Feng Shui in the Chinese Imperial Court

Feng shui in the Chinese imperial court refers to the practice and institutional management of feng shui (geomancy) by the Chinese emperor, the ruling bureaucracy, and designated state agencies across successive Chinese dynasties. While feng shui has been practised in China for over three thousand years across all levels of society, its application within the imperial court was distinguished by state-level institutional oversight, restricted access to key classical texts, integration with official astronomical and calendrical systems, and large-scale implementation in the planning of imperial cities, dynastic tombs, and palatial complexes.

The management of court feng shui was primarily the responsibility of the Qintianjian (欽天監, Imperial Astronomical Bureau), which employed specialists in kanyu (堪輿, an older term for geomantic practice) alongside astronomers and calendar makers. The institutional practice of feng shui at the court level reflected broader patterns in the relationship between the Chinese state and popular religion, with the court simultaneously employing and seeking to control geomantic knowledge.

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