How Are The Major Forms Of Qi Created in The Body

According to Chinese Medicine, the energy used to sustain our bodies is of two major types: (1) Congenital (or Prenatal) Qi, and (2) Acquired (or Postnatal) Qi. Congenital Qi is the Qi we were born with – the energy/intelligence that we inherited from our parents, and that is associated with DNA and RNA codes (our "karma" from previous lives). Congenital Qi includes both Jing/Essence and Yuan Qi (also called Original Qi), and is stored in the ming men area between the Kidneys. Acquired Qi, on the other hand, is the Qi that we generate within our lifetime from the air that we breathe, the food that we eat, and qigong practice, and is associated primarily with the Lung and Spleen Organ-Systems. If our eating and breathing patterns are intelligent, and our qigong practice strong, we can generate a surplus of Acquired Qi, which can then be used to supplement our Congenital Qi.

Included within the category of Acquired (Postnatal) Qi are: (1) Gu Qi – the essence of the food we eat; (2) Kong Qi – the energy of the air that we breathe; (3) Zong Qi (also called Pectoral Qi or Gathering Qi) – which is the combination of Gu Qi and Kong Qi; and (4) Zheng Qi (also called True Qi) – which includes both Ying Qi (also called Nutritive Qi), which is the Qi that flows through the meridians, and Wei Qi (also called Defensive Qi). The terminology is complex, but basically what is being described is the process by which the food that we eat and the air that we breathe are metabolized internally, to produce the Qi that flows through the meridians, and the Qi that flows outside of the meridians as protection.

It works something like this: The food that we eat is processed by the Spleen/Stomach Organ-System to produce Gu Qi. The air that we breathe is processed by the Lung Organ-System to produce Kong Qi. The essence of the food (Gu Qi) is sent up to the chest where it mixes with the essence of the air (Kong Qi) to produce Zong Qi. In terms of western physiology, this is the rough equivalent to the oxygenation of the blood that happens in the lungs. Supported by Yuan Qi (Original Qi, stored in the Kidneys/ming men), Zong Qi is then transformed into Zhen Qi (True Qi), which in its yin aspect becomes Ying Qi (what flows through the meridians) and in its yang aspect becomes Wei Qi (which protects us from external pathogens).