Originally Posted by
IronFist
"Qigong masters" claim to be able to do things with their qi, such as break the bottom brick, or withstand blows to the stomach with a sledgehammer.
The onus of proof is on them to prove that those events are occurring because of a level of qi manipulation that the untrained population is not capable of.
I have no problem with people claiming qi is in all life, or the food we eat, or anything else.
I have no problem with people claiming they can feel the qi moving through their body when they do qigong.
But to claim to have special powers because of qi, that is something that needs to be proven.
If David Copperfield claims to actually make a plane disappear, he needs to do so in a way that removes all doubt, not only from specific angles on TV, etc. Of course, David Copperfield is a stage magician and doesn't claim to actually make the plane disappear.
If someone learns the physics behind breaking the bottom brick, that's awesome. To claim it is because of qi is nonsense without offering proof.
If someone trains to withstand the blow from a sledgehammer, that is a most impressive feat! To claim it is because of qi requires proof.
Both of those feats can be done with physics, physical conditioning, and proper body mechanics.
If someone claims to be able to move or knock people out using qi and without touching them, that is going to require proof. And so far, every attempt has failed.