Properties from a feng shui perspective: Part 118
By David Koh | Dec 04, 2009
In The Temple's Shadow
In our previous article, we mentioned that there are two access roads to the Thean Hou temple in Taman Seputeh. However, access through Jalan Permai is limited by its conversion into a car park that serves the temple, especially during festivals or events. (For Google map reference, please log on to http://maps.google.co.uk/ and search for “Kuala Lumpur”.)
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Feng Shui Master David Koh
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This means Jalan Permai best serves the residents in the area rather than visitors to the temple. This road winds uphill and properties here are practically under the shadow of the temple. The slopes here are quite steep, too. There are several big semi-detached houses here and the Kristal Court condominium.
Also living under this shadow are properties along Persiaran Syed Putra nearby. Properties here have different orientations – some face the hill, some have their backs to the hill and for the rest, the hill is located on one side of the property.
Persiaran Syed Putra is also the main access road to Robson Condominium and Robson Height condominium. Once, this area was touted as an exclusive enclave, offering privacy and exclusivity. It is located close to the Federal Highway and the Mid Valley Megamall. Brickfields and Bangsar are within easy reach, as is the city centre.
By all accounts, this area should do well. Yet, a drive-through will quickly show that not all is well. Many houses are vacant or put up for sale. Properties – including shophouses – have a dilapidated and aged appearance. It is certainly not an inviting place.
A well-maintained township would be clean and bright, and one feels secure in it. Poor upkeep leads to the opposite and under such conditions, privacy and isolation can be worrisome.
Energy movement
According to the principles of environology, earth energy flows from the top of mountains down to valleys. This energy is affected by the gradient of slopes, and the land’s composition and density. It is also stopped and deflected by bodies of water.
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Living at the top of mountains is not a good idea.
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Given this basic rule, it is easy to see that living at the top of mountains or hills is not a good idea. Neither is living on a steep slope or even at the foot of such a slope, for that matter. Properties on mountaintops lose their energy, contributing it to the surroundings. Properties on steep slopes and at the foot of steep slopes are bombarded by very strong, fast moving energy.
Of course, from a geological point of view it also makes sense as there is always the risk of landslides. Still, that does not solve the problem as developers continue to eye hill developments and buyers continue to buy into the hype of “living on top of the world” or “enjoying a great view”.
First, why would anyone but hermits want to live on top of the world? Second, what guarantee have you got with regards to the view? What if someone builds a taller building in front of you? What if the view is that of a cemetery or some equally uninviting scene?
Third, what if this view “costs” them because the orientation of their home is not conducive and causes them to do poorly in their relationships, health, finances and career? Is the view worth it?
Properties for sale
From this perspective, it is easy to see why properties along Jalan Permai, Persiaran Syed Putra and their offshoots also appear to fare rather poorly. As I mentioned, many houses here are vacant, put up for sale or both.
Could this be the impact of the recent (some would insist on calling it “current”) global financial meltdown? It is a rather strange coincidence for so many people in one location to be forced into such a drastic situation. Could the impact be greater on the inhabitants here because of environological factors? Perhaps environology already played a part in this and the economic problems only exacerbated it.
Generally the whole area is not ideal as it is on a steep terrain and the energy is too strong. Properties that face the hill are likely to suffer the most as they face oncoming energy coming from the hill. This can overwhelm the inhabitants, especially if the entrance is not compatible with the main occupant’s gua number.
The gua number is derived from a person’s date of birth. It denotes four sectors (from a compass) in a house, building, office or room that are conducive for a person’s success and four sectors that are negative.
Properties that face downhill, with the hill to their backs are most likely to do well, provided the entrance is in the right sector for the main occupant’s gua number.
Highest sector
As for properties which have the hill on one side, it would depend on which sector of the house is highest. If we were to divide a house into a 3x3 grid, each of the eight outer grid boxes will correspond to one sector of the compass – north, north-east, east, south-east, south, south-west, west and north-west.
According to ancient I Ching, each sector represents a member of the family. North-west is for the father; south-west, the mother; east, eldest son; south-east, eldest daughter; north, middle son; south, middle daughter; north-east, youngest son; and west, youngest daughter.
The sector that is raised the highest will be most beneficial to the corresponding family member. Likewise, the lowest sector will indicate the family member who will fare the poorest.
This principle holds true for houses that face uphill too, but in such cases, the overriding factor is still the oncoming earth energy bombarding the house.
Whatever the case, I reckon it may not be easy to find buyers for these “For Sale” houses – after all, there are many of them with no takers in sight. A main reason could be the area’s “prime” location which could have helped inflate prices. Another possible reason could be the current economic situation. People are wary of committing themselves to such a big-ticket purchase amidst uncertain times. Furthermore, they may have difficulty securing financing for the purchase.
Revived interest
Judging by the turnout at The Star’s Property Fair last week, we would say that interest in real estate – be it for residence or rental – is picking up. Likewise, many banks reported strong earnings and lower than expected non-performing loans. Hence, they may be more willing to finance home purchases, provided the property is fairly valued and the borrower has a good track record.
The sale of properties here could also depend on the owners’ willingness to part with a lower sum than their asking price. This may not be easy as it could mean taking a loss due to the high price they paid for it or they had expected a better return on their investment.
One thing for certain though, judging by the number of yet-unsold properties here, it is a buyer’s market now.
Jalan Seputeh is an offshoot of Jalan Robson. It is the main access road into Taman Seputeh. It used to be extremely congested as more properties were developed inside this township. Fortunately, new exits and an alternative entrance from the Mid Valley Megamall helped to ease the build-up somewhat.
Lorong Jambatan branches off Jalan Seputeh . It is essentially a dead-end road that climbs uphill. Several houses are lined along this road. Unfortunately, most of them are located on the outer elbow of the road.
Road deflection
Earth energy can be deflected by roads, too, due to their slight difference in rigidity and the movement of traffic. Roads are our modern-day equivalent of rivers and automobiles the flowing water. The busier the traffic, the more pronounced the effect.
The angle of deflection is dependent on the shape of the road. An embracing or concave bend is considered good as the energy is concentrated and focused like a parabolic dish. Thus, properties that face such a bend are considered more conducive than those that are located on the outer elbow (convex). A convex bend disperses the rebounding energy.
Jalan 2/87g or Lorong Kapar branches off Jalan Seputeh near the Jalan Robson intersection. This connects several buildings that are conspicuous from the Federal Highway, such as a furniture mall, Ritz Garden Hotel, Wisma YPR, United Tower and Seputeh Permai Condo. There are several smaller buildings – such as Korea Hotel and Palace Hotel nearby that have been around for many, many years but they are less noticeable, probably due to their smaller size.
Wisma YPR used to be a hotel when the building was first completed. The location is actually quite good as it faces the Klang River, and there is a hill at its back. The Abad Century Hotel used to be a happening place. It enjoyed good visibility off the highway, although access was a bit of a bother and parking was lacking.
Over time all properties “run dry” of energy and need to be re-ignited with a fresh infusion of energy. There could also be other environology factors related to the hotel’s eventual closure, sale and conversion into the office building it is today. This can be affected by the owner’s or general manager’s gua numbers, for example, which may not be suited for the hospitality industry.
Wind turbulence
The close proximity to the highway may also be a challenge as fast traffic also means stronger wind turbulence. Strong winds have the ability to disperse earth energy. Of course, that is not likely to be the problem nowadays as this stretch of the highway is constantly congested.
Klang-bound traffic from Kuala Lumpur, Brickfields and Seputeh converge here, creating a massive bottleneck that often slows traffic to a standstill. This is exacerbated by the presence of the exit ramps to the New Pantai Expressway, Old Klang Road and the East-West Link leading to Cheras! In the early days, things were not as bad and that probably contributed to the hotel’s difficulties.
For all these properties, ideal directions to face are west, north-west and south-west. These directions either parallel or directly face the Klang River. Another consideration is the internal road system. These roads are mostly dead-end roads which do not allow energy to circulate. I have seen numerous such cases in our tour of the Klang Valley.
The highway bends as it branches out to Old Klang road. This creates an embrace and would be very conducive for properties. Alas, this section is also where the Klang River curves away to form a convex. Thus, the good points are offset by the bad.
Nevertheless, we can see that a few shophouses near the Korea and Palace hotels reflect this situation. They are old, a little worn with time but surprisingly resilient, having been in business for so long.
*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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