Mysterious Secrets About Acupuncture, Revealed

Chris Maslowski, L.Ac. of SOPHIA Natural Health Center writes about Acupuncture and its mysteries...

If you asked me what the biggest secret of Acupuncture is, I would say it’s the word Qi (pronounced chee). The word Qi is translated to energy. Everything on Earth and the Universe is made up of this energy. Every cloud, every leaf, and even YOU are made up of Qi.

In Western Medicine, we understand the scientific fact that everything is composed of swirling protons, neutrons, and electrons. Chinese Medicine knew all of this even before the advent of modern medicine. Essentially, Qi is the old school way of explaining twenty-first century science. The ancients understood that there lies an intrinsic energetic connection between humans and nature.

Further, if we look at the Chinese character for Qi, you will notice how dynamic and expressive the symbol looks (image found below). Eastern culture uses written language as an artful expression to explain words and concepts.

For instance, to the right of the image, there is a shield-like structure encasing the symbol. This represents that Qi is a strong force and can protect the body (similar to how the immune system is our main-line of defense). Qi is said to be interconnected with the modern understanding of human immunity. To the lower left, just behind the shield, the symbol of Qi emerges. See how expressive the lines are. They spew out in every direction possible. This part of the symbol illustrates how energetic Qi really is. From analyzing the Chinese character, we can begin to understand the functions that Qi contains.

One of the many functions of Qi include warming the body. When someone has abundant Qi, they stay warm and energetic throughout the day. Another function encompasses the transformation of all actions in the body. For instance, Qi initiates and turns into sweat, tears, and even thoughts. Everything in the human form is managed by this miraculous force. Even more so, Qi and blood are intimately related. There is a famous quote, “Qi is the commander of blood, and blood is the mother of Qi.” Without energy, blood will coagulate and stop moving. Conversely, without blood, Qi has no force to push, thus, separating.

Last point - once we start to understand the origin of Qi, we can move on to how Chinese Medicine uses it in a clinical sense. Acupuncturists perceive this phenomena as a collection of various types of energetic patterns found within the body. To break it down, we view it as being either not enough (Qi deficiency), stuck (Qi stagnation), or a feeling of counterflow (rebellious Qi). Acupuncture may manipulate channel pathways to encourage the unblocking, building, and/or correcting the normal flow of energy throughout the body.