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Lesson 1 of 12 · Foundations
What is Vastu? Directions, elements and the mandala
What Vastu Shastra is, where it comes from, what it claims and does not, and the three ideas every lesson here builds on. Lesson 1 of the free course.
Written by Khushal ThakkarReviewed by Review pendingUpdated October 29, 2026
Vastu Shastra is the Indian tradition of arranging a building and the space inside it by direction, element and proportion, so that light, air, heat and movement sit where they serve the people who live there. It is older than most of what it is now used for; its texts describe temples and towns, and the home practice we use today distils them into a set of placement rules.
Where it comes from
The texts, the Mayamata, the Manasara and chapters of the Brihat Samhita, describe how to lay out a site, orient a building and divide it with the Vastu Purusha Mandala, a grid of squares with a deity in each. Practitioners over the centuries reduced this to rules of thumb for houses: fire in the south-east, weight in the south-west, water in the north-east, openness in the north and east. The sixteen-zone model many practitioners now use is a modern refinement of the eight classical directions.
The three ideas
- Directions. Everything is measured from the centre of the built area, the brahmasthan, by compass bearing. Lesson 2 shows how to find both.
- Elements. The five elements, earth, water, fire, air and space, each own a part of the home, and a room belongs where its element belongs. Lesson 3.
- The mandala. The Vastu Purusha Mandala divides the sides of a building into padas with their own qualities, which is how entrances are judged. Lesson 6.
What Vastu claims, and what this course does not
The tradition says a home arranged by these rules supports health, relationships and prosperity. This course teaches the rules accurately, shows you how to measure your own home against them, and stops there. Nothing here says that a placement will cause or prevent an event, and the site sells no remedies. Where the tools give a verdict, it is the tradition's placement rule stated plainly.
What the tools do
- Vastu compass turns your phone into a sixteen-zone dial.
- House facing checker names the facing and the entrance pada.
- Room placement checker gives the verdict for any room in any zone.
- Floor plan zones draws the sixteen zones over your own plan.
Every lesson ends with the tool that applies it. Start with the compass: stand at the centre of your home and see which way your front door, kitchen and bedroom lie.
Calculate yours
Try the calculator this lesson explains.