Life Energy Beliefs
M
Life Force Ideas Around the World
Here are the M entries of life energy beliefs around the world and from antiquity to the present. An edited and expanded version of this Life Energy A to Z is published in my book
Life Energy Encyclopedia.
M
M-field is an expression introduced by the American Robert A. Monroe
(1915-1995) for an energy field with a kind of intelligence, permeating time
and space, which is the creator of both life and all kinds of matter. The M-field also contains all the thoughts and emotions, since the dawn of time.
People can sense this field in meditation and prayer. The name is possibly
formed from the first letter of Monroe's name. The ideas have many
parallels to the Theosophy concept of akashic records (see astral light).
Magic (from the Greek mageia, the teaching of the mages) is human
influence on the surroundings, with other means than the physically
palpable. It exists in most cultures and is often surrounded by rituals, such
as the invocation of formulas and words of magic significance, aimed at
gathering power by which to accomplish what was intended. In many
cultures, the invoked power has several similarities to life energy concepts like qi. Mages was the
Greek name for a priesthood form Persia, believed to be versatile in
wizardry. In the Middle Ages, the term had widened to include anyone
working with the occult sciences.
The three wise men, mages from the east. From the Sagrada Familia.
Magnale magnum (Latin for 'the great great') is an expression used by the
Flemish chemist Jan Baptista van Helmont (1577-1644) for a power by
which one could influence and cure people, even at a distance. He
regarded it as a divine magical force that could be learned and mastered,
an ethereal fluid, a universal soul, the impulses of which ruled all. It was
present in humans, as well as in animals, plants, and minerals. See also gas,
world soul, and wild spirit.
Magnetism is a concept often used in theories about a life force. The
attracting force of magnets has fascinated people through history, and
inspired many ideas about invisible magic powers. The modern
knowledge of magnetic fields is often used as parables and models of
explanation in theories about aura (see this word) and other types of
radiation from living beings. See also animal magnetism, biomagnetism,
dielectric energy, scalar electromagnetism, and vital magnetism.
Magneto-electricity see dielectric energy.
Magnetoism is a term for the life force used by A. Wendler circa 1920,
according to Z. Rejdak: Paraphysies 5, 1971.
Mana is a Polynesian word for a magical or divine force that one can have
more or less of, with which one can influence one's surroundings. This
force can be received from the deities through rituals, or be present at
birth. It also has a negative expression, tapu, which can be a consequence
of having too much mana. It is from tapu that the word taboo is derived.
Every living creature has got mana, and someone dying can transmit it to
another by blowing into the mouth or on the fontanel of the receiving
person. Those who understand the most about the use of mana are the
kahuna, carriers of the old secrets (huna, secret). Mana is often mentioned
as a synonym to the life energy concept qi, which is not completely accurate. The actual life force,
the Polynesians seem to have called ha (see this word).
Manitou is a word among the North American Algonquin Indians for the
spirit, and for the life force – the driving force behind all life, and all
human action. To be completely void of manitou is to be dead. To have it
in abundance gives the ability to prolong one's life, cure others, take the
shape of an animal, or for that matter to accomplish deeds of great evil. It
is also the name of a deity (Kitcki Manitou, Great Manitou), who rules
Anasazi (the deities), the wind, and heaven. This deity might also be the
creator of the world. Everything that contains manitou has a part of or is
connected to this deity. Many other Indian tribes adopted the concept.
Compare orenda and wakan.
Mantra are sounds used in Indian rituals and meditation, to awaken the
kundalini and get the life energy prana to flow through one's chakras (see
these words). Usually, Sanskrit words are used, but the idea is basically
that the sounds are the working forces. The most famous mantra is Om
(Aum), which should be pronounced so that the sound seems to wander
from the bottom of the abdomen up to the top of the head. See also tantra.
Matrix see psi plasma.
Mawu see mulungu.
Maxpe is the word for spiritual power among the North American Crow
Indians. The word can also be translated to medicine. With this power one
could gain success and health. The Crow used rituals filled with noise and
singing to get in touch with maxpe.
Meditation (from the Latin meditor, ponder) is an exercise that does not
necessarily involve the life force or a desire to awaken it, but this is indeed
the purpose in some forms of meditation. In East Asian traditions, qi
should flow freely through the meditating person, in order for the right
state of mind to be reached. There is no pondering in Zen meditation,
where the mind should be empty, but there are several Indian practices
that demand a mental focus on something, like an image (tantra) or a
sound (mantra). A nearby word is contemplation (from the Latin
contemplatio, approximately 'observe' or 'consider'), hard to differ from
meditation, apart from the use of the latter specifically for the Indian and
East Asian practices.
Meditating Buddha. Siddhartha Gautama decided to meditate until he reached the insight that made him Buddha.
Megbe is a word among Pygmy tribes in Africa for the life force that they
believe to exist in the blood and the bones. At a man's death, some of his
megbe moves to his totem animal, and the rest of it into the mouth of his
oldest son, who leans over his father at his last breath, for this purpose
(compare mana). There may be a similar concept and practice for the
women. Some persons can gather more megbe, and thereby achieve
greater ability.
Megin is an old Norse word for power, which may have some similarities
to certain aspects of the life energy, such as qi. The thunder god Thor had a belt, megin gjord
(megin belt), that doubled his power when he tightened it. See also
hamingja and hugr.
Thor, the Norse thunder god, with his power belt Megin gjord. Painting by Mårten Eskil Winge (1825-1896). See Megin.
Menstruation has in many cultures been regarded with some anxiety,
particularly by the male population. A menstruating woman was unclean,
in some cultures even feared to have detrimental power – again by the
men. Blood (see this word) is filled with symbolic values, and so is the
blood of menstruation, signifying a dangerous power that should be
avoided. Menstruation is evidence that a conception has not taken place,
implying a male shortcoming, which may explain the traditional male
aversion toward it.
Mental locus see multipolar energy.
Meridians see acupuncture and qi.
Metaphysics (Greek for 'after physics') is a term for theories about reality
that work with assumptions beyond those well-known and accepted by
natural science. The term is derived from Aristotle's writing, in which this
subject followed his treatment of physics. See also magic.
Micro-vibrational physics see radiesthesia.
Microzyma see somatid.
Mind is a mystery unto itself. The sense of having an I, and the power of
thought, have bewildered human beings as far back as we have records of
human speculation. The mind dwells in the body, but feels quite
incorporeal, as if of another material completely. Also, it seems not to be
bound by the limitations of the body. This mystery may have inspired
ideas about spirit, soul, and other traditional concepts relating to what
realities might hide behind and inside the visible world. See also spirit.
The brain, illustration by Thomas Willis, 1664.
Mitogenetic radiation is an expression used by the Russian biophysicist
Alexander Gurwitsch (1874-1954) for an ultra-weak UV radiation from all
living cells, which he discovered in 1923. He thought that this radiation
has many important functions in the life process, for example in cell
division. Oxygen plays a role in this radiation, which is also described as
biophotons. See also biofield.
Miwi is the term for soul or spirit among the Aborigine in Australia. The
creator deity Biami exhaled miwi over the world, so that life could appear.
See also churinga and kurunba.
Mogya see kra/okra.
Molimo see elima.
Monad is an old Greek idea about an optimally undividable unit, which
has been described in different ways by Pythagoras, Plato, Aristotle, and
other philosophers. The Neoplatonists used monad as a term for god – the
monad of monads. It has also been used as a synonym for the atom. The
one to develop the concept the furthest was the German philosopher
Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz (1646-1716), who regarded the monad as the
smallest particle, out of which everything material and spiritual was
constructed. To Leibniz, the monads were eternal and impossible to
influence. Each of them was unique, but still each could give an image of
the whole universe. Some monads even had a kind of consciousness, for
example those who made up the human soul. Leibniz claimed that all
monads could be called souls, but that it would only make sense for the
ones with feelings and memory. He also used the word entelechy (see this
word) for them. Monad is sometimes mentioned as a synonym to the life energy qi, and
there are some similarities but also huge differences.
Mon-emanation might be a faulty word for Kozyrev-Dirac emanation (see
this expression). It is sometimes mentioned as a synonym to the life energy qi.
Morphic field is a theory introduced in the 1980s by the English
biochemist Rupert Sheldrake (1942-), who among other things studied the
telepathic ability of animals. Morphic fields function as sort of plans for
autonomous bodies, such as living creatures – all the way from cellular
level to complete societies and ecosystems. Sheldrake sees these fields as
explanations to telepathy, and to what is called the “hundredth monkey”
theory, which states that if enough individuals of a species learn
something, this knowledge will appear in others of the same species. The
expression morphogenetic field was introduced in the 1920s, and is still used
by evolution biologists for cells responding to biochemical signals by
forming organs and such. Morphogenesis, birth of form, is from the Greek
morphe, form, and genesis, birth.
Morphogenetic field see morphic field.
Moxi burning see acupuncture.
Mugua (approximately 'soul') is a life principle among the Lemhi
Shoshone Indians in Idaho, which is situated in the head. At death, it
leaves the body in a cloud shape to become dzoap, a spirit.
Multipolar energy is a concept from the 1980s introduced by the Russian
scientist Vasily Lensky, who also talks about mental locus (locus is Latin for
place), which is a kind of mental space, consisting of an inner, an outer,
and a neurospace. Whereas energy is normally bipolar, like the positive
and negative charge in electricity, multipolar energy has three or more
poles. It affects the brain, which Lensky regards as a multipolar complex.
Mulungu (from a verb with the meaning 'to fit' or 'to order') is in East
Africa a common name for the highest deity, an omnipotent and ever-present creator. Thunder is his voice, and lightning his might. He rewards
the good and punishes the evil. This deity has many different names
among African tribes, such as: Leza, Nyambe, Ngewo, Mawu, Amma,
Chuku/Chukwu. The tribes describe this deity slightly differently. Mulungu
is also the term used by Christian Africans for the biblical god. The word is
sometimes mentioned as a synonym to qi, which is vague, but stems from
the fact that this deity is also seen as a force that permeates the world and
its creatures.
Mumia (Latin for mummy, referring to medicine made from embalmed
corpses) is a term that the Neoplatonic Paracelsus (1493-1541) used for a
healing “balm” of the body, attached to the blood, which in man could do
good or bad. Also the animals had mumia, of a kind that could be
detrimental to human reason, wherefore he advised against eating
predator meat. To Paracelsus, mumia was a kind of magnetism or
radiation, which could be transmitted from one body to another in a
practice similar to healing by hands. See also archaeus.
Mundus imaginalis see world of ideas.
Mungu is a Swahili word for god. It is sometimes mentioned as a
synonym to qi, which is doubtful. See also mulungu.
Life Energy Beliefs from A to Z
|
My Life Energy Books
Qi, prana, spirit, ruach, pneuma, and many other life forces around the world explained and compared. Click the image to see the book at Amazon (paid link).
The life energy qi (also chi or ki) explained, with several very easy exercises to awaken, increase, and use it. Click the image to see the book at Amazon (paid link).
|
My Other Websites
The ancient Chinese life energy
qi (
chi) explained and how to exercise it.
Creation stories from around the world, and the ancient cosmology they reveal.
What the Greek philosophers believed about the cosmos, their religion and their gods.
Taoism, the ancient Chinese philosophy of life explained. Also, the complete Tao Te Ching online.
Other Books of Mine
The Greek philosophers and what they thought about cosmology, myth, and the gods.
Click the image to see the book at Amazon (paid link).
This book examines Jungian theories on myth and religion, from Carl G. Jung to Jordan B. Peterson.
Click the image to see the book at Amazon (paid link).
The Taoism of Lao Tzu Explained. The great Taoist classic, translated and extensively commented chapter by chapter.
Click the image to see the book at Amazon (paid link).
Erroneous Tao Te Ching Citations Examined. 90 of the most spread false Lao Tzu quotes, why they are false and where they are really from.
Click the image to see the book at Amazon (paid link).
About me
I'm a Swedish author and historian of ideas, researching the thought patterns in creation myths. I've also written books about Taoism, the Tarot, and life force concepts around the world.
Click the image to get to my personal website.
Life Energy Encyclopedia
Qi — Increase your life energy
Cosmos of the Ancients
Archetypes of Mythology
Tao Te Ching
Fake Lao Tzu Quotes
Stefan Stenudd