According to UN estimates, two-thirds of the world's population will live in cities by 2050, and it is known that roughly 90% of South Koreans are residing in urban areas today. Many societal problems, including pollution and environmental damage, hav...
According to UN estimates, two-thirds of the world's population will live in cities by 2050, and it is known that roughly 90% of South Koreans are residing in urban areas today. Many societal problems, including pollution and environmental damage, have been brought about by this fast urbanisation.
Many studies on sustainable cities have been carried out, including in South Korea, as part of an international effort to solve these societal challenges through discussions and research on sustainable city concepts. A few of these studies even made an effort to modify western city models for use in South Korean urban environments.
The locations of the capital cities of the Goryeo and Joseon dynasties, Gaegyeong and Hanyang, respectively, were selected using the Eastern location theory known as Fengshui. Within the field of Fengshui theory, there are two subcategories: 1) The Yang House theory, which addresses the residence of living individuals, and 2) The Yin House theory, which addresses the burial sites of deceased individuals. The Yang House theory integrates the Yang Gi theory which is utilised to select cities' locations. Since the late Joseon period, Fengshui has been underutilised to address modern urban problems because it is viewed more as a technique for selecting a tomb site than as a philosophy.
Recently, Fengshui experts have been actively investigating how to apply the theory to urban problems more effectively, with a particular focus on identifying Fnegshui's roles to the sustainable development of cities. Notwithstanding these developments in the field of Fengshui academia, there are still certain limitations on eliminating the subjectivity of the practice.
Consequently, the aim of this research is to develop and analyse Fengshui indicators that can be employed to promote urban sustainability while upholding objectivity by reducing Fengshui's ambiguity, and to put forward a novel theory for the sustainable development of cities through the integration of East and West theories.
To create Fengshui indicators, this study used the following procedures:
First, a variety of indicators developed using Western city models were looked at. Keywords were taken from the values that these indicators aim to represent, and the indicators were then classified according to the keywords.
Second, pertinent Fengshui theory content that could be applied to contemporary cities was chosen for this study, and in the first phase, Fengshui indicators were created that could also contain values that various city-model indicators are pursuing.
Thirdly, independent of modern city model indicators, more Fengshui indicators representing solely the Fengshui perspective were created in the second phase. Together with the Fengshui indicators from the first phase, these extra indicators were added to the final pool of Fengshui indicators so that Fengshui specialists may thoroughly examine them before choosing the final set of indicators.
This study selected the new towns of Ilsan, Unjung in South Korea, Letchworth, and Milton Keynes in the UK in order to investigate the applicability of Fengshui indicators. The Fengshui indicators were applied to these cities, and comparison analysis was conducted between new towns within each country and between two countries. The following inference can be made with this empirical investigation.
First, the principles of Fengshui theory apply generally to Western cities, even though the environments in the East and West are different. Specifically, it is compatible—without any modifications—with the classic Fengshui theory on water and key location. The rationale behind this is that water plays a vital role in the formation of residential areas, as experience has taught us, and key amenities ought to be situated in the most advantageous place within the area in question.
Second, the geological disparities between the East and West limit the applicability of several aspects of Fengshui theory. In Fengshui, for instance, the application of the "main mountain channel" theory may differ between the flat or low-hilly terrains of the United Kingdom and the mountainous terrains of South Korea, which make up 70% of the country. This means that in South Korea, a "good" rate can be assigned if both "up-down" and "left-right" shifts of the mountainous channels are noted. A "fair" rate can also be assigned to any single change that is noticed. One may provide a "poor" rating if none of these changes are seen. However, because left-right alteration should be prioritized above up-down change, Fengshui theory's application in the UK is limited.
Third, to account for the variations between the East and West's environments, some aspects of Fengshui theory need to be adjusted. Forming 'four mountains' is difficult in the contemporary urban environment; therefore, the traditional Fengshui theory needs to be adjusted to work in Western cities. 'Four mountains' should be identified by considering man-made structures such as roads and railroads, which fulfill functions analogous to those of waterways. Roads and railways play a similar role to the 'four mountains' in dividing the city into its bounds while preserving its internal energy.
Fengshui has great logic, but it is not generally applied in modern culture for a variety of reasons, one of which is that it is more subjective than other scientific research disciplines. Furthermore, it is because the development of Fengshui has been centered on the Ying House theory, and choosing auspicious locations for ancestors' tombs in order to wish for the good fortune of one's descendants has been viewed as a superstition.
Therefore, in order to effectively implement the Fengshui theory in modern society, study on the Yang House theory—especially Yang Gi theory, which establishes a city's location—needs to be enhanced. Fengshui has to be revived as an applied field of study that can address issues facing cities.
Fengshui has been developed as a location theory of city in the East, but it is a universal theory which can be applicable to both East and West because urban environments became more similar between East and West. This is so because Fengshui is an environmental science that proposes a way for humankind to live in a harmony with environment, in addition to being an empirical science based on human experience.
Fengshui should continue to be modernised to maximise its application. One approach to simplifying the modernisation of Fengshui and enhancing applicability can be to combine it with urban planning theory.