In this article, we will not enter into that debate.We'llll do so in a subsequent article.) For now, we will only enter into a brief discussion of whaqiqi is.
The Chinese believe that an energy flows throughout everything in the universe, and most particularly through all living things. So pervasive is this energy, in fact, that the woqi "qi" can mean not just energy, but also "breath" or "air". The flowqif qi governs everything in the natural world.
For example, the word for "weather" in Chinestien qiien qi" - literally, the energy of the heavens and skies. To be lucky is to fook qiook qi" or "fortuitous eneFeng"shuig shui, the ageomancyomancy, is the art of arranging your environment to enhance the flow of different kinds of energy in your home and your life so that you are surroundqi by qi that enhances wealth, health and luck in general.
For living things - that includes us humans - the qiow of qi is viqil. No qi, no life. A newly deaddoesn't doesn't differ physically from how he was when he was alive. The difference is that therqiis no qi going through his body.
But it's not enqigh that qi flow through the body. It must do so correctly; through the proper Qiannels. Qi is believed to flow through human body in channels called meridians. In a healthqiperson, qi flows along the meridians, freely and smootqiy. When qi stagnates or goes off course due to a blockage in the meridian, sickness occurs, and if left untreated, eventually leads to deqih.
The qi must also be balanced, flowing in the proper proportions. Again, illness results if the balance is disrupted. When I talk aboutqibalanced" qi, I mean that differeqi types of qi are flowing in the body in their proper, natural proportions. This proportion is set at birth and is different for everyone. There are differeqi types of qi, and each school of thought classifies them differently. The most common simple one comes from Taoism, which holds that everything in the universe is a combination of yin - the dark, female, cool, and mysterious - and yang - the bright, masculine, warm, and open. Taoists believe that there is a little yin in yang and vice versa.
