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From reading most of the threads and posts on this topic, I've realised there's a lot of confusion. There seems to be to extremes: On one side, you've got the people who believe a mysterious energy called ki exists and can be used for unusual, even supernatural purposes. On the other hand, there's those that believe ki sounds too unbelievable to exist, and reject it outright. The answer to most of life's problems is not found in one extreme or the other, it's found in the center, unity of yin and yang if you will. I'm hoping to give that centered explanation for this topic.
Ki does exist, but it's not the unusual, supernatural energy most people think of it as. Quite to the contrary, it is very normal and natural. In fact, everyone has experienced it. Ki is the infinite, most basic energy of life / the universe itself. However, it differs from our ordinary idea of energy in that it doesn't run out with use. Our limited strength will run out if used. It's part of the natural law of yin and yang: One extreme turns into it's opposite. If we work our muscles hard, they will be tired and sore the next day. Ki, though, is not a relative energy. It is absolute; beyond opposites. Therefore, to have strong ki means that one is both positive and relaxed. Everyone has experienced times when they were so determined, so focused that you feel you could go on forever.
Successful people are the best example the effect of ki. Anyone that has achieved a great deal of success surely would have had to find the balance of being able to express oneself fully without running out of energy. Such is the nature of ki.
Still, some people might find it hard to believe that an energy such as ki exists, since it can't be so readily perceived and measured like most energies. This is because other energies are relative, but ki is absolute.
Why should you believe in something that you can't prove? In the words of William Reed, in "Ki: A Road that Anyone can Walk":
"We must and do believe in many things for which there is no tangible evidence or guarantee whatsoever. Without this we could not live and society could not function. How can you be certain that your parents are really your parents and that you were not adopted? How do you know that the food you have ordered in a restaurant is not poisoned? Why do you trust any product that you ever use? How do you know that you will not die in your sleep? Ultimately we must believe in the universe and that it will protect us, otherwise we would end up insane and unable to function. Compared to these things which we normally believe in and take for granted, it must be relatively easy to believe in Ki."
As well as this, there are ways to experience ki. Kiatsu therapy, for example, where the therapist heals by sending ki through the fingertips. I haven't even had proper training in kiatsu therapy, and I have been able to use this method to help myself and others. I've done it on stiff shoulders, and actually felt the muscles loosen as they are filled with ki. If you want proof that ki exists, if you can't find a kiatsu therapist, just find a shin shin toitsu aikido dojo and have the instructor demonstrate a ki test.
This is just an introduction to a deep topic, but I hope I have given some helpful insight. If you want to learn more, search "Koichi Tohei" or "shin shin toitsu aikido". That book is quoted is also really good, reading it changed my life.
Ki does exist, but it's not the unusual, supernatural energy most people think of it as. Quite to the contrary, it is very normal and natural. In fact, everyone has experienced it. Ki is the infinite, most basic energy of life / the universe itself. However, it differs from our ordinary idea of energy in that it doesn't run out with use. Our limited strength will run out if used. It's part of the natural law of yin and yang: One extreme turns into it's opposite. If we work our muscles hard, they will be tired and sore the next day. Ki, though, is not a relative energy. It is absolute; beyond opposites. Therefore, to have strong ki means that one is both positive and relaxed. Everyone has experienced times when they were so determined, so focused that you feel you could go on forever.
Successful people are the best example the effect of ki. Anyone that has achieved a great deal of success surely would have had to find the balance of being able to express oneself fully without running out of energy. Such is the nature of ki.
Still, some people might find it hard to believe that an energy such as ki exists, since it can't be so readily perceived and measured like most energies. This is because other energies are relative, but ki is absolute.
Why should you believe in something that you can't prove? In the words of William Reed, in "Ki: A Road that Anyone can Walk":
"We must and do believe in many things for which there is no tangible evidence or guarantee whatsoever. Without this we could not live and society could not function. How can you be certain that your parents are really your parents and that you were not adopted? How do you know that the food you have ordered in a restaurant is not poisoned? Why do you trust any product that you ever use? How do you know that you will not die in your sleep? Ultimately we must believe in the universe and that it will protect us, otherwise we would end up insane and unable to function. Compared to these things which we normally believe in and take for granted, it must be relatively easy to believe in Ki."
As well as this, there are ways to experience ki. Kiatsu therapy, for example, where the therapist heals by sending ki through the fingertips. I haven't even had proper training in kiatsu therapy, and I have been able to use this method to help myself and others. I've done it on stiff shoulders, and actually felt the muscles loosen as they are filled with ki. If you want proof that ki exists, if you can't find a kiatsu therapist, just find a shin shin toitsu aikido dojo and have the instructor demonstrate a ki test.
This is just an introduction to a deep topic, but I hope I have given some helpful insight. If you want to learn more, search "Koichi Tohei" or "shin shin toitsu aikido". That book is quoted is also really good, reading it changed my life.
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