📍 Shanghai, China, 10/30/18

I had the most interesting Religion & Society class today. We were discussing Daoism and how the ‘Dao” is the mysterious origin of the Universe, and how “Qi” is the energy that exists in us and around us. My teacher said it sounds like nonsense, but I didn’t think so. It seems to align far more with my views of the Universe than any Abrahamic religion does.

The “Qi” is you, is everything. It’s what I feel sometimes, though sometimes not. It’s the ever-present presence. I’m terrible at explaining this, but it makes sense to me.

A Catholic girl started talking about how it’s similar to the holy spirit and how some more modern religious scholars say that God can also be defined as a sort of “energy” or “light.”

My teacher went on to discuss how ancient civilizations in many places all over the world all had similar kinds of thought, despite never being in contact with one another. He related it back to the human psyche rather than potential alien interference–the focus on human vs. nature. I didn’t find his argument very convincing.

I’m not sure what I think about it, but I find it very fascinating.