Concepts in other cultures that correlate with Qi
Yu Huan Zhang & Ken Rose, A brief history of Qi
"The ancient Hindus wrote of prana, the invisible 'breath of life' that they cultivated through Yoga. Ancient Greeks described a concept which in several important aspects parallels the Chinese notion of qi with the word 'pneuma.' Like the Chinese qi, this Greek word is often translated into English as 'breath'— with similar misleading results. The Greek pneuma, like the Chinese concept of qi, was a complex idea that blended spiritual and material aspects of the vital essence of life into a comprehensive description of that without which life itself could not exist...
Also like qi in ancient China, pneuma was an important concept in ancient Greek medicine. It too was the substance with which people filled their lungs ('pneumon' in Greek). But like its Chinese counterpart, the Greek pneuma represented an even more vital substance. It took on the meaning of the breath of life, breathed into mortals by the gods.”
Yu Huan Zhang & Ken Rose, A Brief History of Qi
Trade Paperback Book, 2001, pp. 15-16
"There must be some primal force, but it is impossible to locate. I believe it exists, but cannot see it. I see its results, I can even feel it, but it has no form.” (Zhuang Zi, Inner Chapters, Fourth Century B.C.E.)
"Qi means air, breath, or vapour—originally the vapour arising from cooking cereals. It also came to mean a cosmic energy. The Primordial Breath is a name of the chaos (state of Unity) in which the original life force is not yet diversified into the phases that concepts of yin and yang describe.” (Kathleen Kuiper, The Culture of China, 2011, p. 103)
"Qi likewise is difficult to translate. The dictionary gives many meanings, including 'air', 'gas' and 'vapour'. To the early Chinese naturalists, this term seemed to bear some resemblance to what we now call 'matter-energy', corresponding in a way to the pneuma of the ancient Greeks and the prana of the ancient Hindus.” (Peng Yoke Ho, Li, Qi and Shu, 2002, p. 3)
"In every part of the world, already thousands of years ago, humans have speculated about some kind of life force. In China it is called qi (also spelled chi), in India prana, in ancient Greece pneuma, in Latin spiritus, and in Hebrew ruach. There are hundreds of life energy beliefs, which have many similarities. This encyclopedia presents and explains them all, showing their similarities, but also their differences.” (Book Description: Life Energy Encyclopedia: Qi, Prana, Spirit, and Other Life Forces around the World, Stefan Stenudd, 2009)
"In Eastern philosophy qi is also called prana and it is known that the body's natural production of prana increases through the raising of the kundalini energy via meditation and a yogic lifestyle. Because qi or prana runs on the neutrino level, it is very difficult to detect as qi is what fills the 99% of space in each atom.” Prof. Lu Zuyin, Scientific Qigong Exploration: The Wonders and Mysteries of Qi, 1997
"The scientific experiments introduced in this book (Scientific Qigong Exploration) opens up new doors for great scientific breakthroughs in the 21st century... Dr. Yan Xin's experiments indicate that our consciousness carry tremendous energy and information, and that qi energy can change DNA and RNA—an implication that human beings can completely redesign their life toward better health, longevity and even immortality. This is a book any visionary scientists and social scientists must read. Great minds will eventually be able to see the implications and set to work on unearthing the treasure of qigong for the common good.” Jing Lin, Associate Professor, University of Maryland
"The experiments themselves are kind of dry reading but the implications they have on the potential for human growth are staggering. And the scientists who conducted these experiments are not people who are easily swayed by whimsical tales and flights of fancy, they are hard core scientists and physicists who are among the top the Chinese have to offer.” Anthony D. Statler
