.
Best feng shui bed placement
Before you start rearranging furniture, you should identify your personal energy number and personal direction, according to feng shui basics.
“Based on your energy number, there will be a different purpose about your success, money, health, relationships, and wisdom,” Marie explains.
Additionally, use a bagua map to identify which direction connects with which area of your life. This can help enhance positive energy as well as create spaces that nourish your mind, body, and spirit.
Once you’ve gotten that down, then comes the auspicious placement of your bed. Which direction should it be pointing in?
Let’s take a closer look for each personal energy number.
For success
“If you want to attract success and money flow, facing your success direction creates a difference in your brain state,” Marie points out. “Your mindset will open up, and you will receive easier opportunities to attract success and money.”
So what’s the feng shui bed placement for wealth and such? Here’s what they are based on your energy number:
| Personal energy number | Direction |
| 1 | Southeast |
| 2 | Northeast |
| 3 | South |
| 4 | North |
| 5 | Northeast (males), Southwest (females) |
| 6 | West |
| 7 | Northwest |
| 8 | Southwest |
| 9 | East |
For health
According to Marie, feng shui bed placement facing this direction can help stimulate your body, your chakras, and your mindset to manifest your health. Here are the different directions you should face:
| Personal energy number | Direction |
| 1 | East |
| 2 | West |
| 3 | North |
| 4 | South |
| 5 | West (males), Northwest (females) |
| 6 | Northeast |
| 7 | Southwest |
| 8 | Northwest |
| 9 | Southeast |
For relationships
“When you face your personal relationship direction,” says Marie, “when you’re in meetings, even personally or professionally, it will enhance your energy in your personal and professional relationships.”
Here are the feng shui bed placements for your energy number:
| Personal energy number | Direction |
| 1 | South |
| 2 | Northwest |
| 3 | Southeast |
| 4 | East |
| 5 | Northwest (males), West (females) |
| 6 | Southwest |
| 7 | Northeast |
| 8 | West |
| 9 | North |
For wisdom
This direction is ideal for your spirituality. So based on your energy number, here’s your feng shui bed placement direction for wisdom:
| Personal energy number | Direction |
| 1 | North |
| 2 | Southwest |
| 3 | East |
| 4 | Southeast |
| 5 | Southwest (males), Northeast (females) |
| 6 | Northwest |
| 7 | West |
| 8 | Northeast |
| 9 | South |
What if you have a small room?
Regardless of whether your sleeping area is compact or not, feng shui bed placement in a small room is still possible. According to Marie, there are a few things you can do to enhance the flow of qi.
- If your bedroom doubles as your work space, use dividers or curtains to separate the two areas.
- Keep your room clear of clutter, as it can invite negative energy in.
- Consider light, plants, and color, which can uplift and energize your space.
Small room or not, feng shui can make such an incredible impact on your life. That’s what it did for Cinta, a teacher and Mindvalley member from Canada.
“I transformed my office, bedroom, and living room,” she explains. “The impact on our feelings, mood, and relations is astonishing.”
And if she can do it, so can you.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best direction for your bed to face?
Simply put, in feng shui, when you’re sleeping, your head direction should be toward one of your four pillars—success, health, relationships, and wisdom.
For example, if you sleep with your head pointing toward your success direction, you will “actually be activated for success.” This goes with the other three.
So how can you find your directions? Here are the steps Marie gives:
- Stand at the foot end of your bed.
- Hold your compass and look towards the headboard.
- Check the direction your head would be pointing.
“If your head is pointing towards one of your four directions,” says Marie, “this is a good direction for you.”
However, if your bed placement isn’t feng shui-friendly, then she says to make sure these directions have “the right images and the right activations.” This could be a vision board, for instance, in your success direction.
What is a bad bed position in feng shui?
The bed is the main feature of your bedroom. So there are a few no-no’s when it comes to feng shui bed placement.
For starters, there’s a thing called “the dead position.” It’s when the feet or head face the door, and it’s called that because it resembles how one would carry the head through open doors from the house. So whatever you do, don’t place your bed directly at the entrance of your bedroom.
Another one is called “poison arrows.” These are any sharp objects that are pointing at you: outer corners, knives, weapons, cacti, or plants with pointed leaves.
Additionally, do not place your bed under a window; this can make you feel vulnerable. However, Marie explains that, if you don’t have a choice, make sure to “put heavy curtains to make sure there is no moonlight falling on you because that can disturb your sleep and emotional stability.”
How can feng shui bed placement improve my sleep quality?
“If you’re not having a good sleep and you’re not rested well enough,” says Marie, “you actually are not strong enough to go through life.”
That’s why a good bedroom layout can be incredibly beneficial. Making it comfortable as well as functional can help promote relaxation, which then improves your sleep quality, which then enhances your overall well-being.
That includes where you place your bed. In fact, one study found that bed orientation can have an impact on how well you sleep. Another study suggests that feng shui in your space of rest can also help.
So the next time you’re having restless nights, consider shifting your bed to a more ideal space in your room.
Unlock your brilliance within
Rearranging your bedroom is just one step toward a more incredible life. If you want to ramp up the flow of abundance for success, health, relationships, and wisdom, you can turn to Marie Diamond in her Mindvalley Quest, Feng Shui for Life.
In only four weeks, you’ll learn how to…
- Optimize positive energy in your home and work spaces,
- Turn these spaces into 3D “vision boards”,
- Dissolve blockages quickly that have held you back for years,
- Allow for a better flow of qi to attract abundance, success, productivity, love, and well-being, and
- So much more.
Sign up for a Mindvalley account, and you can get a sneak peek at the first few lessons of the Quest—for free.
As Marie says, “When there’s good feng shui, the energy will be harmonious, joyful, open.” And this transformation starts at Mindvalley.
Welcome in.
