Star Wars and Qi

In 1999, Star Wars fans were thrown into tumult and heated debate when The Phantom Menace (Episode I) was released. In the movie, the Force — the mystical power employed by Jedi Knights and Sith Lords — was explained in greater detail.

As it turns out, the Force was not some sort of esoteric/supernatural energy. Instead, it had a somewhat more mundane source. According to the Star Wars wiki:

"Midi-chlorians were microscopic, intelligent life forms that originated from the foundation of life in the center of the galaxy and ultimately resided within the cells of all living organisms, thereby forming a symbiotic relationship with their hosts. The Force spoke through the midi-chlorians, allowing certain beings to use the Force if they were sensitive enough to its powers."

Some fans were glad to have greater clarity and insight into what the Force was. Other fans were aghast that the Force was essentially reduced to... microbes?

But what if the writers of Stars Wars were on to something here? What if we can draw parallels between the Force and qi, between midi-chlorians and bacteria?

Gratuitous cuteness of Grogu

A 2016 study clarified and updated the number of bacteria on and in the human body to 38 trillion, with the gut, mouth, and skin accounting for almost all of it.

So, think about this for a minute. From the day you're born and exit the womb (and probably while you're in the womb), 38 trillion bacteria glom onto you and crawl inside you. And when you die, those bacteria either die as well, or migrate somewhere else.

Unlike the fictional world of Star Wars, as it stands right now in real life, we do not have a convenient explanation for qi. We can't quantify or measure it. We don't know what the "source" of it is. We're starting to get a better idea of how qi travels, and how qi meridians might correlate to fascia, or the interstitium.

But what if, just like Star Wars, qi lives in — and is passed around by — all the bacteria on and inside of us? That just like the Force, we have this symbiotic relationship with the information, language, and energy that buzzes around all our bacteria?

And I would be remiss if I didn't point out that the gut microbiome, where a huge majority of bacteria are concentrated, is also where the dan tian is!

I write this post with my tongue quasi-firmly in cheek, but it does make me wonder. Is it really that far-fetched? It doesn't seem all that crazy to me. Without any concrete scientific evidence, I think any reasonable hypothesis is up for debate.

What do you think? Is art possibly imitating life here?

(Disclaimer: I am not a Star Wars guy. Just like my literary hero, Harlan Ellison, I consider Star Wars to be space opera junk. Star Trek is far superior!)