Feng Shui Way to Enhance Success - Malay Mail
19th July 2004

by Dennis Chua
KUALA LUMPUR: For a business to thrive, its premises must not be in the way of "poison" arrows".

This was feng shui grandmaster Yap Cheng Hai's advice to entrepreneurs at a talk hosted by Southern Bank Berhad at the Renaissance Kuala Lumpur Hotel, Jalan Ampang yesterday.

The Singapore-born Yap, 78, is one of Malaysia's most respected feng shui grandmasters and the only practitioner of the ancient Chinese philosophy to practise his craft outside China and Taiwan.

The "poison arrows" referred to obstructions in front of one's house or office door.

They could come in the form of lamp posts, pillars, narrow alleys, sharp corners of a building, and protruding balconies.

"Both the business with the "arrows" and the business facing them, will not thrive," he said.

He also advised entrepreneurs and house-buyers to build a house or business with a "black tortoise" behind it.

By this, he meant higher ground which symbolised stability. This higher ground could come in the form of hills or mountains.

Yap, who has practised feng shui for 50 years, said that he had always been interested in the ancient philosophy which teaches us how to achieve worldly success, happiness, health and family bliss, by adjusting one's life and belongings to positions that maximise the entry of good Qi, or cosmic energy, into one's life.

Last year, he set up the Yap Cheng Hai Academy to propagate the teaching of feng shui.

"We train people to become certified practitioners of feng shui," he said.

In the academy, he is assisted by his youngest of three sons, Boh Chu, who is also an accomplished feng shui consultant.

"People from more than 30 countries are studying feng shui, and among the Malaysians who learn from me, many are non-Chinese.

"Feng shui cuts across cultural lines, and is widely embraced as a philosophy of maintaining harmony with nature and inner peace," he said, adding that the philosophy was more than 2,000 years old.

Southern Bank executive vice-president for consumer banking Tom Van Tighem said that the talk by Yap was part of its 'SBB Adds Extra Value' campaign launched early this year.

"Feng shui is a widely practised belief with a tremendous following among Malaysians.

"We are happy that Grand Master Yap has offered to enrich our customcrs by sharing with them his in-depth knowledge of feng shui and its practice in everyday life," he said.

The academy can be contacted at 03-20708009.