by Dr. Tadeusz Sztykowski
Through the trilogy of Lucas/ Spielberg Star Wars, we have probably absorbed
It into the mass- culture - the positive, "Righteous Force" of the
Jedi warriors' opposing the negative "Dark Force" of the emperor
and his right hand Lord Vader. We have already learned something about It
from Bruce Lee and his masters. And let's not forget James Reston in his infamous
article in the New York Times about his experiences in China. We kept wondering
about, this mysterious thing — called the force in Sci-Fi Trilogy, special
energy in Bruce Lee movies, and finally Qi (pronounced "chee'")
in Reston's article.
What is this mysterious thing called Qi anyway? For quite some time I have
been working, breathing, resting, eating and simply living with that question.
Qi is no stranger in my life. Every morning I practice Qi-Gong exercises as
taught to me by Master Wu. As I stretch my body, I feel it getting more flexible
and warmer. As I stay in one position with my arms relaxed, my. knees slightly
bent and my breathing regular and slow, I feel my body making involuntary
movements and my hands warming up. Master Wu calls it Qi self-regulation and
I know that my Qi is flowing, correcting imbalances and filling up the channels.
Later, touching my 3 ½ year old son's head while he eats his cereal,
I absorb and give Qi. Looking into my wife's beautiful eyes, I connect with
the Qi of her heart, and giving healthy food to my daughter, I care about
the Qi of her stomach. On my way to work I marvel about the rising Qi of the
day and then in my clinic I feel, transform, gather, balance, and correct
the Qi of my patients.
Chinese Concept of Qi
'The Great Void consists of Qi.. Qi condenses to become the myriad things.
Things of necessity disintegrate and return to the Great Void.. Every birth
is a condensation, every death a dispersal. Birth is not a gain, death not
a loss...when condensed, Qi becomes a living being, when dispersed, it is
the substratum of mutations. "
—Zhang Zai (AD 1020-1077)
I do not know any larger and more universal concept than that of Qi. It has
been an intrinsic part of Chinese philosophy, culture, and medicine since
the beginning of its recorded history. Qi is a difficult word to translate.
The original character translates literally as "vapor steam," "gas,"
and "rice or grain." This indicates that Qi can be as immaterial
as vapor and as dense and material as rice. Depending on one's viewpoint and
use, "Qi" has also been translated as "energy," "master
force," "life force," "vital force," and "matter".
During my studies with Zen Master Seung Sahn, I have often been reminded how
unprecise and contextual words are in describing reality. As an example. Zen
Master would often use the watch. He would show it to his students and ask-
what is it? Depending on the language spoken, he would receive various answers
.describing the watch. He'd shake his head and he would say looking at the
watch — it is 9:30 am now. This is a very important point. The way the
Orientals describe Qi is not by analyzing or speculating, but by its functions.
Two aspects of Qi may be particularly, relevant to human life:
1) Qi manifests simultaneously on the physical and spiritual level;
2) Qi is constantly changing in varying states of aggregation.
Within the body Qi has five major functions:
1) Qi creates and accompanies all movement in the body. Walking, breathing,
heartbeat, eating, speaking, thinking, growth, development—all depend
on Qi. There are four directions of the constantly moving Qi — ascending,
descending, leaving and entering .
2) Qi originates transformation in the body where food, essence, the fluids
are transformed into blood. Air is transformed into Qi. The mother's touch
calms the baby. These changes come from Qi's ability to transform
3) 'Where Qi protects the body it is also called Defensive Qi, resisting the
external invasion of the body. It travels between skin and muscles, and regulates
the sweat glands and pores.
4) Qi warms the body; your warm hands and feet are the result of this function.
5)'Qi'controls the retention of the body's organs and substances. It stops
bleeding due to its function of holding the blood within blood vessels, controls
sweating and salivation, and holds organs in the proper place.
Besides different functions, Chinese medical texts indicate various forms
of Qi. Original Qi (Yuan Qi) derives 'from pre-heaven essence formed by parents
at the time of conception. It is stored in between the
kidneys. It activates the kidney Qi facilitates the transformation of Qi and
blood, and motivates all organ functions on a daily basis. Food-
Grain Qi (Gu-Qi) has food as its source and the spleen is the Organ
which produces it. It combines with air to form the gathering Qi in the chest
Gathering-Chest-Ancestral Qi (Zhong Qi) nourishes the heart and .lungs. It
enhances and promotes respiration and blood movement, and controls speech
and strength: of voice. It also promotes blood circulation in extremities.
True-Righteous-Normal Qi (Zhen Qi) is formed from air and food with the catalyzing
effect of original Qi. It is a Qi that circulates in the channels and organs.
Qi. True Qi assumes two different forms: Nutritive Qi (Ying Qi) and Defensive
Qi (Wei Qi).
Nutritive Qi( Ying Qi) is closely related to blood and flows in the blood
vessels as well as in the channels. It nourishes the internal organs and the
whole body. Defensive Energy (Wei Qi) being a coarser form of Qi, flows in
outer layers of the body, warms the muscles, fills up the skin, enters the
space between skin and muscles, and opens the pores. Its function is to defend
the body against the External Pernicious Influences (wind, heat, cold, dampness).
Qi is best described by its manifestations, functions and aspects, as it is
almost impossible to measure or grasp it.
And Western Science Struggles
Western science is based on the analytical Newtonian-Cartesian model of mechanical
cognition and deduction. Descartes, a 17th century French philosopher and
scientist believed that "All science is certain evident knowledge. We
reject all knowledge which is merely probable and judge that only those things
should be believed which are perfectly known and about which there can be
no doubts." His thinking had a profound influence on the principles of
modern science and so-called allopathic medicine. Hence, extreme difficulty
in defining and measuring the Qi may seem obvious.
Nevertheless, there have been various attempts to at least indicate the possible
presence of body energy or life force. The most promising among all have been
studies lead by the French doctor Darras. In his lengthy studies, he injected
the radioactive salt of Technetium into acupuncture points as well as into
sham points, and then the migration of the isotopes was observed. The trajectory
of migration along the acupuncture points exactly matched the pathways of
described acupuncture meridians with a definite speed of 6cm/min. The injection
into sham points did not produce any migration. The conclusion was that there
is a probability of a particular force of electromagnetic nature which acted
upon the isotopes and propagated them along the meridian as measured by movement
and speed. Again, we are going back to describing Qi by its functions rather
than its attributes. Many other studies have drawn similar conclusions. There
is a force in the body, it has an electromagnetic quality, moves with precise
speed within the channel system and is separated from vascular, lymphatic,
and nervous systems of the body.
We are making progress in the scientific observing of the Qi phenomenon, but
we need to "relax the stiff spine" of the Cartesian scientific model
and add some flexibility of Eastern scientific concepts.
My Close Encounter with Qi
As I look back at my life with retrospect, I recognize the changes Qi has
made. I understand why I was deadly ill as a newborn after being separated
from my mother, and later as a toddler going through a whole spectrum of respiratory
diseases like pneumonia, bronchitis, and asthma. My lung Qi was suppressed
by the grief and separation with my mother, but my original Qi — the
survival instinct— kept me alive. I also understand why later as a teenager
I suffered from chronic sinus problems and a form of ADD. An
improper diet with a lot of dairy and sweets had deprived the food-Qi and
created phlegm in my body. During my medical residency (up to 120 hours/week)
I suffered from serious heart arrhythmia and insomnia. My gathering-ancestral
Qi in the chest was weakened by the excessive work. I also understand that
cultivating my Qi is the source of my love to my family and compassion to
my patients. May the Qi stay with you and nourish you. Related sites: Herbal
Medicine