Some ways of approaching the idea of Qi

Qigong, and the Zen tradition that lies behind our meditation and mindfulness courses, both use the idea of "qi", the concept of the body's internal energy and its flow. This can be a novel concept to those used to a western approach to health and this strangeness may make us feel a little uncertain about what these exercises are trying to do. This would be unfortunate as these ideas can help us see our health in a way that is nicely complementary to the western medical approach. What I would like to do in this blog is to briefly discuss ways in which the idea of qi can be approached.

Firstly, there are those in the west who believe that a western medical perspective on qi is completely achievable. A leading example of this is Dr Dan Keown who wrote a book, The Spark in the Machine, which is well worth reading. In this book he argues that qi and the meridians of Chinese traditional medicine can be recognised in the western model by noting the similarity between them and the action and structures formed in the early stages of the development of the embryo.

Secondly, we can see qi as a metaphor, a poetic way of viewing our health, our body and mind that often seems to work and be helpful. We don't need to to view qi as if we had to personally prove its existence and measure it with a scientific instrument. We can just see it as a helpful way of looking at ourselves. A way of seeing body and mind combined. That it just seems to work.

Thirdly, we can accept these ideas at face value and realise and acknowledge that they have been in development in China and the geographic East for thousands of years and they provide a completely self-consistent model for wellbeing. Here, we just go "all in".

I confess to being attracted by aspects of all three approaches, with the second one probably being closest to my heart. I am an engineer, a mathematician, an applied scientist, and for many years the idea of accepting anything that couldn't be quantifed, repeated or proved was completely alien to me. However, one grows up. There are many, many ways of viewing the world, and we don't need to just choose one, put it on a pedestal and reject the rest. To allow several models to exist at the same time can be a powerful and beautiful way of seeing the world.

The exercises in qigong are physically effective however you view the concept of qi. However, finding a way of working with the concept of qi can, I think, help bring the body and mind together. They also make qigong a lot more fun.

Andrew Ricketts, March 2021