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Qi

Qi is the Chinese name for the vital energy that undergirds the universe, analogous to the Indian prana. Its literal translation is "gas" and hence is similar to the Hebrew concept of spirit which is associated with breath. In China, qi is usually thought of as yaunqi, the original vital energy. Qi is the energy that flows through the body and is the subject of treatment in acupuncture and acupressure. Blockage of the flow of qi is the source of disease and the free natural flow of qi is the underpinning basis of health. The flow of qi, it is believed, can be stimulated by the practice of a series of exercises called qigong. Teaching about qi reaches into ancient China and much of the traditional Chinese understanding of the universe is based upon a belief in its existence. It is integral to Chinese medicine, including the understanding of the power of herbs, and basic to a vital sexual life.

Common throughout China were a wide range of practices designed to raise qi and hence invigorate the body and serve as a system of preventive medicine. These wide-ranging techniques are generally grouped under the name qigong, and include practices known elsewhere as meditation and exercise. Some form of qigong was integrated into Chinese religious practices, especially Buddhism and Taoism.

Working with qi was greatly affected by the Chinese Revolution in the mid-twentieth century, and especially during the brief period known as the Cultural Revolution. Religious institutions and practices were heavily suppressed and the secret books that held the teachings on qi were either destroyed or placed in government archives. Following the Cultural Revolution, Deng Xiao Peng went about rebuilding China's past, but in the light of the Communist present. Most importantly, he promoted traditional Chinese medicinal practice and the revival of qigong. In the meantime, people knowledgeable of qi migrated to the West and began to talk openly about traditional Chinese practices, thus creating a demand from the West for more information. The flow of material on qi began with President Nixon's trip to China in 1972 and the American govern-ment's support for a new scientific look at acupuncture. Acu-puncture has subsequently become a popular alternative medical practice, though its use by Western physicians remains limited.

In China in the 1980s and 1990s, extensive experimentation has proceeded aimed at gathering scientific data on the existence and beneficent effects of qi. These experiments parallel Western attempts to measure the effects of spiritual/psychic healing. Using the EEG and related instruments, Chinese scientists believe that they have documented the existence of qi and in a wide range of experiments have documented the power of qi in the treatment of different diseases. It has, for example, appeared helpful in curing cancer in experiments involving the progress of carcinoma cells and leukemia in mice. These experiments are now being offered to Western scientists for duplication and verification.

Meanwhile, the promotion of qigong among the population has proved a two-edged sword for the Chinese. In the late 1990s, it was discovered that qigong had become the basis of the creation of new unofficial religious groups built around the mental and spiritual effects of the experience of qi. The most successful, a Buddhist movement named Falun Gong, now has followers in the millions and has become very popular in many countries with Chinese expatriate communities. In 1998, the Chinese government began an effort to suppress the movement in China.