Properties from a feng shui perspective: Part 143
By David Koh and Joe Choo | June 4, 2010
Golden rain in Overseas Union Garden (OUG)
You just have to love Overseas Union Garden, better known as OUG. It has got some of the more interesting road names. Thematic nomenclature is not new to the Klang Valley and was all the rage at one time. All the roads within a certain section or township would be given related names. This practice is less common now, replaced by the dull but practical acronym-section style, such as BK for “Bandar Kinrara” or PJS for “Petaling Jaya-Sunway”.
We do not know what precipitated the choice of names in OUG but it is certainly interesting. We get all kinds of rains here. The golden rain –Hujan Emas – was the township’s main road in the early days and it serviced many large bungalows. Several other Hujan Emas roads branch off it. (For Google map reference, log on to http://maps.google.co.uk/ and search for “Kuala Lumpur”.)
Jalan Hujan Emas 1 connects the main road to Jalan Awan Besar, the other main road which services the neighbouring Taman Yarl. This road is located on hilly terrain, near the peak of a small hill. Three cul-de-sacs – Lorong 1 through 3 – branch off it.
From an environology viewpoint, building houses on hilly terrain is tricky. Earth energy is moving more rapidly and strongly. The peak is not a conducive place for buildings as energy flows out and down from it to lower ground. The energy of the houses located at the peak will be drained. For those on the slopes, it is important to orientate the houses to face downhill. The back of the house can then act as a shield against on-rushing earth energy. As the energy circumvents the house, it can form eddies around the front. This is a gentle and homogenous version of the energy, which is beneficial for the occupants.
Conducive to face downhill
Thus, properties that face downhill are considered conducive. The occupants should be doing well in various areas, such as good and harmonious family relationships, good health and financial prosperity. On the other hand, the neighbours across the road – facing uphill – are not likely to do well.
Lorong Hujan Emas 1 through 3 are not as conducive compared with those along Jalan Hujan Emas 1. Dead-end roads have very limited traffic. The lack of circulating human energy will lead to stagnation. Properties at the entrance to such roads will do better because of their proximity to the main road, but those located at the end are likely to fare the worst.
It is a compromise between privacy and prosperity. Which would you choose?
Jalan Hujan Emas 1 to 7 are parallel roads in a northeast/southwest direction. Houses here typically face north-west or south-east. The terrain has a gradual slope which varies from one section to another. Suffice to say, houses here should face the lower ground. In some areas, that would be a southeast direction. Jalan Hujan Emas 7 embraces SJK Yoke Nam. This vernacular Chinese school should do well with a southeast orientation, too.
Jalan Hujan Emas 4 to 6 terminate at OUG’s retail and commercial district. Here, the roads have a different theme: Hujan Rahmat, or showers of blessing. Judging by the buzz around this area, it may be an apt name!
Bustling scene
This section is constantly abuzz with activity. By day, hawker stalls are aplenty. The coffee shops are packed. There is a wet market here offering fresh produce. Parking is scarce and traffic snarls up easily. By night, the restaurants come to life. Some 24-hour operators would take over the now emptier roads and fill them with more tables, offering patrons Malaysia’s own unique version of al fresco dining.
Of course, this may not suit the residents in nearby homes. Jalan Hujan Emas 4 and 5 are particularly hard hit because their roads become main arteries into the area. Even public buses ply this route! Dust, noise and a steady stream of traffic make life quite uncomfortable here. We would not be surprised if a majority of occupants here are actually workers or operators of the shops nearby.
The Hujan Rahmat area is on a slight plateau. Thus, earth energy washes over the area in a gentle fashion. So, most of the shops here, in any facing direction, tend to do well, provided the type of business suits the Gua of the owner or operator. This probably explains the area’s attraction to people.
However, as with all areas which are richly infused with gentle earth energy and attractive to humans, vice is not far away. This area is also known to be infested with thugs and gangsters. One has to be careful to avoid getting mugged or extorted here!
Further south, there are quite a number of houses along roads such as Jalan Hujan Abu (ash rain?), Jalan Hujan Batu (hailstones), Jalan Hujan Bubuk (powdery rain?), Jalan Hujan Gerimis (light drizzle) and Jalan Hujan Manik (rain beads). The names get quite weird, don’t you agree?
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A common feature in older townships would be higher-end properties on one side and cheaper houses on the opposite side. - APpic
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Downhill dip
The terrain here is more uneven, and dips downhill towards the south. Again, properties that face downhill are likely to be more conducive than properties that face uphill. Generally, these would be properties facing southeast, south and southwest.
OUG is a close neighbour to Taman Bukit Indah, thanks to several internal roads which provide a link between them. In many instances, it is hard to tell them apart. The clue lies in the street names. The theme here is more related to taste and senses. We find plenty of “nyaman” (cosy), “lazat” (tasty), “manisan” (sweets), “nikmat” (enjoyment), “perisa” (flavour) and “jiran” (neighbours) here.
Jalan Lazat 1 and 2 even live up to their moniker with several food stalls and restaurants in the area. There is a dearth of commercial or retail properties here. Thus, the largely residential area taps into OUG’s considerable resources for its food, beverage and entertainment needs.
Despite its name, Taman Bukit Indah is not really hilly. The gradient of the land is quite gentle and it tapers downhill towards the Klang River up north. The hills are located towards the east at Taman Serangkai. Generally, a direction facing north or northwest facing is conducive.
Taman Serangkai is closely affiliated to Taman Bukit Indah, going by the naming convention. It has lots of “nikmat”, and “jiran”, but also some unique additions such as “enak” (delicious), senangria and selesaria. This development is “boxed in” by Kuchai Lama, Taman Bukit Indah and Sri Petaling. The Kuala Lumpur-Putrajaya highway separates it from Sri Petaling.
Cul-de-sacs
The terrain here is comparatively hillier than Taman Bukit Indah. Therefore, properties that face downhill are considered more conducive than their front and back neighbours. There is a group of cul-de-sacs at Lorong Nikmat and Jalan Selesaria. These are likely to experience energy stagnation.
Most the Jalan Jiran properties are inter-connected. However, the best directions to face are generally to the north and north-west, to suit the terrain and the Klang River. But, the road configuration is such that two rows of houses are built on one road. For every row that has a good orientation, the opposite row would have a poor orientation.
The difference is quite obvious. Properties on one side are usually well maintained and many would have renovations done. The driveway would be filled with higher-end cars. It is not unusual for houses on both sides to have more than one car – the state of public transport is such that many households find it a necessity to own two cars. However, the make and pricing of the cars show a big disparity.
It is better to have more roads, and to construct houses on only one side. It does not cost more, as the back lanes (essentially another road) can be dispensed with. This would be a win-win situation for developers and buyers.
Looking at these properties, we sometimes get a nagging suspicion that developers in the old days knew which side of the road was not conducive. Why else would they construct higher-end properties on one side (usually on higher ground) and cheaper, one-storey link-houses on the opposite (and lower) side? This is a very common feature in older townships.
Next week, we will take a little detour from our Old Klang Road tour and visit OUG’s neighbour Sri Petaling.
Professor David Koh is giving a talk on June 6 at the Segambut Tile & Interior Decoration Centre (STADEC) on "Know your Feng Shui colour". Organised by STADEC and Kansai Coatings, the talk is free to the public. For details, call 016-3988229 or 017-8881593.
*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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