SCIENTIFIC VASTU | LIVING ROOM | An Architect Explains
The Living Room is a room of ‘gathering’: the front room where guests are entertained once they enter the house and also the room where members of a family sit, have discussions and spend quality time together. This is a place of relaxation and positivity, where the family makes some good memories. In a way, the living room is the heart of a home.
In most houses, the Living room is accessed through the Main Entrance Door and therefore, is the first place into which, the outside energy, ‘positive or negative’, enters. Also it is the space where guests drop off their energy, ‘positive or negative’. Hence it is important that you ensure that positive energy enters the living room and remains there, whereas negative energy is disposed off, otherwise it could affect you and your family.
So, is there a way to make this achievable? Well, according to Vastu Shastra, the right placement of the main door and the living room, the furniture, lighting and the colours, can ensure that the positive energy is enhanced and the negative energy is rid off. So to know more about making your Living room a vastu compliant space, read on…..
Listed here, are some of the Vastu Guidelines for a Living room. Since Vastu is a science, every guideline is based on logic and reasoning. As an Architect, I have attempted to explain each of these guidelines rationally and scientifically under the following headings, so that you have a choice and can decide what you want to follow or don’t instead of looking at Vastu as a superstition:
What is the best location for a Living room?
What are the vastu guidelines for arrangement of furniture in a living room?
What are the vastu guidelines for fixtures in a living room?
What are the vastu guidelines for placement of paintings and artefacts in a living room?
What are the ideal colours and lighting in a living room?
WHAT IS THE BEST LOCATION OF THE LIVING ROOM, ACCORDING TO VASTU SHASTRA?
- First choice for living room location: North, North-West, North-East, East.
- Second Choice for living room location: South-East (only option in South facing sites) or South-West
In a West facing site: The Living room can be in the North-West (good location, but guests feel restless and leave early).
In a South facing site: One can have a South-East Living room but if there is no other choice, opt for the South-West (guests feel at home and stay on for a long time).
In an East facing site: The Living room can be in the East, otherwise in the North-East corner.
WHAT ARE THE VASTU GUIDELINES FOR ARRANGEMENT OF FURNITURE IN THE LIVING ROOM?
Sofa sets should be placed against the South and West walls: If there is no other choice, then place them against the East walls. The Reason – It is best to have big window openings on the North and East walls as they allow the constant North light and the morning East light into the house. So it is better not to obstruct these windows with furniture.
Avoid a cluttered sofa arrangement: The Reason – It is obvious that a cluttered arrangement will not allow free movement and creates tension in our ordered minds.
Use square or rectangular furniture in the living room. Avoid circular or curved furniture: The Reason – rectangular furniture will fit in neatly in the corners of the rectangular/square rooms.
Avoid furniture near sharp corners of columns: The Reason – These sharp edges can be dangerous when moving around and can cause damage to the furniture when moved against them. Hence it is better to camouflage them by placing something in front of them, like indoor plants.
WHAT ARE THE VASTU GUIDELINES FOR FIXTURES IN A LIVING ROOM?
Water fountain/Aquarium should be in the North, East. Avoid one in the South: A small, wall/floor or tabletop mounted water fountain that runs throughout the day, and made of natural materials like copper, stone, glass, clay, stainless steel, bamboo, etc., or a Fish Aquarium is recommended. The Reason – The soft and soothing sound of falling water in a fountain is pleasing to the ear. Also, watching fish is a very relaxing pastime. This helps in better interaction between the family members and guests as the aquarium becomes a talking point. Also, an aquarium is considered an important remedy in Vastu Shastra just like in Feng Shui.
Fireplaces should be in the South-East or North-West: since South-East represents Agni (Fire). But avoid the North-East and South-West corners since North-East represents Water. The Reason – The North-East corner is reserved for windows to allow the morning East light into the house, so blocking it with a fireplace defeats the purpose.
Avoid exposed beams: As a rule avoid sitting under a beam as it excites your stress zone and disturbs your rational judgment in matters of importance. The balance can be partly restored by concealing beams with the help of a false ceiling. The Reason – When sitting in a room with an exposed beam, your peripheral eye vision is constantly disturbed as the ceiling is not uniform and the beam is projecting out. So it is better to conceal the beam.
Air conditioners should be placed on West walls: The Reason – Since the Sun is in the West in the evenings, the West wall tends to get heated up by evening and during the night, hence it is logical to have Air coolers or air conditioners that release cool air on this side.
Watch TV facing East or North: The Reason – Since one tends to sit in front of the T.V. for long hours, it makes sense to sit facing North or East, as will be inadvertently exposed to the suns rays, entering from the North or East windows.
WHAT ARE THE VASTU GUIDELINES FOR PLACING PAINTINGS AND ARTEFACTS IN LIVING ROOMS?
Paintings have a profound effect on the home or workplace. They can either create an active ambience or have a negative impact. Paintings evoke strong sentiments or ‘rasas’ in us. The positive sentiments are “seductive” induced by beauty, “comic” and “peaceful or meditative”. So images that are uplifting, positive, harmonious and calming should be hung throughout the house.
The negative sentiments like “anger”, “fear”, “repulsion”, arousing pity, contempt etc should be avoided. As a rule, avoid paintings that depict death, violence, negative aspects of life, fearful scenes, battles, wounded animals and gore. The Reason – Negative images can remain in our sub-conscious mind causing some negativity in us.
In Vastu Shastra, certain pictures should be hung in specific directions. For example:
The North Wall can have paintings/pictures of water bodies to stimulate the positive aspect of the primary element water. It can also have pictures of wealth.
The East wall can have a painting or picture of the rising sun— the beginning of the dawn of a day. The East wall can also have pictures of flowers and fruits.
The North-East corner walls can have Godly pictures.
The South and West walls can have innovative painting of a gentle elephant herd, high rise mountains with heavy plant life and similar pictures or paintings that denote strength.
Do not keep dried/artificial flowers, bonsai or cactus in living rooms: The Reason – Artificial flowers and bonsai are unnatural, cactus thorns can prick and dried flowers look dried.
ACCORDING TO VASTU, WHAT ARE THE IDEAL COLOURS AND LIGHTING FOR A LIVING ROOM?
Colour of the Living room walls should be white, yellow, green, or blue, never red or black. The Reason – The light colours of the room will reflect the light and make the room bright and appear large also.
Similarly, use light curtains in the North, East, North-East and heavy curtains in the South, West: The Reason – Same as above.
Have ample and soothing light in a living room: The Reason – It is obvious that the living room should be well lit as it is a space for people to gather for long periods of time. A dark and dimly lit room is not condusive for relaxation and discussion.
Hang the biggest chandelier in the South-West part. Avoid in the North-East: The Reason – A tall chandelier can be an obstruction and so should be avoided in the NE as the light coming in, may be reduced.
With these simple and useful Vastu Shastra tips, you can make minimal and inexpensive changes in your Living room and I’m sure you will see some positive differences because, like I have said at the beginning, Vastu Shastra is a science and all these guidelines have a scientific basis. Good luck!
The Vastu Guidelines are very similar to the guidelines used by modern Architects in designing a house. To read about an Architect’s guidelines on the Design of a Living Room, go to:
If you want to make the rest of the rooms of your house/apartment also Vastu compliant, then go to:
To know how suitable a house is, according to Vastu Shastra, you can cross check it’s Vastu compliance with a score sheet which works as a guideline. The score obtained will help you make a fruitful decision whether to take up or reject the house. Check it here in my other blog: House Construction In India:
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Related Topics:
- Vastu Shastra | Explained By An Architect
- Vastu Shastra | Principles For A House
- Vastu Shastra | Factors That Impact A House
- Vastu Guidelines | Designing A House
- Vastu Guidelines | Interiors Of A House
- Vastu Guidelines | Exteriors Of A House
- Vastu Guidelines | Selecting The Right Site
- Vastu Guidelines | Construction Of A House
- Vastu Guidelines | Rituals For A House
- Vastu Guidelines | Non-Residential Buildings
- Remedies For Vastu Defects
Hi
First of all very informative article.
What would you say about paintings of Cleopatra, the king and the tombs. Also, having a Taj Mahal model in the house.
Thanks,
Anu
Thank you so much. Living rooms desings are very good. Nice blog.
Hi, I have a east facing site(south-east corner site), I am going to construct a house and would like to have south-east Living room, north-west kitchen and the entrance would east Facing. Could you please advise me whether can I go ahead and construct south-east living room. Please advise.
Thanks,
Bhasker
Hi Bhasker,
An east living room is ideal but a South-East is acceptable, since yours is an East facing site.
Admin
Hi,
We just build our house where entrance is from North, North East is a dining area plus north wall has main door, North West has our two car garage. We mostly use garage door our our entrance and when we enter home through our main door we see towards left dining area, Gass burner is in the east wall towards south quadrant of our house and sometimes that can be seen when we enter our home. We have one full bath plus pantry in the middle of the house that is not exactly middle though towards left but when we enter from our main door after 7 feet the wall is there. We are thinking to put laughing buddha over there but behind the wall it’s restroom. We have build this house thinking it’s vastu perfect but we have missed some stuff like in the lot there is bio retention plant in South western part of the lot and we have made fire place in South wall of our living area that is in South West quadrant part of the house. Now when I am reading your posts it says we should place fireplace in northwest or south east. How come we can place fire place in the kitchen as our kitchen is in South East part of the house and otherwise east wall cooking range is there. We have windows in West wall and south wall of our living area but since cell garage is in North West quadrant of the house we caneed not get air or light in our living area from North or east side but we do receive lot of air lights and in Our dining area and kichen. What I need to do for furniture placement in the living area, my master bedroom is over the living room that is South West part of the house, but since my living area also in the south western part of the house and fire place in south wall is it bad for having our master bedroom rooM on top of it. We are planning to keep the TV in the living area on top of the fire place that is South wall. Please tell is it ok to keep that way. Where I should keep my fish aquarium? Is it ok to keep it in the kitchen in the south eastern corner?
Hi Aru,
The obvious thing to do is to place the TV above the fireplace. But it is not advisable to sit for long hours facing towards South. An aquarium in the North or East is preferable.
Admin
Firstly – God Bless You! Your website, the presentation and the Font, it all, exudes some energy which, I am very attracted to! Thank you!
I have been blessed with lot of money, prosperity and happiness throughout my life and married life. Other than hard work(smart work) I do follow Vaastu and Feng Shui. However, my money flow has never accumulated. It comes when we need it most and thereafter it just keeps the candle burning. Nothing extra. I AM NOT greedy and I just am keen on giving my WIFE (very nice lady – married for 30 years!) a more than a just average financial comfort. I am more keen on working and then earning money through that and giving it to my wife. That will give me immense satisfaction – more than winning a billion dollars in lottery!
my DOB is 13/11/61 if that helps. My temple faces south west (I do puja facing east) and my house entrance also faces SW. Would you be so kind to help, please! Thank you kindly!
Hi Bharat,
Thank you for your appreciation. Dont worry about the vastu aspects of your life. Your approach to life is right according to me. So best to remain the way you are. There is no need for any change.
Amin
Hi. We live in a north facing apartment. My living room, and two bedrooms (which are in the same line as living room) all have large windows opening in the east/ south east. Living room opens into a balcony which is east facing. Two bedrooms are one is kids bedroom and other guest room both have large windows opening in east/ south east. My kitchen is north west and master bedroom south west, toliets mid of west and north west. We get too much Sun all through the years due to this large amount of east exposure. Is this good placement as per vastu? There is a little anger around my place and family gets irate very easily. Is this because of the over exposure to sun rays/ east? Please advise if there is any vastu correction possible to make my family little calmer.
Hi RG,
I do not know of the anger spikes that ‘too much Sun’ can cause. But since you believe this is the cause, go in for curtains or blinds, preferably dark ones, and keep them down in the mornings in the east facing rooms. With blinds you can control the amount of light that enters.
Admin
Hello, very nice practical explanation for vasthu principles. Clear my doubt also. Can south west corner be airy and almost like open space. Expecting your valuable suggestions.
Hi Siva,
SW should be closed and ideally have thick walls as it gets hot due to the strong sun rays from the South and West.
Admin
My tv set is on south wall and we watch tv facing south dirrction will that create any problem
Hi Shilpa,
It is not ideal since you will be sitting for long hours facing south. Think of shifting the TV elsewhere.
Admin
Hi..its been very helpful info abt vasthu etc of all rooms..thanq very much..Ive got one query..i have 3 bhk..where the main door(placed in south east corner of the flat… entering towards north) is the DIRECT entrance into the living room. To give a little privacy and make sound proof to the living room..I want to place a roof to floor divider(with pvc sliding glass doors) leaving an entryway kind.. of 3-4 feet frm the main door entrance wall. So another door would be coming in front of the original door to enter into the hall ..is it ok to cross one main door and enter another door to enter the hall..any restrictions on the number of doors and windows present in the flat?
Hi Sujatha,
You can have the other door if you want to make it sound proof. But in placing it, make sure that the space does not get cramped.
Admin
very helpful, & clearing doubts.
Hi Manoj,
Thank you for the appreciation.
Admin
My flat is west facing, once enter the house, south west living room,south east master bed room, north east kitchen room, north west dinning room and north east extend and road view to the west is there, is it preferable?
Hi Ratna Ghosh,
Most of it is okay considering that it is a west facing site. The only point is that the NE kitchen is not preferred by many, though I must say that in Kerala, the kitchens are usually in the NE. So it should be okay, but you must be convinced.
Admin
What should be the colour of North facing wall.What kind of wallpaper colour on can choose for northfacing wall.please share your answer .
Hi Pravin,
You could go through my post on choosing the right vastu colours
Admin
Hello Sir,
We are extending our 2 room house in a 2BHK ground floor home. It’s a South facing plot. So, if I am standing facing South and in the middle then, our living room will be on my right, kitchen on left and both bedroom at back. Also, there will be toilet bathroom between kitchen and left bedroom.
Here, entrance to the house will be from South adjacent to Kitchen wall and our pooja room is coming adjacent to toilet and in the kitchen i.e. at North east corner of kitchen. I need your advice on this structure.
Thanks.
Hi Shital,
Most of the room positions are according to vastu. But are you extending upwards or on the ground floor? I cannot comment unless I know the position of the proposed rooms.
Admin
Hello,
We are renovating the living room now, it has started. Can you please tell me how should the ceiling be according to vastu.
And any preferable colors? In our other 2 bedrooms we have got the modern tray done.
Thank you.
Hi Somya,
The ideal colour for a ceiling is white and it’s shades, like cream, ivory etc.
Admin
Hi sir
I would like to ask a small question.Recently we have booked a flat which is north facing, but my husband modified to west facing and their booking note was like this “West facing conversion required for north entrance apartment”.
so i am confusing whether west facing is good or not ?
Please reply as early as possible
HI Kavya,
A north facing apartment is preferred to a West facing ones for those who follow Vastu. But there must be some reason why your husband chose to have the door on the west. If the benefits of having a west facing door outweigh the original north option, then go for it.
Admin
My house is west facing,once enter the house ,southwest living room,north west bed room,south east kitchen room,north east children room,and north east extend and road view is there north east,is it preferable?
HI Srinivasa Rao,
As long as gthere is enough light and ventilation in the house in all rooms, it is oky.
Admin
i would like to hang a horse painting in my living room, but want to know few things before doing it:
1, On which wall shall i hang (Direction)?
2, How many Horses should be there on the painting?
3, In which Direction the Horses shall face?
4, Horse colour shall be White, Black or Brown??
Please clear my doubts because i have heard that it is very good for
the peaceful and prosperous atmosphere of vastu.
Hi Pooja,
I do not know about the finer details about horse paintings in vastu shastra. But I believe that galloping horses and white ones are the best. It is preferable to hang them on the North wall.
Admin
i have sofa covers of brown and golden colour and having elephant print who is carrying doli of a girl on his back . its good for us and our business ? plz help
Hi Shagun,
You cannot look at sofa cover designs or colours to decide the fate of your business
Admin
hi, recently v changed our building colour to orange red. and the living room is one side pink and the other with light green mix now recently my husband not well. we changed all colours according to vaastu. now I want a suggestion from u. which wud be the best colour for the living room.
Hi mary kumar,
I would suggest you use light colours like off-whites, beige, pale green or yellow. You can read more about it in my post vastu colours for rooms of a house or in choose the right vastu colours for your house.
Admin
Thank you so much for sharing this. Very helpful :.
Thank you Payal for taking the time to leave an appreciative note.
Admin
Very informational. Thanks.
Thank you Connie for your appreciation.
Admin
My living room has 2 huge paintings (each 4 feet x 3 feet) hand painted by my husband.
One is the picture of a teenage french boy and a half naked girl with transparent clothes swinging on a swing in a garden.
Other is the picture of a teenage guy riding on a horse trying to lift a teenage girl (again with transparent clothes).
We are into interior decoration business for the past 15 years. But we have very very less business. and into lot of financial problems for the past many years.. We have hung these paintings on the walls of the sitting room for the past 13 years. Should i shift these paintings to the bedroom. Please advise.
Hi Prathima,
These paintings, I assume cannot be called ‘nudes’. I feel if they are aesthetic, you should leave them in the living room as they are interesting for conversation. But if you feel that they may make some visitors uncomfortable because of the ‘nudity’, then shift them to the bedrooms.
Interior decoration businesses have so much of competition- you cannot blame the paintings for that. You have to shift your focus on the best ways to market your business.
Admin
What about the location of the living room for the east facing house?
What concerns me is: in my case I plan to locate the main door on the left side of the central imaginary line drawn in the E to W direction. If I plan to have the door opening inside and clockwise, I think, I would be forced to use the South central location. But I would prefer to have the living room in the central NE location.
Hi Gauri,
I think you are confused. The way I see it, you need to stand outside your East facing site. Draw a central imaginary line from East to west and place your main door on the ‘right’ side, that is in the NE quadrant and open it clockwise. It will take care of all the vastu principles.
Admin