After understanding the North and South facing houses it will not be difficult for us to understand about the West facing houses. As we all know that for people, who follow Vastu Shastra rules, the direction of the main door of the house is an important consideration. Generally, it has been observed that the West facing houses are the third choice; first and second choices being North Facing and East Facing houses respectively. The reason that a West facing home has become the third choice for many people is the wrong belief that West facing houses are bad as per 'Vastu Shastra". However, this is not true and a West facing home can be as auspicious as a North or East Facing one, provided one follows certain Vastu guidelines.

Here I have attempted to explain the Vastu guidelines for the placement of rooms, the entrance, etc., in a West facing property. But being a subject expert, it is not only my duty to list these guidelines but also the scientific basis and some relevance to them. So, I have explained the Vastu Guidelines that I feel make sense, under the following headings:

• What is a West facing house?
• What does Vastu Shastra actually say about West facing houses?
• What are the Vastu Guidelines for the location of the main door in West facing houses?
• What should one avoid in West facing houses?
• What rules should one follow in West facing houses?

WHAT IS A WEST FACING HOUSE?

Many people find it difficult to identify the orientation of the house/site. So many of my clients ask me this very basic question as to how to find the orientation of their house? The house or the plot orientation can be found by a one simple action. By standing inside the house or the plot and face out of the main door or gate, as the case may be. The direction you face is said to be the house or plot orientation. So, if you face West, then it is a West facing house.

WHAT DOES VASTU SHASTRA SAY ABOUT WEST FACING HOUSES?

It is a most common belief that living in a South or a West facing house will invite trouble in life etc. and that only East or North facing properties are good. Practically speaking is it actually possible to provide North/East facing house to each and every person in this country? This is a myth which has been propagated to make people spend money for solutions and corrections as suggested by the so called 'specialists'. They only try to play with the emotions and faith of the people, as everyone wants to lead a happy and healthy life full of happiness and contentment. The truth is that in an East or North facing property, it just becomes easier to orient each and every room in the ideal locations recommended by Vastu Shastra. But that does not mean that Vastu Shastra guidelines cannot be followed in a South or West facing site. It just needs some tweaking and expertise from a professional. Let us understand this by a very simple example here. It is very easy to solve a simple mathematical problem but it takes some effort to solve an applied mathematical problem. Similarly, when it come to designing a space, everyone wants to do it as it is a very process to arrange different rooms in a square or rectangular plot. But when spaces are to be arranged in an irregular plot you will need an expert to do so. This is the case with the North/ East oriented plots vis-à-vis a South/west plot. So, people have very conveniently started propagating that these are inauspicious plots.

In reality, as per Vastu Shastra, all the directions are equally good, and the auspiciousness of a home doesn't depend upon the direction. The most important factor is the correct placement (location) of the main door/entrance door. For each direction - be it be North, East, South or West - Vastu Shastra lays down specific rules for locating the main entrance door of the house. You must locate the entrance at only "allowed" places and never in the "prohibited" zones.

Now, since we're dealing with West facing houses, let's have a look at the Vastu guidelines for them.

WHAT ARE VASTU GUIDELINES FOR THE LOCATION OF THE MAIN DOOR IN THE WEST FACING HOUSES?

To figure out where to place the main door in West facing houses, imagine and divide the West length of the house from the North-West (NW) corner to the South-West (SW) corner into 9 equal parts; (each part is called as pada or step in Vastu Shastra). The NW pada is the 1ST pada and the SW pada is 9Th. This has been indicated in the image below.

Here's a summary of the Vastu guidelines for location of the main door in West facing houses:

According to Vastu Shastra, for a West facing house,

• Any of the four padas i.e. the 3RD, 4TH, 5TH or 6TH are best suited for locating the main door of the home.
• The entrance of a West facing house can also be located in padas 1 and 2, (only if the 3RD, 4TH, 5TH and 6TH padas are used). This position is neither good nor bad.
• Padas 7TH, 8TH and 9TH should be avoided i.e. you should not locate the entrance of your home in the South West part.

ACCORDING TO VASTU SHASTRA, WHAT SHOULD ONE AVOID IN WEST FACING HOUSES?

• Avoid placing the entrance in the 7Th, 8TH and 9Th padas on the West side, i.e. avoid the SW corner of the house.
• Avoid locating a bore-well or water sump in the SW part of the site.
• Never buy a plot or flat having extension in the South or SW.
• Avoid having a Kitchen in SW part of the house.

ACCORDING TO VASTU SHASTRA, WHAT TIPS SHOULD ONE FOLLOW IN WEST FACING HOUSES?

• Locate the entrance in the 3RD, 4TH, 5TH or 6Th padas in the West side.
  
• You can also use 1ST and 2ND padas if you want.
• The walls in South and West must be thicker and higher than those in the East and North.
• Place the Kitchen in SE or NW of the house; But avoid SW.
• Master bedroom in SW is the best: if the house has multiple floors then locate the master bedroom at the highest floor.
• Kid's room can be in South, West or North-West.

• A guest bedroom can be placed in North-West

The main advantage of a west-facing home is the fact that you can get the warmth and glow of the evening sun until the late hours. Some people also believe that a house in the west direction will have more wealth and prosperity. Leave your worries behind and you can easily make these Vastu tweaks to transform your West-facing home to one filled with positive energy. If you believe in Vastu Shastra and understand it well, you can feel totally reassured that a West facing house is not inauspicious.

I am an Architect, Interior Designer and a Vastu Consultant, with more than a decade of experience in conceptualization, designing and construction of diverse architectural projects. An alumnus of IIT-Roorkee, I have a thorough background in architecture and interior designing with expertise in directing all project phases. My passion towards architecture inspires me to keep learning about various new trends yet following the age-old traditions.