Traditional Chinese Medicine 101: What is Qi?
Qi...This is a tough one to describe..
I remember in TCM school a teacher told us that if we called Qi ‘energy’, we were being inaccurate and lazy. They then asked, “What is the dynamic force that animates the body, that instant when a new heart begins to beat’? Wow…
Traditional Chinese Medicine is based on the concept that behind all phenomena is an invisible life force that animates the universe and individuals alike; this force is known as Qi.
Without a body, life force or Qi would have nothing to animate, but without Qi the body would be like a lump of clay; full of potential but no dynamism.
Qi’s other role is to move blood, circulating it throughout the body nourishing tissues. Blood is considered to be a denser version of Qi. Qi and blood are inseparable from each other, just like the concept of Yin and Yang; Qi infuses life into blood, but without Qi, Blood would just be an inert fluid. Blood is crucial to our well-being because it nourishes and supports the body, it Houses the Mind (i.e. Mental health) and it determines menstruation in women amongst other functions.
How can an acupuncture needle affect ones Qi or Blood? This potent cosmic Qi suffuses the body through an invisible network of branching channels called the Meridians.
The meridian network is likened to that of irrigation channels that feed and nourish the body and mind together.
Keeping the meridians unblocked and the Qi flowing is essential to the notion of health. When the flow is unencumbered, we are without pain and our health is balanced.
The Meridians lay upon the bodies surface like streams of energy traversing the landscape of our skin. In brief, there are 12 regular meridians that are linked to the 12 organs all terminating in the toes or fingers. Along these meridians, like pearls on a string, are hundreds of acupuncture points. They are anatomically specific locations on the body where the meridians and thus the flow of Qi can be manipulated.
Another very common analogy of the meridians and Qi flow is that of a River.
A rushing river is dynamic; its force is powerful, directed and helps to support the surrounding flora and fauna with life sustaining water. But imagine a river that has been blocked, perhaps a recent heavy rainfall caused some boulders and rocks to slide into the river cutting off its flow. On the one side, the river’s kinetic energy is backing up from being dammed. But on the other, the water is still, becoming stagnant causing algae, bacteria and insects to proliferate.
This is why we want the bodies meridians to flow effortlessly with Qi so that stagnancy doesn’t fester causing dis-ease to form.
A rolling stone gathers no moss!
Check out the first segment of this series by clicking here!