I demonstrated a few Tai Chi moves for an acquaintance. He saw the very slow fluid movements and said in a nasal tone "It would never work in a fight; it's too slow, too weak." I explained that it would be done faster in a confrontation and that Tai Chi was supposed to be practiced at a very slow steady pace with your minds full attention on the moves and the movement of Chi in the body. "What's Chi?" He asked.
Something about his expression told me that he was not going to be open to the idea of a life giving energy but I marched on. "Chi" I said, "is the force that is in all living things and animates us. Without it life would not be possible." I saw his face contort in concentration. He said, "How come scientists don't talk about this energy, if they don't talk about it they probably have never found it. So where is this energy?" He asked.
"The truth is," I shot back, "some scientists have been able to verify the existence of Chi through sophisticated heat sensing devices on the bodies of practitioners of meditation. The real question is not where the energy is but where the matter is." My acquaintance held his arm up and slapped it making a loud smack. "What do you mean? It's here and everywhere. It is all around us."
I nodded in agreement with him. "I know what your saying seems right but consider this. Most of the area in atoms, the little blocks that makes up us and everything around us, are to a great extent empty space. An atom is made up of a nucleus and electrons orbiting the nucleus. The thing is an electrons orbit can be up to 100,000 times the diameter of the nucleus. That means that if you enlarge a single atom to where the nucleus is one inch across the electrons could be up to a mile and a half away. His face fell somewhat blank. I continued.
It gets stranger than that. The electrons are much smaller than the nucleus. They might look like dust particles floating in the air. "My acquaintance asked, "If that is true why does my arm feel so solid?". He waved the arm in my face as if to say the discussion was over. I smiled knowing at this point he would not accept what I had to say but I explained that the electrons and the nucleus have strong electrical bonds that give matter its solidity.
He looked at me like I was crazy and turned and walked away. He had heard my words but did not accept them as true.
The truth is I don't know exactly what Chi is. I don't know whether or not it has anything to do with western physics. Although I suspect it does. I don't know if what the scientists are measuring on the meditating monks is chi or something else.
I do know we are made of energy. The fact that we and everything in our world seems solid is a trick on the interface devices of our senses.
What I do know is that the Chinese culture has a deep tradition concerning this. Internal energy is regarded as a fact of life. I know that Buddhist monks can use Chi to dry damp robes on their bodies on a cold morning while meditating. I also know that if the Chinese are right about Chi it wouldn't be the first time that their understanding of beneficial health practices is far in advance of ours. They knew all about boiling water to make it safe to drink a long time before we did here in the west. Just one of many examples.
Personally I know while performing standing meditation I almost always feel a sort of tingling sensation in my hands and sometimes the rest of my body. It feels like a nine volt battery releasing its charge through my flesh. Sometimes my hands repulse each other slightly like magnets. One time I am sure I raised my arms over my head without using my muscles. That is what I can say first hand about Chi. This is the beginning of my Nei Kung (internal energy) Odyssey.
