In Taiwan, the happening place to be during new year's eve is Taipei 101 (台北101) as there will be fireworks and other forms of celebrations here. It has been listed as the tallest building in the world since 2004 but will have to relinquish the title to the Burj Dubai when it is completed at the end of 2009.Symbolism of the buildingTaipei 101 participates in the symbolism of the axis mundi: a world center where earth and sky meet and the four compass directions join.The height of 101 floors commemorates the renewal of time: the new century that arrived as the tower was built (100+1) and all the new years that follow (January 1 = 1-01). It symbolizes high ideals by going one better on 100, a traditional number of perfection. It represents the spot where the tower stands: 101 is the postal code of Taipei's international business district. The main tower features a series of eight segments of eight floors each. In Chinese-speaking cultures the number eight is associated with abundance, prosperity and good fortune. In cultures that observe a seven-day week the number eight symbolizes a renewal of time (7+1). In digital technology the number eight is associated with the byte, the basic unit of information.The repeated segments simultaneously recall the rhythms of an Asian pagoda (a tower linking earth and sky), a stalk of bamboo (an icon of learning and growth), and a stack of ancient Chinese ingots or money boxes (a symbol of abundance). The four discs mounted on each face of the building where the pedestal meets the tower represent coins. The emblem placed over entrances shows three gold coins of ancient design with central holes shaped to imply the Arabic numerals 1-0-1.Curled ruyi figures appear throughout the structure as a design motif. The ruyi is an ancient symbol associated with heavenly clouds. It connotes healing, protection and fulfilment. It appears in celebrations of the attainment of new career heights. Taipei 101, like many of its neighbours, shows the influence of feng shui philosophy. An example appears in the form of a large granite fountain at the intersection of Songlian Road and Xinyi Road near the tower's east entrance.A ball at the fountain's top spins toward the tower. As a work of public art, the fountain offers a contrast to the tower in texture even as its design echoes the tower's rhythms. Yet the fountain also serves a practical function in feng shui philosophy. A T intersection near the entrance of a building represents a potential drain of positive energy, or ch'i, from a structure and its occupants. Flowing water placed at such spots remedy the situation by generating a positive inward flow of ch'i. The fountain applies a traditional solution to a traditional challenge yet its design remains modern.Taipei 101 merges ancient motifs and ideas with modern techniques and materials. As a landmark it renews the symbolism of all tall towers as cosmic centers. Its interplaying symbols speak of optimism, abundance, and the ever-renewing cycles of time.
FENG SHUI PROBLEMS
For some feng shui masters, Taipei 101 has many other problems. Zhang Hsu-chu, one of the feng shui masters who worked on the project, acknowledges the site is not that good. He says the building's foundations destroyed one of the dragon lines flowing through Taipei, and the site used to be a place of execution, meaning there are a lot of ghosts in the area. These ghosts, he says, were responsible for the deaths of three men working on the building during an earthquake in 2003. He told the owner that praying to the ghosts would placate them, and there were no further problems. "The chi for this area has been drained," he says, "but it'll return."Apparently, one of Taiwan's most successful pop stars had an apartment with a view of Taipei 101, and she didn't release an album for years after it went up.
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