Qi/Chi, also commonly spelled ch’i and ki is pronounced “chee” in the American language. Qi/Chi is a fundamental concept of everyday Chinese life, philosophy, and culture. It is most often defined as air or breath and, by extension, life-force or spiritual energy that is part and parcel of everything that exists in the universe. Many believe that Qi/Chi is the metaphysical potency that animates and sustains all living things. It is viewed as a positive spiritual force, the energy flowing through all people, the dynamism in the world.
Qi/Chi can be seen as similar to the logos attributed to the Stoics from Western philosophy. In the physical embodiment, the Stoic believes that the logos exists as pneuma, a substance imagined as fire and air. In Stoicism, pneuma is the power that animates animals and humans. It is the energy that holds lifeless material together–the internal tension that makes mass and matter an object. To the Stoic, all objects are a compound of lifeless substance and vital force.
There is only one term in the American language where the Chinese word Qi/Chi is pronounced “chee” and that word is chino. Here are some other pronunciations.
- Qi/Chi (ke) as in the word Chianti
- Qi/Chi (sha) as in the city of Chicago
- Qi/Chi (shi) as in the term chicanery
- Qi/Chi (she) as in the word chi-chi
- Qi/Chi (chi) as in China and Chinese
- Qi/Chi (ki) as in the term chiropractic
For recognition and clarity, we coined the word CHEE. We must, for the sake of clarity, and so our meaning may be easily followed. Thus, CHEE becomes a new American term, derived from the Eastern philosophical concept of Qi/Chi. CHEE becomes the positive energy flowing from the human condition of integrated fitness of the mind, body, and spirit. The synthesized elements that make up the essential essence of CHEE are:
- First, the sane mind or mental stability;
- Second, the conditioned body or good physical health;
- Third, the devout spirit or human moral excellence.
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