Qi

Qi names activity, relationship, capacity, and transformation. It should not be reduced to a mysterious substance or translated away as mere metaphor.

A language of process

Qi describes what something can do, how it changes, and how it participates in larger patterns. The term becomes clearer through context rather than through one fixed English equivalent.

Clinical and everyday meaning

In medicine, Qi helps describe movement, function, resistance, and coordination. In cultivation, it directs attention toward rhythm, responsiveness, and economy of effort.