qi

Also known as chi, ch'i, Ch'i, Chi, Khi, khi, lifeforce

In the Sinosphere and Chinese philosophy, qi ( ; ) is a vital force traditionally believed to be a part of all living entities. Literally meaning 'vapor', 'air', 'gas', or 'breath', the word qi is polysemous, often translated as 'vital energy', 'vital force', 'material energy', or simply 'energy'. Qi is also a concept in traditional Chinese medicine and in Chinese martial arts. The attempt to cultivate and balance qi is called qigong.

AI overview

Qi is a vital force traditionally believed in Chinese philosophy and medicine to be present in all living things, literally meaning "breath" or "air." The concept matters because it underlies traditional Chinese healing practices and martial arts, where people practice techniques called qigong to cultivate and balance this energy.

AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.

Key facts

Chinese.bpmf: ㄑㄧˋ
Chinese.title: Qi
Chinese.pic: Qi 3 forms.jpg
Chinese.picsize: 180px
Chinese.mc: khj+jH
Chinese.p: qì
Chinese.w: ch'i4
Chinese.gr: chih
Chinese.j: hei3
Chinese.y: hei
Chinese.phfs: hi
Chinese.wuu: chi
Chinese.poj: khì
Chinese.hn: 氣
Chinese.buc: ké
Chinese.kanji: 気
Chinese.romaji: ki
Chinese.rr: gi

via Wikipedia infobox

Research

110,223 papers

Balancing the Qi in ITP.Blood · 2022Zehnder JLDOI: 10.1182/blood.2022018373
[Mechanism of tonifying Qi by traditional Chinese medicine from mitochondrial dynamics].ReviewZhongguo Zhong yao za zhi = Zhongguo zhongyao zazhi = China journal of Chinese materia medica · 2023Gao RY, Gao JR, Zhao HY et al.DOI: 10.19540/j.cnki.cjcmm.20230417.601
Acupuncture de qi, from qualitative history to quantitative measurement.ReviewJournal of alternative and complementary medicine (New York, N.Y.) · 2007Kong J, Gollub R, Huang T et al.DOI: 10.1089/acm.2007.0524
Qi stagnation and qi deficiency are associated with depression in college students.Frontiers in public health · 2024Xinzhu W, Yuanchun HDOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1444237
A literature review of de qi in clinical studies.ReviewAcupuncture in medicine : journal of the British Medical Acupuncture Society · 2013Park JE, Ryu YH, Liu Y et al.DOI: 10.1136/acupmed-2012-010279
Impact of Qi-invigorating traditional Chinese medicines on intestinal flora: A basis for rational choice of prebiotics.ReviewChinese journal of natural medicines · 2017Wang XM, Li XB, Peng YDOI: 10.1016/S1875-5364(17)30041-9
Clinical efficacy of supplementing qi dispelling wind and activating blood circulation method in the treatment of IgA nephropathy: A meta-analysis.ReviewMedicine · 2023Pan Z, Zhao M, Chang M et al.DOI: 10.1097/MD.0000000000033123
Powering the future: Exploring self-charging cardiac implantable electronic devices and the Qi revolution.ReviewPacing and clinical electrophysiology : PACE · 2024Bilal M, Syed NN, Jamil Y et al.DOI: 10.1111/pace.14955

via PubMed

~21 min read

Article

22 sections

Contents

Linguistic aspects
Pronunciation and etymology
Characters
Meanings
English borrowing
Concept
Philosophical roots
Role in traditional Chinese medicine
Scientific view
Practices involving qi
Feng shui
Reiki
Qigong
Martial arts
Acupuncture and moxibustion
Taoist sexual practices
See also
Notes
References
Works cited
Further reading
External links

Believers in qi describe it as a vital force, with one's good health requiring its flow to be unimpeded. Originally prescientific, today it is a pseudoscientific concept, i.e. not corresponding to the concept of energy as used in the physical sciences.