What really is Qi, Chi, Ki...???

Question

is it energy, how can you scientifically define Qi, electric pulses??

also how can i train it or practice it, any websites or books?

Answer 1

Easier question first:

How do you train or practice "chi"?

The truest answer I've heard (after trying many different ways over about 20 years) came from my mom's taichi teacher:

We develop chi through mindful practice.

Weather you practice Taichi or Shorin-ryu, practice mindfully.

Practice mindfully when you do solo drills.

Practice mindfully when you work with a partner.

Practice mindfully when you drive a car or ride a bicycle.

Walk mindfully.

Eat mindfully.

Doing chi kung, neidan, internal alchemy, taichi or whatever, accomplishes very little unless you do it mindfully.

Read about mindfulness:

wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mindfulness

vipassana meditation:

http://www.dhamma.org/en/bycountry/na/

If you begin your practice in any path, this book has helped me a great deal in my progress, I highly recommend it:

The Power of Now, by Eckhart Tolle

http://www.amazon.com/Power-Now-Guide-Sp...

More difficult question:  What is chi?

Energy, According to scientists, is the ability to do work - that is to say, the ability to move, change, or affect something else.  

According to non-geeks, energy often refers to substances or phenomena that possess the ability to do work.

The word "Chi", in Chinese, means "breath", but we are talking about a phemenon that is not breath, but closely associated with breath.  It moves with the breath, the act of breathing causes it to circulate in (and out of) the body.

The phenomenon which the Chinese refer to as Chi is often described as behaving and moving in ways that at times resemle a liquid, at times resemble eletricity.

In the body, it is considered (by some cultures) the source of life.  Life stops when there is no Chi.  There are acupuncture lines running through the body that allow chi to "circulate" the way blood vessels allow blood to circulate.  Illness results from blockages or unhealthy flow of energy in different parts of the body.  Acupuncture, acupressure (tui na), and Chinese herbal medicine all address the imbalances in the flow of energy in the body.

From Wikipedia:

Science rejects the concept of "qi". It has been hypothesized that the alleged therapeutic effects of acupuncture can be explained by endorphin-release, by relaxation or by simple placebo effects.[23] The NIH Consensus Statement on acupuncture in 1997 noted that concepts such as Qi "are difficult to reconcile with contemporary biomedical information but continue to play an important role in the evaluation of patients and the formulation of treatment in acupuncture."[24]

Science rejects anything that you cannot measure with a ruler or calibriator and put a number to it.  That doesn't mean it doesn't exist.  Chi is something that has been felt and experienced by mankind for as long as we have been around, all over the world.

When I studied anthropology in University, one author (I don't know who) was able to find more than 60 or 70 different cultures around the world that had a word in their language to describe "chi".  When you don't have access to a microscope or chemistry set, you have to find other ways to learn about the nature of reality.

People who choose to believe that chi is real usually have experienced (felt) it personally.  Some people, though rare, can see and hear energy, not just touch it.

To learn more about chi:

wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ch%27i

The Web That Has No Weaver, by Ted J. Kaptchuk

http://www.amazon.com/Web-That-Has-Weave...

Hands of Light, by Barbara Brennan:

http://www.amazon.com/Hands-Light-Healin...

If you're more interested in health/meditation/enlightenment than in fighting, look for a good tai-chi teacher in your neighborhood.  It's a good place to start your path, and having experience with Taichi will help you evaluate other paths that may become available to you later.

Since chi cannot be measured, its easy for people to delude themselves about their "accomplishments".

http://tw.youtube.com/watch?v=ar1yXYOsxQ...

http://tw.youtube.com/watch?v=JM_qg5d1YG...

Excercise discernment in your search.  

Ask the universe (or Jesus or Allah or Zoroaster) for help in your search.

Trust your instincts.

Don't limit yourself to the first teacher you try.  

You don't have to study with every teacher you find, but never stop looking for teachers.

Answer 2

Well some have defined it as bio elctric neergy, the Vedas call it Prana, and it is real, mostly it is concentrationa d focusing your mind to a specific point, when it comes to controlling Chi.

Answer 3

Best scientific explanation I could ever find went something like this.

Actions that have been repeated hundreds even thousands of times have an "intrinsic" energy beyond and greater than the performer of the actions intention.

What does intrinsic mean ?A dollar bill judged by it's worth as a piece of paper has little value it's intrinsic value is in what it can buy so it has power beyond it's worth as a piece of paper.

When you can control this intrinsic energy and use it at will it becomes what is normally called ki .Anybody who has studied martial; arts for several years has some level of ki or intrinsic energy .

Ever been "tapped" by your sensei or a boxer demonstrating technique and what looked like a tap felt like being hit by a sledge hammer you get the idea?The energy value was far beyond it's appearance looking at it.

Those that can control it can demonstrate it others just end up looking foolish or fake it.

Answer 4

Ki is loosely translated into lifeforce as in everything which is living has Ki. Some people relate Ki to more as power of the mind.

Ki isn't some kind of supernatural power but focussed in the correct way it can help you to become very strong.

I practice Ki Aikido and there are some people who can demonstrate ki very well, particularly the older guys who've been practicing for years, they're unmovable. You have to be careful though because there are some clubs which are basically fraudsters but once you know what you're looking for, you can see past them.

You're best going to a class which teaches the principles of ki rather than trying to read it off a website or out of a book.

You could try the following:

Ki Aikido,

Tai Chi

Qi Gong

They'll teach you about posture, how to allow your body to relax to allow your ki to flow correctly and how to direct it.

Answer 5

there is no cut or dry ansewer

it is a spiritual force that surrounds us and is within us .the essence of life [some say GOD some say invention of GOD some say it is universe or elders powers] it is the universal force and has overtime been refered to by philosophers,martial artists and medical professionalists have looked to its workings to base the laws of realities and all of them made breakthroughs with it. although it flows all around it is only supposed to be active in living things but then wat is living why are squirels but not pens because they dont have electrical charges? it is all questionable but it is the force that is everywhere because it is it it is u it is me it is ur computer and thus it connects everything ppl the earth the sun the ocean the keyboard it is the laws of nature. ppl that do some type of chi training can do different things. some r credited to look inside themselves and we see auras around ppl that determine part of their charecter. some can control ki and all their body parts and actualy move centers called chakra so that the energy is flowing more freely of course this means they should also have more overall ebnergy so they meditate to gain it or do phisical exercise or chi relataed exersice that increases energy some can not feel pain some can make itt so they can break things with their eyes either lookin at it or literally hitting it with their eye. it is simply known as this but has a more diverse set of definitions so yeah i hope this is a satisfactory ansewer and no it is not some magical force however there r ppl who can make it seem so .

meditate focus on....somthing or nothing or everything or most people want to be ninjas so they do kuji in meditations which i would not recommend doing without an instructor cause failing kuji in can mess u up 4 good

breathin exeecises steal those from fit tv

planks and snowangel exercises or squat halfwaydown and hold it [do all three not just one don be  a jerk if u wanna start

general fitness training helps wayyyy more than people think

martial arts

phlosophical thinking

with these u can build it up and learn to control it [control almost exclusively through meditation and strength the biggest thing still meditation]