It’s a tale made for headlines: POLTEGEIST POKIES! FLUSHING THE GHOST! In Australia the local media has reported the strange tale of a wayward spirit upsetting clients in a lavatory at the Crown Casino, and the recent ceremony enacted by Buddhist monks to, hopefully, cleanse the area. Apparently it is not the first time that Crown Casino has done its utmost to consider the superstitions of its Asian gamblers. It was previously advised by a feng shui master on the best ways to capture good luck.

The Crown caters for lucrative Asian high rollers and in places such as Macau the use of Feng Shui is common practice. Many gamblers are highly superstitious and, according to feng shui principles, the place chosen for play can hugely influence the outcome of the game. Positive energy, Chi, is considered to flow more intensely in some places and many Asian gamblers are likely to avoid taking positions near doors and windows, where it can disperse.

Chinese immigrants have taken feng shui practices around the world. In the early 19th century the infamous Four Corners section of New York had gambling houses that incorporated the principles. In Australia, at about the same time, the Bendigo Joss House (House of Prayer), Victoria was built using feng shui. In more recent times, the new Hong Kong Disneyland has incorporated feng shui in the layout of its park.

With the historic connection of feng shui with both gambling and Victoria, it is hardly surprising that the Crown Casino in Melbourne should adopt measures to satisfy the superstitious. It is to be hoped that the recent ceremony will appease the nervous gamblers and the unquiet spirit, and that the Crown lavatory will be cleansed. (E-11.04.05)

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