Ch'i

There lived a young political genius, not more than thirty years of age, by the name of Ch’ui P’ing (he is better known to the Chinese as Ch’ui Yuan). Young Ch’ui hailed from a rich and influential family of nobles and before long he won the confidence of the then Ch’u emperor, Hwai Wang, and was appointed to a high administrative position. He made recommendations in lengthy memorials and advocated giving the citizens of Ch’u a new deal and a square one at that. The emperor had taken him in as his right hand man allowing him a free hand in the politico-military situation with a high-sounding title which would translates no less than Supreme Crown Adviser and Expert Consultant, and entrusted to him the important duties, on account of his diplomatic acumen, of an ambassador-at-large on a politically inspired tour of the various minor states, notably the Kingdom of Ch’i (the present Shantung province) in an attempt to negotiate some alliance of joint action in defending themselves against the expansionists schemes of the Kingdom of Ch’in, whose domain then was roughly the present Shensi province. He almost succeeded in his mission.

In 284 B.C., near the end of the Era of the Warring States, the state of Yen seized all but two of the more than 70 cities of the state of Ch'i. For five years, the loyal people of Ch'i defended those cities, namely, Chu and Chi-mo, against Yen's troops.

By the time of the Warring States period (403-221 B.C.), when refugees from the northern Chinese states of Yen, Ch'i, and Chao immigrated into the state of Ancient Choson during the Han unification wars, Chinese influence became all-pervasive.

In the latter part of the Chou Dynasty before Ch’in Shih Huang Ti’s victory, the powerful Kingdom of Ch’i made its capital city near modern Tzu-po municipality in which Po-shan is situated today.

The remaining major kingdoms (Han, Ch'u, Chao, Yen and Ch'i) searched for a means to stop the aggressive Ch'in, who appeared to have more in common with the Hsiung-nu than with the Chinese.

Early Taoist philosophers and alchemists regarded ch'i as a vital force inhering in the breath and bodily fluids and developed techniques to alter and control the movement of ch'i within the body; their aim was to achieve physical longevity and spiritual power.

Imbalance of Ch'i (excess YIN or excess YANG, deficient YIN or deficient YANG) causes ill-health. Absence of Ch'i occurs at death. Ch'i is obtained from the lungs (oxygen, air) and the food (nutrients). It circulates to every cell in the body, via the meridian system and blood stream.