KAMPUNG Dato' Keramat,off Jalan Ampang, started as a low-cost settlement
to complement the growing but
limited space of nearby Kampung
Baru, a Malay reserve land. (For
Google map reference, please log
on to http://maps.google.co.uk/
and search for "Kuala Lumpur".)
Later, as Kampung Dato' Keramat
became more congested, the area
expanded into Taman Keramat across
Jalan Jelatek, which subsequently
became its main access road. Today,
the entire area is known as Keramat.
The Klang River flows from Klang
Gates in the north and along Keramat's
eastern border. It then curves in an
embrace to form the southern boundary.
Keramat is serviced by three light
rail transit (LRT)stations. This gives
us an indication of the population size
here and their dependence on public
transport.
The term "Dato' Keramat" is often
linked to a religious belief that is a
blend of pre-lslamic animistic belief,
Sufi saint worship and Chinese folk
religion. "Keramat" means blessing,
sacred or holy. People tend to believe
that spirits dwell in certain objectsthat
are unusual - perhaps old trees, or
large boulders that sit incongruously
on flat land.
From Jalan Semarak, Jalan Gurney
runs into Kampung Dato' Keramat and
thereafter joins Jalan Keramat. North
of these roads, there is a Bukit Keramat. The land tapers downhill southward
to the Klang River. Jalan Dato' Keramat
runs parallel to the river and forms the
southern boundary of the village.
The village comprises many low-cost
single-storey houses, plus low-cost
public housing flats, such as Sri Perils
I, Sri Perils 2 and Murni Titiwangsa.
The LRT line also runs parallel to
the river and Jalan Dato' Keramat.
The Damai station is located here.
This is also where the river bends
in an embrace, making the location
especially conducive for success. It
is possible that the embrace created
a pool of homogenous, gentle earth
energy that draws people to concentrate in the area, thus prompting the
location of the station.
But the station itself and the LRT
system may cancel out the benefits. Fast-moving trains create air
turbulence that disrupts pools of
earth energy from collecting. Thus,
the immediate vicinity of train lines
generally does not fare very well, as
can be seen in other parts of our tour.
As a consolation, since trains have to
slow down as they approach a station,
the wind tunnel effect here may not
be very strong, and thus have a less
severe effect.
Based on the landform here,
houses and buildings that face south,
towards the river, are likely to do well.
They would be in a good position to
tap into the energy pool.
GO WITH THE FLOW
Apart from that, another good direction to face is west, which parallels
the river and follows its direction.
East of Kampung Dato' Keramat
is Taman Keramat, considered an
offshoot of the former, with a signifi-
cant portion of it developed by PKNS.
Jalan Enggang forms the backbone
and main access road of this township. The road is built parallel to
the Klang River until it joins Jalan
Ampang Utama, which continues on
the same path.
The Klang River curves in a
gigantic embrace around the whole
of Taman Keramat and it is indeed
a blessing, from an environology
standpoint. The embrace creates a
pool of energy that houses, shops,
businesses and factories can tap
into. Furthermore, there is a large
hill at Setiawangsa to the north that
generates earth energy which flows
to the river and is rebounded into the
pool.
Thus, properties here that face the
river or follow its flow are likely to be
conducive for their occupants' suc
cess. It would depend on the exact
location of each property in question
since its relative position to the river
is different.
On the other side of the hill is
Taman Setiawangsa, a comparatively
newer development. Situated north of
Jalan Jelatek, the township was first
launched in 1984 as a mixed development. Today, it is a vibrant place with
a business centre, the Jusco shopping mall, Giant hypermarket and the
National Sports Council complex.
Most of this township is located
on the south side of the Setiawangsa
Hill with some undulations. Generally,
a downhill facing property is likely to
be good for its occupants. For most
parts, that would be south. There are
several roads that ring the hill. For
these homes, any direction they face
that puts the mountain on the back
and low land in front is good.
The newly opened Duta Ulu Klang
Expressway (DUKE) bisects the
township, to provide easier access
between Jalan Duta and Ulu Klang.
However, we have reservations
about highways, especially elevated
ones, as they literally become a hill
or mountain, plus fast moving traffic
also create air turbulence which can
disperse earth energy.
EMBASSY ROW
Embassy Row along Jalan Ampang
used to be a posh up-market residential area populated by diplomatic missions and expatriate homes. Today, it
is a nightmare of traffic jams. In spite
of that, development still took place
steadily in some parts.
The Klang River is parallel to Jalan
Ampang at the Embassy Row. Therefore properties on one side of Jalan
Ampang and Taman U Thant are likely
to do well. This is typically the south
side of the road, with north-facing
properties.
That would include buildings such
as Great Eastern Mall. It is obvious
that this side of the road seems to be
more "prosperous" than their opposite neighbours, thanks to the river's
presence.
However, not all do well. In areas
where the river (or Jalan Ampang)
bends away to form an outer elbow,
the immediate area will not do as
well. A convex or outer arm of a bend
(be it river or road) has a curvature
that disperses earth energy rather
than concentrate and pool it.
On the opposite side, even when
the road creates an embrace, it is
insufficient to mitigate the proper-
ties' orientation that backs the river.
This is also apparent from simple observation. Amp Walk, once touted as
Ampang's hottest happening place, is
a quiet place. Wisma Chinese Commerce also looks quiet.
These buildings would probably
benefit from some creative and
aggressive promotion activity, plus
renovation to reorient the front
door. The main entrance ought to
face west, to parallel the river's flow
direction.
The Gleneagles Medical Centre
is oriented that way, by using a slip
road off Jalan Ampang as its access
road. The main entrance does not
face Jalan Ampang but instead faces
the downstream path of the river.
The same rule of thumb generally
applies to the embassies both along
Jalan Ampang, and on the nearby
roads: face north to the river, or west
along its flow direction.
[ Embassies in Malaysia ]
* Log on to www.star-space.com
for more. You can also e-mail
any questions on feng shui and
properties to Prof David Koh via
annieo@thestar.com.my. This
series appear courtesy of the
Malaysia Institute of Geomancy
Sciences (MINGS).
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