---
category: Esoteric & Historical Concept
created: 2025-07-23
description: Qi, also known as chi, is a fundamental concept in traditional Chinese
  culture, referring to the vital life force that flows through all living things.
summary: Qi (also chi) is the traditional Chinese concept of a vital life force flowing
  through living things, central to Chinese medicine and martial arts, and invoked
  by Chinese parapsychology researchers in the EHBF programs as the mechanism underlying
  paranormal phenomena.
tags:
- concept
- energy
- China
title: Qi
updated: 2025-07-23
---

[Qi](/concepts/qi/), also known as chi, is a fundamental concept in traditional Chinese culture, referring to the vital life force that flows through all living things. It is a central principle in traditional Chinese medicine and martial arts.[^1]

In the context of psychic research, the concept of qi is closely linked to the practice of [qigong](/concepts/qigong/) and the belief in [Extraordinary Human Body Function](/concepts/extraordinary-human-body-function/) (EHBF). It is believed that by cultivating and mastering the flow of qi, individuals can unlock paranormal abilities such as [ESP](/concepts/extrasensory-perception/) and [Psychokinesis](/concepts/psychokinesis/).[^1]

---

[^1]: Jacobsen, Annie. *Phenomena: The Secret History of the U.S. Government's Investigations into Extrasensory Perception and Psychokinesis*. Little, Brown and Company, 2017.