Tortoise The tortoise is one of the celestial animals, or guardians in feng shui, which are the green dragon, red phoenix, white tiger and black tortoise. These celestial animals are considered guardians of good Feng Shui energy and the roots of their symbolism and Feng Shui use go deep to the beginnings of the landscape school of feng shui. The first Feng Shui symbolic use of turtles, or tortoises is as a protection symbol when placed in the back of the house. This also means you can place a small tortoise at your back in the office, or in the back of your garden.