Re: Macs
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Feng Shui Focus – Iskandar Malaysia
In Prof Joe Choo's last article, the geographical form of Penang Island was studied from an Environology perspective, with the right front and back limbs of the turtle-shaped island pushing it forward. George Town is located at the right front limb while Batu Maung is at the right back limb. We look at the contributing influence of this shape to the property market in Penang.
As one of the three urban centres of peninsular Malaysia, Johor Bahru is an important industrial and commercial centre to serve the southern region. It enjoys a close socio-economic relationship with Singapore. A large number of residents in Johor Bahru work in Singapore to earn higher income and Singaporeans travel to Johor Bahru for shopping and entertainment.
Whenever Johor Bahru is mentioned to foreigners, we always describe it as the town next to Singapore where it has higher platform. Do we still have to illustrate it in such a manner to them? With the comprehensive development plan for Iskandar Malaysia, these actions will be able to uplift the position of Johor Bahru to another level. There are 5 flagship zones for this development; each one carries its own functions and identity according to their historical background and connectivity.
From the Feng Shui perspective, the southern tip of Johor looks like a crab claw which one side is longer than the other. The location of flagship zone A is at the centre; B is located at the centre part of the short claw; C is at almost at the end of the shorter claw; D is at the longer claw and E at the furthest of all.
Singapore started to blossom when the first Johor-Singapore Causeway was opened in 1978, followed by the Tuas Second Link in 2008, which enabled the transfer of earth energy to continue strengthening this city. According to Feng Shui Principles in this particular case, Earth's energy travels from higher land mass to lower area through the same conductor, hence it bounces back when it has reached the optimum level. Now this pool of earth energy will benefit Johor Bahru and it is what we need to transform the modest city into a spectacular metropolis.
Flagship Zone A – Johor Bahru City
It is the heart of the plan, where it will serve as the financial, commerce and retail hub, replete with arts and culture and others. Zone A sits on a flat piece of land with high land on both sides and the northern sector supplying energy. It is also facing the Johor Straits and is located at the concave side of the straits. In Feng Shui, we emphasise on this fundamental foundation which is high land on the back, different rigidity such as river, sea or lake in front and lastly is on the concave of rivers or roads.
Land masses have energy. We know this through our understanding of gravitational effect - the higher and bigger the mountain, the greater the force it exerts downwards and sideways. This exertion of energy is inexhaustible, continuous and cumulative. As it pushes downwards and sideways, the energy is transferred through solid matter in the mountain. This energy transference is conducted through matter of similar rigidity and according to one of the Laws of Thermodynamics – from a higher energy level to a lower energy level. The live energy will stop or disperse when it meets a different rigidity such as water.
A winding river is one that curves inwards and outwards, and during this process the earth energy reaches the natural barrier and it will either be collected or dispersed, depending on the curvature of the river. If the river embraces the land (we call it the 'concave'), the energy will be collected. On the opposite side (we call it 'convex'), the energy dispersed. We can see the effects on the fertility of the soil. The vegetation on the concave side is greener and lush compared to the convex side.
As it seems, Johor Bahru has all the elements required to become a vibrant district.
Flagship Zone B – Nusajaya & Medini
Besides the fact that it sits on the convex of the Johor Strait, it is a challenging area because of the natural land form and rivers. If the developers involved in Zone B are able to retain the natural landform to preserve the rivers, they will be harness the natural earth energy and mitigate the effects of sitting on the convex of the straits.
Flagship Zone C – Western Gate Development
Zone C is set to become a maritime hub, as it faces the South China Sea. From the Feng Shui point of view, the landform of flagship zone C is a tongue shape land which is almost similar to New York City.
New York City is connected to the Long Island City and West New York with bridges to tap the earth energy. In Zone C's case, it is supplying energy to Singapore through the Second Link which is exhausting and it is hard for it to come up, but we can take advantage of the nearby high land which is located at the west sector but divided by Sungai Pulai. To beef up the development here, the area developers should build bridges to connect both sides of the river.
Flagship Zone D – Eastern Gate Development
This development is sitting on the longer claw which the earth energy is weaker compared with the short side. The government has been putting in a lot of effort in making it an integrated hub and fully utilising its infrastructure, and yet it has not shown the expected results.
The ideal landform for a port is to have a 'screen' across the strait or in front to give the protection and serve as the barriers; the 'screen' could be one or many pieces of boulders, small hills or even islands. A living example in Malaysia is Port Klang which is shielded by Pulau Klang, Pulau Indah, Pulau Che Mat Zin and others.
Flagship Zone E – Senai - Skudai
According to the plan, this is going to be the logistic hub and base for several major multinational electronics manufacturers. This is a flat land and with two rivers running from the north to the south which provides a pool of homogenous and stable energy to sustain the growth of the plan. If the investors were to design and built the premises according to Feng Shui foundations, they will be able to have stable growth of businesses.
Prof Joe Choo was elected the President of the Malaysian Institute of Geomancy Sciences ("MINGS") in 2008, a post which she currently holds. She was recently awarded a professorship by the Shanghai Jiao Tong University in China. She acts as consultant to various development projects and is frequently invited as speaker at many government and private property functions. Joe also conducts classes for the Persatuan Architect Malaysia ("PAM") and the Malaysian Institute of Estate Agents ("MIEA").