Properties from a feng shui perspective: Part 120
By David Koh | Dec 18, 2009
Hills of Seputeh
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Feng Shui Master David Koh
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This week, let us complete our tour of Taman Seputeh. This area is often positioned as prime property due to its proximity to the city and Mid Valley Megamall. It also has a hilly terrain that promises to give dwellers a majestic view overlooking the city. What is there not to like, from a marketing standpoint?
On the downside though, Seputeh is located too close to a Chinese cemetery – one of the oldest in Kuala Lumpur. This does give some people an eerie feeling even though there is nothing wrong with it from an environology perspective.
What is more relevant is the hilly and undulating terrain. Earth energy flows from high land to low. It is constantly moving, even over undulating terrain: energy from the highest point washes over smaller hills and mounds.
Energy comes to a stop when it reaches a body of water. Due to the difference in rigidity, it is unable to pass through rivers, lakes and oceans. At the banks, this energy is deflected and reflected. This tends to slow the movement of the energy, making it gentler and more homogenous – and ideal for life.
Thus, when feng shui practitioners perform an audit, they must be cognizant of the surroundings. This is part of the complexity of determining a good spot in environology. One must have a big picture of the surrounding landform.
TERRAIN TRUMPS INTERIORS
So-called feng shui experts cannot simply say “the interior design of the house is more important” or suggest that you place trinkets here and there, in, out and around of the house, to fix the problem. It is like saying you can live in Chernobyl if you wear a tin foil hat!
They reason that it is a fair compromise since no one can change what is already constructed. If the house is oriented in such-and-such a way, what can we do but to make the most of it? “Let us make internal adjustments since these are things we can control.”
Be wary of these so-called experts. They know little about the subject. In 120 articles so far, we have observed that landform plays a critical role in determining the success and prosperity of people living there. We have not made predictions: we merely observed the landform, conjectured on the impact and then matched it against real-life situations. Thus far, both hypothesis and observations match!
A wrongly-oriented property will tend to deteriorate, while a well-oriented one will flourish or display longevity. Surely this cannot be a coincidence? Surely some of these inhabitants have consulted feng shui masters, vastu sastra (Indian Feng Shui) and others, in the hope of improving their situation. Yet, the results are plain to see, especially in older developments where time has revealed the effects of landform energies, good and bad.
Do we expect people to tear down their houses or move away? Yes! If the property is unsuitable for you, either change it or change location. Do not settle for compromises as these are only stop-gap and temporary measures at best.
Better yet, avoid buying properties that are poorly designed. Force developers to be more environologically savvy and plan properties that are conducive for all.
HILLY TERRAIN
Taman Seputeh and Taman Bukit Seputeh have a hilly terrain. (For Google map reference, please log on to http://maps.google.co.uk/ and search for “Kuala Lumpur”.)
They are built around a ridge and the roads here are either contoured or on downhill slopes. Jalan Seputeh partly follows the contour of the hill as it wraps around the hill, but it is largely undulating.
On one side there are Jalan Taman Seputeh 5 and 6, which slope downwards. Houses along these roads have one side higher than the other. Generally, the north or north-east sector is highest, which means it would benefit the middle or youngest son of a household, provided there is such a family member. The lowest sector would be south, which means the middle daughter or the mother would fare the worst.
Nearby, there is the Sri Langit Condominium, positioned as a luxury condo. Strangely, although it connects directly to Jalan Seputeh, access to this place is from the other side, via Jalan Taman Seputeh 6. Perhaps it provides better privacy and avoids creating traffic jams when visitors want to enter. Whatever the reason, this does not create an ideal orientation as the entrance of the complex faces north-east towards the hill. Thus, this condo is constantly bombarded with moving earth energy and may be overwhelmed.
On the opposite side of Jalan Seputeh, the land continues to slope downhill. Thus, houses along this main road have high fronts and low backs, which is not conducive for the same reasons as with the condo. However, as the side roads Jalan Taman Seputeh 2 and 3 proceed, there are certain sections that curve in an embrace, and one side faces downhill. These pockets are likely to do better, Jalan Seputeh terminates at Jalan Sungai 2. The latter is a downhill sloping road, from north-east to south-west. At one end, there is Seputeh Heights, a very up-market exclusive gated community, comprising 37 bungalow units. This is a very nice place as it is built within a pocket valley surrounded by hills and high land on three sides.
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The Seputeh Komuter Station in Taman Seputeh
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AFFLUENT BUYERS
The best direction in such a situation is to face south-west. Property owners here are already well-to-do to be able to afford this place and those whose houses have the right orientation are likely to continue prospering. Those who are facing north-east are likely to experience difficulties. They would be well advised to renovate their homes and realign their main entrances. That is one of the benefits of owning bungalows.
Generally speaking, if the property faces a downhill slope and the back is high, the orientation of the house is considered ideal, and with the right adjustments of the interior – such as location of the master bedroom and kitchen, for example – the house can be optimised for the occupant.
At the other end of Jalan Sungai 2, we find the Seputeh Komuter station. Two roads branch off here – Jalan Telok Pulai and Jalan Tanjung 12. The land is still sloping downhill from north to south. Therefore, the ideal direction to face in this section is south.
This applies to shops and houses on one side of either road. They are likely to do better than their opposite north-facing neighbours. There are several dead-end roads branching off Jalan Telok Pulai and these may pose a challenge as dead-end streets have limited human energy circulation. Typically houses at the end of such roads fare the worst.
Relatively speaking, Jalan Telok Pulai is better compared to Jalan Tanjung 12. The latter is situated too close to the train tracks and the East-West Link Expressway. These structures create a lot of wind turbulence which dissipates energy pools.
WIND AND WATER
The Chinese call environology “feng shui” because earth energy is affected by wind (disperses energy) and water (blocks energy). Thus, although the highway and train tracks embrace this part of Seputeh, they also drain away energy.
So, even south-facing properties here are not considered conducive for the occupants. Their north-facing neighbours are likely to fare even worse. Therefore, it is not surprising to see many houses here in a dilapidated state. It could also be due to the busy-ness of this road as it is the main access road into Taman Bukit Seputeh.
Nearby there are Jalan Padang Jawa and Lorong Padang Jawa. The latter is a dead-end road and houses here face either north or south. South-facing houses are likely to do better, but those at the end of the road are likely to do poorly, regardless.
Further into Taman Bukit Seputeh, there is another property development called Mutiara Seputeh. This is also an upmarket gated community a la Seputeh Heights. It is situated on a 15-acre undulating hillock and comprises 80 units of 3-storey semi-detached houses and 13 3-storey bungalows. A resort-like setting.
Though situated on high land, it is still surrounded by higher land to the north and north-west. Therefore, the ideal direction to face is south and south-east. Individual units within this development should face downhill.
However, not all are orientated in this fashion, and homeowners here may have to consider some re-orientation where possible.
*This series on feng shui and real estate properties appear courtesy of the Malaysia Institute of Geomancy Sciences (MINGS). David Koh is the founder of MINGS and has been a feng shui master and teacher for the past 36 years.
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