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| {{distinguish|Chi|KI}} | |||
| {{Other uses}} | |||
| {{ChineseText}} | |||
| {{Chinese | |||
| |title=Qi (Ch'i) | |||
| |pic=Qi 3 forms.jpg | |||
| |picsize=180px | |||
| |mc=Kjj | |||
| |p=qì | |||
| |w=ch'i<sup>4</sup> | |||
| |j=hei<sup>3</sup> | |||
| |poj=khì | |||
| |mc=khjɨ̀j | |||
| |t=] | |||
| |s=] | |||
| |shinjitai=気 | |||
| |kyujitai=氣 | |||
| |hiragana=き | |||
| |revhep=ki | |||
| |rr=gi | |||
| |mr=ki | |||
| |hangul=기 | |||
| |hanja=氣 | |||
| |qn=khí | |||
| |rtgs=Chi | |||
| |tha=ชี่ | |||
| }} | |||
| {{Taoism}} | |||
| In traditional ], '''''qì''''' (also ''chi'' or ''ch'i'') is an active principle forming part of any living thing.<ref>DENG Yu et al，Ration of Qi with Modern Essential on Traditional Chinese Medicine Qi: Qi Set, Qi Element, JOURNAL OF MATHEMATICAL MEDICINE (Chinese), 2003, 16(4)</ref><ref>{{cite book|last= Ho |first= Peng Yoke| year=2000|month=Oct |title= Li, Qi, and Shu: An Introduction to Science and Civilization in China |publisher= Dover Publications |isbn=0-486-41445-0}}</ref><ref name=Frantzis>{{Cite book | last1 = Frantzis | first1 = Bruce Kumar | title = The Chi Revolution: Harnessing the Healing Power of Your Life Force | year =2008 | publisher = Blue Snake Books | location = | isbn = 1-58394-193-2 | pages = }}</ref> ''Qi'' is frequently translated as "natural energy", "life force", or "] flow". ''Qi'' is the central underlying principle in traditional Chinese ] and ]. The literal ] of "''qi''" is "breath", "air", or "gas". | |||
| Concepts similar to ''qi'' can be found in many cultures, for example, '']'' and '']'' in ] religion, '']'' in Hawaiian culture, '']'' in Tibetan Buddhism, '']'' in Hebrew culture, and ] in Western philosophy. Some elements of ''qi'' can be understood in the term ] when used by writers and practitioners of various esoteric forms of spirituality and ]. Elements of the ''qi'' concept can also be found in Western popular culture, for example "]" in '']''.<ref>{{Cite book | last1 = Porter | first1 = John A. | title = The Tao of Star Wars | year =2003 | publisher = Humanics Trade Group | location = | isbn = 978-0-89334-385-9 | pages = }}</ref> Notions in the West of '']'', '']'', or "]" are purported to be similar.<ref>*{{Citation|last=Sachs|first=Joe|title=Aristotle: Motion and its Place in Nature|year=2005|url=http://www.iep.utm.edu/aris-mot/|journal=Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy}}</ref> | |||
| ==Etymology== | |||
| The ] explanation for the form of the ''qi'' ] (or ''chi'') in the traditional form ] is "] (]) rising from ] (]) as it cooks". The earliest way of writing ''qi'' consisted of three wavy lines, used to represent one's breath seen on a cold day. A later version, 气, identical to the present-day simplified character, is a stylized version of those same three lines. For some reason, early writers of Chinese found it desirable to substitute for 气 a cognate character that originally meant to feed other people in a social context such as providing food for guests.{{citation needed|date=October 2008}} Appropriately, that character combined the three-line ''qi'' character with the character for rice. So 气 plus 米 formed 氣, and that is the ] still used today (the ] character, the ] character and the modern "school standard" or ] characters in the box at the right show three stages of the evolution of this character).<ref>See p. 804f of Gao Shufan's "Xing, Yin, Yi Zonghe Da Zidian", Zhong Zheng Shuju, Taipei, 1984</ref> | |||
| ==Definition== | |||
| {{Refimprove section|date=September 2012}} | |||
| References to concepts analogous to the ''qi'' taken to be the life-process or flow of energy that sustains living beings are found in many belief systems, especially in ]. Philosophical conceptions of ''qi'' from the earliest records of ] (5th century BCE) correspond to Western notions of ] and the ancient Hindu ] concept of '']'' ("life force" in ]). The earliest description of "force" in the current sense of vital energy is found in the ] of ancient India (circa 1500–1000 BCE),<ref>Avari, Burjor (2007), India: The Ancient Past, London: Routledge</ref> and from the writings of the Chinese philosopher ] (4th century BCE). Historically, the '']''/"''The Yellow Emperor's Classic of Medicine''" (circa 2nd century BCE) is credited with first establishing the pathways through which ''qi'' circulates in the human body.<ref>DENG Yu, ZHU Shuanli, Deng Hai, Generalized Quanta Wave with Qi on Traditional Chinese Medicine, JOURNAL OF MATHEMATICAL MEDICINE, 2002, 15(4)</ref><ref>Ni Maoshing, (1995), The Yellow Emperor's Classic of Medicine, Shambhala Publications, Boston MA</ref> | |||
| {{cquote|1=Within the framework of Chinese thought, no notion may attain such a degree of abstraction from empirical data as to correspond perfectly to one of our modern universal concepts. Nevertheless, the term ''qi'' comes as close as possible to constituting a generic designation equivalent to our word "energy". When Chinese thinkers are unwilling or unable to fix the quality of an energetic phenomenon, the character ''qi'' (氣) inevitably flows from their brushes.|4=Manfred Porkert<ref name=Porkert1974>{{Cite book|last= Porkert |first=Manfred|title=The Theoretical Foundations of Chinese Medicine: Systems of Correspondence|publisher= MIT Press |year=1974|isbn=0-262-16058-7|oclc= 123145357}}</ref>}} | |||
| ] character ''qì'', also used in Korean ]. In Japanese ], this character was used until 1946, when ] to {{lang|ja|気}}.]] | |||
| The ancient Chinese described it as "life force". They believed ''qi'' permeated everything and linked their surroundings together. They likened it to the flow of energy around and through the body, forming a cohesive and functioning unit.{{Citation needed|date=September 2012}} By understanding its rhythm and flow they believed they could guide exercises and treatments to provide stability and longevity.{{Citation needed|date=September 2012}} | |||
| Although the concept of ''qi'' has been important within many Chinese philosophies, over the centuries the descriptions of ''qi'' have varied and have sometimes been in conflict.{{Citation needed|date=September 2012}} Until China came into contact with Western scientific and philosophical ideas, they had not categorized all things in terms of matter and energy.{{Citation needed|date=September 2012}} ''Qi'' and ''li'' (理: "pattern") were 'fundamental' categories similar to matter and energy.{{Citation needed|date=September 2012}} | |||
| Fairly early on, some Chinese thinkers began to believe that there were different fractions of ''qi'' and that the coarsest and heaviest fractions of ''qi'' formed solids, lighter fractions formed liquids, and the most ethereal fractions were the "lifebreath" that animates living beings.<ref>Definitions and brief historical notes on such concepts can be found in Wei Zhengtong's "Zhong Guo Zhexue Cidian", Da Lin Publishing Company, Taipei, 1977.</ref> | |||
| '']'' is a notion of innate or pre-natal ''qi'' to distinguish it from acquired ''qi'' that a person may develop over the course of their lifetime. | |||
| ==Pronunciation== | |||
| Other spellings include in {{zh|t=]|s=]|p=''qì''|w=''ch'i''|j=''hei''|}},'' Qi'' is pronounced {{IPAc-en|ˈ|tʃ|iː}} in English and {{IPA-cmn|tɕʰî|}} in ]; ]: ''gi''; ]: ''ki''; ]: ''khí'', {{IPA-vi|xǐ|pron}}) The approximate English pronunciation of ''qi'', similar to "chee" in cheese, should also be distinguished from the pronunciation of the Greek letter ], which has a hard c sound, like "c" in car, and a long i, similar to other Greek letters ], ], ]. | |||
| ==Philosophical roots== | |||
| ] qi.]] | |||
| The earliest texts that speak of ''qi'' give some indications of how the concept developed. The ] ] used the word ''qi'' to refer to noxious vapors that would in due time arise from a corpse were it not buried at a sufficient depth.<ref>Mo Zi, chapter 25, 84/86ths of the way through</ref> He reported that early civilized humans learned how to live in houses to protect their ''qi'' from the moisture that had troubled them when they lived in caves.<ref>Mo Zi, 21:17/19</ref> He also associated maintaining one's ''qi'' with providing oneself adequate nutrition.<ref>Mo Zi, 21:5/19 and 6:22/40</ref> In regard to another kind of ''qi'', he recorded how some people performed a kind of prognostication by observing the ''qi'' (clouds) in the sky.<ref>Mo Zi, 68:7/23 and 70:98/139</ref> | |||
| In the ] of ], compiled from the notes of his students sometime after his death in 479 B.C., ''qi'' could mean "breath",<ref>Analects, 10:3</ref> and combining it with the Chinese word for ] (making 血氣, ''xue''-''qi'', blood and breath), the concept could be used to account for motivational characteristics. | |||
| {{cquote|1=The noble man guards himself against 3 things. When he is young, his ''xue''-''qi'' has not yet stabilized, so he guards himself against sexual passion. When he reaches his prime, his ''xue''-''qi'' is not easily subdued, so he guards himself against combativeness. When he reaches old age, his ''xue''-''qi'' is already depleted, so he guards himself against acquisitiveness.|4=Confucius|5=Analects, 16:7}} | |||
| ] described a kind of ''qi'' that might be characterized as an individual's vital energies. This ''qi'' was necessary to activity, and it could be controlled by a well-integrated willpower.<ref name="Mencius, 2A:2">Mencius, 2A:2</ref> When properly nurtured, this ''qi'' was said to be capable of extending beyond the human body to reach throughout the ].<ref name="Mencius, 2A:2"/> It could also be augmented by means of careful exercise of one's moral capacities.<ref name="Mencius, 2A:2"/> On the other hand, the ''qi'' of an individual could be degraded by adverse external forces that succeed in operating on that individual.<ref>Mencius, 6A:8</ref> | |||
| Not only human beings and animals were believed to have ''qi''. ] indicated that ] is the ''qi'' of the ].<ref>Zhuang Zi, 2:4/96</ref> Moreover, cosmic ] "are the greatest of ''qi''."<ref>Zhuang Zi, 25:67/82</ref> He described ''qi'' as "issuing forth" and creating profound effects.<ref>Zhuang Zi, 23:5/79</ref> He said "Human beings are born the accumulation of ''qi''. When it accumulates there is life. When it dissipates there is death... There is one ''qi'' that connects and pervades everything in the world."<ref>Zhuang Zi, 22:11/84</ref> | |||
| Another passage traces life to intercourse between Heaven and Earth: "The highest Yin is the most restrained. The highest Yang is the most exuberant. The restrained comes forth from Heaven. The exuberant issues forth from Earth. The two intertwine and penetrate forming a harmony, and things are born."<ref>Zhuang Zi, 21:7/70</ref> | |||
| "The ] essay '''Neiye''' 內業 (Inward training) is the oldest received writing on the subject of the cultivation of vapor '''' and ] techniques. The essay was probably composed at the Jixia Academy in Qi in the late fourth century B.C."<ref name='Cambridge'>{{Cite book| last = Harper | first = Donald | authorlink = | coauthors = Michael Loewe and Edward L. Shaughnessy| title = The Cambridge History of Ancient China: From the Origins of Civilization to 221 BC.| publisher = Cambridge University Press | date = 1999/2007 | location = Cambridge, U.K. | pages = 880 | url = http://books.google.com/?id=cHA7Ey0-pbEC&dq=cambridge++history+of+ancient+china&printsec=frontcover&q= | isbn = 978-0-521-47030-8}}</ref> | |||
| ], another Confucian scholar of the ], followed in later years. At 9:69/127, Xun Zi says, "Fire and water have ''qi'' but do not have life. Grasses and trees have life but do not have perceptivity. Fowl and beasts have perceptivity but do not have ''yi'' (sense of right and wrong, duty, justice). Men have ''qi'', life, perceptivity, and ''yi''." Chinese people at such an early time had no concept of ], but they were aware that one can be heated by a ] from a distance away from the fire. They accounted for this phenomenon by claiming "''qi''" radiated from fire. At 18:62/122, he also uses "''qi''" to refer to the vital forces of the body that decline with advanced age. | |||
| Among the animals, the ] and the ] were considered experts at inhaling the ''qi''. The Confucian scholar ] (ca. 150 BC) wrote in ]:<ref> | |||
| ], The gibbon in China. An essay in Chinese animal lore. E.J.Brill, Leiden, Holland. (1967). Page 38</ref> "The gibbon resembles a macaque, but he is larger, and his color is black. His forearms being long, he lives eight hundred years, because he is expert in controlling his breathing." ("猿似猴。大而黑。長前臂。所以壽八百。好引氣也。") | |||
| Later, the ] text assembled under the direction of ], the ], or "Masters of Huainan", has a passage that presages most of what is given greater detail by the ]: | |||
| {{quote|Heaven (seen here as the ultimate source of all being) falls (''duo'' 墮, i.e., descends into proto-immanence) as the formless. Fleeting, fluttering, penetrating, amorphous it is, and so it is called the Supreme Luminary. The ''dao'' begins in the Void Brightening. The Void Brightening produces the universe (''yu''-''zhou''). The universe produces ''qi''. ''Qi'' has bounds. The clear, yang '''' was ethereal and so formed heaven. The heavy, turbid '''' was congealed and impeded and so formed earth. The conjunction of the clear, yang '''' was fluid and easy. The conjunction of the heavy, turbid '''' was strained and difficult. So heaven was formed first and earth was made fast later. The pervading essence (''xi''-''jing'') of heaven and earth becomes yin and yang. The concentrated (''zhuan'') essences of yin and yang become the four seasons. The dispersed (''san'') essences of the four seasons become the myriad creatures. The hot ''qi'' of yang in accumulating produces fire. The essence (''jing'') of the fire-''qi'' becomes the sun. The cold ''qi'' of yin in accumulating produces water. The essence of the water-''qi'' becomes the moon. The essences produced by coitus (yin) of the sun and moon become the stars and celestial markpoints (''chen'', planets).|Huai-nan-zi|3:1a/19}} | |||
| ==Role in traditional Chinese medicine== | |||
| {{Further|Traditional Chinese medicine|Acupuncture}} | |||
| ] (TCM) asserts that the body has natural patterns of ''qi'' that circulate in channels called ].<ref>Denis <!-- Sic! -->Lawson-Wood and Joyce Lawson-Wood, Acupuncture Handbook, Health Science Press, 1964, pp. 4, 133.</ref> In TCM, ]s of various illnesses are believed to be the product of disrupted, blocked, or unbalanced ''qi'' movement through the body's meridians, as well as deficiencies or imbalances of ''qi'' in the ].<ref>Lawson-Wood, p. 4 and throughout the book.</ref> Traditional Chinese medicine often seeks to relieve these imbalances by adjusting the circulation of ''qi'' using a variety of techniques including ], ], physical training regimens (], ], and other ] training),<ref>{{Cite book|last=Wu|first=Kung-tsao|title=Wu Family T'ai Chi Ch'uan (吳家太極拳)|publisher=Chien-ch’uan T’ai-chi Ch’uan Association|date=1980, 2006|isbn=0-9780499-0-X|unused_data=ISBN status=May be invalid - please double check }}</ref> ], '']'', and ].<ref>Lawson-Wood, p. 78f.</ref> | |||
| ==Qi field== | |||
| A ''qi'' field (''chu-chong'') refers to the cultivation of an energy field by a group, typically for healing or other benevolent purposes. A ''qi'' field is believed to be produced by visualization and affirmation, and is an important component of ] (''Zhineng Qigong''), founded by Grandmaster Ming Pang.<ref name=Gu>{{Cite book | last1 = Gu | first1 = Mingtong | title = Wisdom Healing (Zhineng) Qigong | year = 2011 | publisher = The Chi Center | location = Petaluma, CA | isbn = 978-0-9835043-0-6 | pages = 61–80 }}</ref><ref name=Gu2>{{Cite book | last1 = Gu | first1 = Mingtong | title = An Introduction to Wisdom Healing Qigong | year = 2009 | publisher = The Chi Center | location = Petaluma, CA | isbn = | pages = 30, 46–47 }}</ref><ref name= Ooi>{{Cite book | last1 = Ooi | first1 = Kean Hin | title = . Zhineng Qigong: The science, theory and practice | year = 2010 | publisher = CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform | location = | isbn = 978-1453867600 | pages = }}</ref> | |||
| ==Scientific investigation== | |||
| There have been a number of studies of ''qi'', especially in the sense used by traditional Chinese medicine and ]. These studies have often been problematic and hard to compare to each other due to lack of common nomenclature.<ref name="White">{{Cite journal|author=White Peter, Golianu Brenda, Zaslawski Chris, Seung-HoonChoi | title=Standardization of Nomenclature in Acupuncture Research (SoNAR) |journal=] |volume=4 |pages=267–270 |year=2006 |pmid= |doi= 10.1093/ecam/nel095|url=http://ecam.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/full/4/2/267 |issue=2}}</ref> Some studies claim to have been able to measure ''qi'', or the effects of manipulating ''qi'' (such as through acupuncture),{{citation needed|date=February 2011}} but the proposed existence of ''qi'' has also been questioned within the scientific community.{{Citation needed|date=September 2012}} | |||
| A ] ] consensus statement on acupuncture in 1997 noted that concepts such as ''qi'' "are difficult to reconcile with contemporary biomedical information."<ref name="NIH">{{Cite web|title = Acupuncture: National Institutes of Health Consensus Development Conference Statement |url = http://consensus.nih.gov/1997/1997Acupuncture107html.htm |date = 3- 5November 1997 |accessdate = 2007-01-15 |publisher = ] }}</ref> In 2007 "Network", a newsletter published by the MD Anderson Cancer Center at the ] to discuss "topics of interest to cancer patients", published an article covering the concepts where ''qi'' is believed to be effective and research into possible benefits for cancer patients.<ref></ref> A review of clinical trials investigating the use of internal '']'' for ] found no convincing evidence that it was effective.<ref> Lee MS, Pittler MH, Ernst E. Internal qigong for pain conditions: a systematic review. Journal of Pain.2009;10(11):1121-1127</ref> | |||
| ==Practices involving qi== | |||
| ===Feng shui=== | |||
| {{Main|Feng shui}} | |||
| The traditional Chinese art of ], the placement and arrangement of space called ], is based on calculating the balance of ''qi'', interactions between the ], ] and other factors. The retention or dissipation of ''qi'' is believed to affect the health, wealth, energy level, luck and many other aspects of the occupants of the space. Attributes of each item in a space affect the flow of ''qi'' by slowing it down, redirecting it or accelerating it, which is said to influence the energy level of the occupants. | |||
| One use for a '']'' is to detect the flow of ''qi''.<ref>Field, Stephen L. (1998). </ref> The quality of ''qi'' may rise and fall over time, feng shui with a compass might be considered a form of ] that assesses the quality of the local environment. | |||
| ===Qigong=== | |||
| {{Main|Qigong}} | |||
| '']'' (气功 or 氣功) is a practice involving coordinated breathing, movement, and awareness, traditionally viewed as a practice to cultivate and balance ''qi''. With roots in traditional Chinese ], ], and ], ''qigong'' is now practiced worldwide for exercise, healing, meditation, and training for martial arts. Typically a ''qigong'' practice involves rhythmic breathing coordinated with slow stylized movement, a calm ] state, and visualization of guiding ''qi''.<ref name=Cohen>{{cite book|last= Cohen |first=K. S. | year=1999|month=|date= |title= The Way of Qigong: The Art and Science of Chinese Energy Healing |publisher= Random House of Canada |isbn=0-345-42109-4}}</ref><ref name=LWW>{{cite book|last= Liang |first= Shou-Yu | coauthors= Wen-Ching Wu, Denise Breiter-Wu |year=1997|month=|date=|title= Qigong Empowerment: A Guide to Medical, Taoist, Buddhist, and Wushu Energy Cultivation |publisher= Way of the Dragon Pub |isbn=1-889659-02-9}}</ref><ref name=YJM3>{{cite book|last= Yang |first=Jwing-Ming | year=1998|month=|date= |title= Qigong for health and martial arts: exercises and meditation |publisher= YMAA Publication Center |isbn=1-886969-57-4}}</ref> | |||
| ===Martial arts=== | |||
| {{Main|Neijing}} | |||
| ''Qi'' is a ] concept in many ], ] and ]. Martial '']'' is a feature of both ] and ] training systems in ]<ref name=Wile1995>{{Cite book|last=Wile|first=Douglas|title=Lost T'ai-chi Classics from the Late Ch'ing Dynasty (Chinese Philosophy and Culture)|publisher=State University of New York Press|year=1995|isbn=978-0-7914-2654-8|author=Douglas Wile.|oclc=34546989}}</ref> and other ]n cultures.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Bishop|first=Mark|title=Okinawan Karate: Teachers, Styles and Secret Techniques|publisher=A&C Black, London|year=1989|isbn=0-7136-5666-2|author=Mark Bishop.|oclc=19262983}}</ref> The most notable of the ''qi''-focused "internal" ] (jin) martial arts are ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ] and ] swordplay, ], ], ], ], and some forms of ], ] and ]. | |||
| Demonstrations of ''qi'' or ''ki'' are popular in some ] and may include the immovable body, the unraisable body, the unbendable arm and other feats of power. All, or some, of these feats can alternatively be explained using ] and physics.<ref>Daniel A. James, "Unraisable body: The physics of martial arts", Sports Health, Autumn 2004, Sports Medicine Australia, Canberra</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Moore|first=John|title=What is Chi?|url=http://mainemartialarts.com/martial-arts-philosophy/what-is-chi/|work=Maine Martial Arts|publisher=Kongo Tatsu Kai|accessdate=13 June 2011}}</ref> | |||
| ===Acupuncture and moxibustion=== | |||
| {{Main|Acupuncture|Moxibustion}} | |||
| ] is a part of ] that involves insertion of needles into superficial structures of the body (skin, subcutaneous tissue, muscles) at ]s to balance the flow of ''qi''. Acupuncture is often accompanied by ], a treatment that involves burning ] on or near the skin at an acupuncture point. | |||
| ==See also== | |||
| *] | |||
| *] | |||
| *] | |||
| *] | |||
| *] | |||
| **] | |||
| **] | |||
| *] | |||
| *] | |||
| *] | |||
| *] | |||
| *] (qi cultivation) | |||
| *] | |||
| *] | |||
| *] | |||
| *] | |||
| **] | |||
| **] | |||
| *] | |||
| ==References== | |||
| {{Reflist|2}} | |||
| ==Further reading== | |||
| *{{Cite book|author=Wright, Thomas; Eisenberg, David |title=Encounters with Qi: Exploring Chinese medicine |publisher=Norton hi|location=New York |year=1995 |pages= |isbn=0-393-31213-5 |oclc= 32998368|doi=}} | |||
| *{{Cite book|author=Porkert, Manfred |title=The theoretical foundations of Chinese medicine: Systems of correspondence |publisher=MIT Press |location=Cambridge, Mass |year=1974 |pages= |isbn=0-262-16058-7 |oclc= 123145357|doi=}} | |||
| *{{Cite book|author=Powers, John. |title=Introduction to Tibetan Buddhism |publisher=Snow Lion Publications |location=Ithaca, NY |year=1995 |pages=591 |isbn=1-55939-282-7}} | |||
| ==External links== | |||
| {{Wiktionary}} | |||
| * | |||
| * | |||
| * explores Ki development tests in Aikido using Physics | |||
| {{Use dmy dates|date=September 2010}} | {{Use dmy dates|date=September 2010}} | ||
| {{Chinese philosophy}} | |||
| {{Traditional Chinese medicine}} | |||
| {{Qigong}} | |||
| ] | ] | ||
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