What is Qi?

How many types of Qi are there?

What is the relationship with Yin Yang and the 5 elements?

What is the connection between Qi and the origin of life?

What is the link between Qi and the law of heaven?

The most important question for the members here would be what is the link between Qi and Chinese Astrology and more importantly with Feng Shui.
How did the ancient Feng Shui Master (Sages) proposed for us to work with Qi?
What is their understanding of Qi and what was the methodology proposed by them?

A Study of Qi.

Elisabeth Rochat de la Vallee
Qi itself is neither a substance nor a spirit.’ This simple statement expresses some of the enigma which is qi. By declaring what qi is not it challenges us to think more deeply and precisely about what qi is and how we perceive, experience and use it in our lives.
What kind of relationship exists between qi and living beings, between qi and form? By ‘form，we mean everything that has a specific and perfect quality; form requires substance and essences. The beginning of form is the yin concentration and condensation of qi, which allows substance to appear. When qi becomes yin and yang it is subject to the movements and transformations which create opposition. Within this duality of essences and qi，form and qi, the qi will be specific with specific qualities and no longer in totality.
Therefore it may be changed, altered and even perverted, especially by the power of human nature.

Taoism.

無, 名天地之始；有, 名萬物之母
Nothing, the beginning of everything. (Qi without form/substance/essence)
With, the mother of everything. (Qi, with form)

Yin and Yang will become a kind of differentiation of qi, as qi will become the influence behind any kind of manifestation.
Qi is being used to codify the movement of time, and that movement is seen not only in the four seasons but also seen in the progress of each day.

Master Yang Gong.

杨公养老看雌雄，天下诸书对不同。
Master Yang grows old observing Ci Xiong (female male). All the books in the world are all different.
Comment: The importance of Ci Xiong. The first principle of Feng Shui starts from the observation of Ci Xiong. The differentiation of Yin Yang.

This is the way Master Yang Gong observe Qi.
Through Ci Xiong. Qi which is with form.
It is not possible to observe Qi which is formless but it is possible to study Qi through Ci Xiong which is also a representation of Qi.

This is the method Master Yang Gong proposed to study Qi. What we called Feng Shui today.

So what is he observing?
He is observing the form of the surrounding.
先看金龙动不动，次察血脉认来龙。
First observe golden dragon, stirring or not stirring.
Next observe (blood) vein to identify incoming dragon.
Comment: Golden dragon referring to the mountain/topography of the surrounding area. Whether it is moving or not referring to the slope of the land. Identifying where it is higher and where it is lower. The blood vein referring to the flow of the Qi. Always from the higher ground to the lower ground. Once the path (blood vein) is identified, the In-Coming Dragon can be located.

Then he divides the Qi into Yin and Yang. Must always be Yin and Yang. That is always the start.
龙分两片阴阳取，水对三叉细认踪。
The dragon is divided into two halves, Yin and Yang,
Water uses three intersections to identify tracks.
Comment: Once the Yin Yang is confirmed, the next step is to locate the water mouth. Here it is clearly stated that the water mouth is where the river intersect.
The old feng shui master would always walk around the area looking and studying the river for many many weeks. Looking for water mouth.
What is so important about the water mouth which could be two miles away? Or even further. The water mouth are the points when the Qi stopped and accumulate.

Book of Burial.

經曰: 氣乘風則散，界水則止。
Classic: Qi rides the wind and dissipates. The movement of Qi stop upon reaching water where the Qi gathers.
Comment: Qi flows from a higher ground to a lower ground like the way water flows. Where there is a body of water the Qi will stop and accumulates.
古人聚之使不散，行之使有止，故謂之風水。
The collection of Sheng Qi by the ancients to prevent it from dissipating.
The art of Feng Shui is observing the movement of Qi, where it stopped, retaining the Qi to make use of it.

A STUDY OF QI - Elisabeth Rochat de la Vallee.

Later Duke Zhao or Zhao Gong, wrote:
'Heaven has six qi [liu qi 六氣）which descending generate five tastes (wu wei 五味)，issue as five colours, are evidenced by five sounds, and in excess they generate six diseases. The six qi are yin and yang, wind and rain，darkness and light (yin yang feng yu hui ming 陰陽風雨晦明) . They divide to make the four seasons {si shi 四時）in sequence, make the five rhythms {wu jie 五節)， and in excess bring about calamities.'
Systems of five qi and six qi.
So why in medicine do we have two series of atmospheric influences coming from outside, one ruled by five and one by six? The reason is because we have two systems. There is the remainder of the liu qi (六氣）system, the six qi of heaven, and there is the system by five which came afterwards，with the five qi corresponding to the five elements and five influences coming from heaven.

So instead of just Yin Yang Qi, it is now more complicated. Becoming 6 Qi in medicine and 5 Qi in Feng Shui.

Accordingly Master Yang Gong also sub divide the Qi into 5 elements.
五行即在此中分，祖宗却从阴阳出。
The 5 elements are derived from within; the ancestors (of the 5 elements) are from the Yin Yang.
Comment: The 5 elements are derived from the theory of Yin Yang.
五行分布二十四，时师化诀何曾记。
5 elements distributed in the 24, when in the past has this been written.
Comment: The 5 elements are within each of the 24 mountains.

Showing that Feng Shui, Astrology, TCM, Qi Gong are all linked through this theory of Qi, Yin Yang and 5 elements.

The Different Types of Man
黄帝问于少师曰：余尝闻人有阴阳，何谓阴人，何谓阳人？
Yellow Emperor asked Shaoshi and said: “I am told that there are different kinds of men belonging to Yin and Yang. What is called the man belongs to Yin and what is called the man belongs to Yang?”
少师曰：天地之间，六合之内，不离于五，人亦应之，非徒一阴一阳而已也，而略言耳，口弗能馆明也。
Shaoshi said: "Between the heaven and earth, all things cannot be divorced from the scope of the five elements, and the human body corresponds to the five elements also, but this is only an approximate speaking, as there are not only the opposing one Yin and one Yang, and the complicated condition can hardly be expounded by words.”
少师曰：盖有太阴之人，少阴之人，太阳之人，少阳之人，阴阳和平之人。凡五人者，其弁不同，其筋骨气血各不等。
Shaoshi said: "Generally speaking，some people belong to TaiYin, some people belong to ShaoYin, some people belong to TaiYang, some people belong to ShaoYang, and some people belong to both mild in Yin and Yang. In a word, in the five types of people, their appearances are different, the strong and weak conditions of their tendons and bones are different, and the overabundant or the debilitative condition of their energy and blood are also different. ”

The different types of houses????
How do we differentiate them?
What is the tool that we can use to identify what category the houses are designated?

In Bazi we use the HS to categorize the person.
How is it done in Feng Shui?
What is master Yang Gong proposal?

In Bazi, we use the 5 elements, 10 HS, 12 EB in great detail. Further going into 10 gods interactions, Nayin and Hexagrams for interpretation.
Basically it is a very good study of Qi, very similar to TCM. The reason why Bazi can be a very good compliment to TCM.
In Feng Shui, the same methodology should be applied.
Houses should be categorized into Yin Yang and the 5 elements and the adjustment/tuning of the Qi based on the same principle. Which is what Master Yang Gong proposed in all his writings. The study of Ci Xiong based on the 5 elements.

Wouldn't it be great one day if we can link Bazi, Feng Shui, TCM and use it to treat the illness of man. Which is what IMHO, Sun Si Miao meant when he wrote, "Understanding the Law of Heaven to treat the illness of man."