Vastu Shastra
Vastu Shastra is the traditional Indian science of architecture and space. It aligns a building with the directions, the five elements and the path of the sun, guiding where rooms, doors and heavy objects belong.
Also known as: vaastu, vaastu shastra, vastu science
Vastu means ‘dwelling’ or ‘site’, and Shastra ‘science’. Its principles appear in the Brihat Samhita of Varahamihira (sixth century), in the Puranas and in dedicated texts such as the Mayamata, the Manasara and King Bhoja’s Samarangana Sutradhara. At its heart is the Vastu Purusha Mandala, a sacred grid laid over every plot.
Vastu links directions with the five elements: water in the north-east, fire in the south-east, earth in the south-west, air in the north-west and space at the centre, the Brahmasthan. So the pooja room goes in the north-east, the kitchen in the south-east and the master bedroom in the south-west, while the centre is kept open.
In practice, Vastu is used when buying land, planning a house, choosing a flat, arranging rooms and preparing for a Griha Pravesh. Most of its guidance concerns placement: what goes where, which way you face, and what to keep light or heavy, open or closed.
A common fear is that Vastu means demolition. Most corrections are simple: moving furniture, changing how a room is used, adding light or keeping a zone clean and uncluttered. Structural changes deserve a qualified architect’s eye as well as a Vastu view.