Energy (esotericism)

Term used by various esoteric forms of spirituality and alternative medicine

"Subtle energy" redirects here. For the mystical concept of psychospiritual bodies overlaying the physical body, see Subtle body.

"Cosmic energy" redirects here. For other uses, see Cosmic energy (disambiguation).

Not to be confused with Energy.

This article is part of a series on

Alternative medicine

General information

* Alternative medicine
* History
* Terminology
* Alternative veterinary medicine
* Quackery (health fraud)
* Rise of modern medicine
* Pseudoscience
* Antiscience
* Skepticism
* Scientific
* Therapeutic nihilism

Fringe medicine and science

* Acupressure
* Acupuncture
* Alkaline diet
* Anthroposophic medicine
* Apitherapy
* Applied kinesiology
* Aromatherapy
* Association for Research and Enlightenment
* Auriculotherapy
* Bates method
* Biological terrain assessment
* Black salve
* Bodywork
* Bone-setting
* Bowen technique
* Breathwork
* Fake COVID-19 treatments
* Camel urine
* Cancer treatments
* Charcoal cleanse
* Chiropractic
* Chiropractic treatment techniques
* Vertebral subluxation
* Christian Science
* Chromotherapy
* Colloidal silver
* Colon cleansing
* Coffee enema
* Colorpuncture
* Conversion therapy
* Craniosacral therapy
* Crystal healing
* Cupping therapy
* Dental amalgam controversy
* Detoxification
* Foot detox
* Dry needling
* Ear candling
* Energy medicine
* Correactology
* Esoteric energy
* Reiki
* Therapeutic touch
* Estrogen dominance
* Fabunan Antiviral Injection
* Facilitated communication
* FasciaBlaster
* Feldenkrais Method
* Functional medicine
* Hair analysis
* Herbal medicine
* Holistic dentistry
* Hologram bracelet
* Homeopathy
* Bach flower remedies
* Hydrotherapy
* Hypnotherapy
* Ionized jewelry
* Iridology
* Jilly Juice
* Lightning Process
* Lymphotherapy
* Magnet therapy
* Manual therapy
* Medical intuitive
* Megavitamin therapy
* Mesmerism
* Mind–body interventions
* MMS
* Myofascial release
* NAET
* Naturopathy
* Oil pulling
* Orgone
* Orthomolecular medicine
* Orthopathy
* Osteomyology
* Osteopathy
* Ozone therapy
* Parapsychology
* Phrenology
* Postural Integration
* Psychic surgery
* Psychodermatology
* Quantum healing
* Radionics
* Rapid prompting method
* Reflexology
* RBOP
* Rolfing
* Scientific racism
* ThetaHealing
* Thought Field Therapy
* Urophagia
* Vaginal steaming
* Vegetotherapy
* Vision therapy
* Vitalism
* Young blood transfusion
* Zero balancing

Controversies

* Big Pharma conspiracy theories
* HIV/AIDS denialism
* OPV AIDS hypothesis
* Anti-vaccinationism
* Vaccine misinformation
* Vaccines and autism
* MMR vaccine and autism
* in chiropractic
* Water fluoridation controversy
* COVID-19 misinformation
* Turbo cancer

Classifications

* Alternative medical systems
* Mind–body intervention
* Biologically based therapy
* Manipulative methods
* Energy therapy

Traditional medicine

* African
* Muti
* Southern Africa
* Ayurveda
* Dosha
* MVAH
* Balneotherapy
* Brazilian
* Bush medicine
* Cambodian
* Chinese
* Blood stasis
* Chinese herbology
* Dit da
* Gua sha
* Gill plate trade
* Long gu
* Meridian
* Moxibustion
* Pressure point
* Qi
* San Jiao
* Tui na
* Zang-fu
* Chumash
* Curandero
* Faith healing
* Hilot
* Iranian
* Jamu
* Kayakalpa
* Kambo
* Japanese
* Korean
* Mien Shiang
* Mongolian
* Naftalan oil
* Prophetic medicine
* Shamanism
* Shiatsu
* Siddha
* Sri Lankan
* Thai massage
* Tibetan
* Unani
* Vietnamese

Alternative diagnoses

* Adrenal fatigue
* Aerotoxic syndrome
* Candida hypersensitivity
* Chronic Lyme disease
* Electromagnetic hypersensitivity
* Heavy legs
* Leaky gut syndrome
* Multiple chemical sensitivity
* PANDAS
* Vertebral subluxation
* Wilson's temperature syndrome

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Proponents and practitioners of various esoteric forms of spirituality and alternative medicine refer to a variety of claimed experiences and phenomena as being due to "energy" or "force" that defy measurement or experimentation, and thus are distinguished from the scientific form of energy.[1][2]

Claims related to energy therapies are most often anecdotal, rather than being based on repeatable empirical evidence, thus not following the scientific method.[3][4][5]

There is no scientific evidence for the existence of such energy,[2][1] and physics educators criticize the use of the term "energy" to describe ideas in esotericism and spirituality as potentially confusing.[6]

## History

[edit]

Concepts such as "life force", "qi" and "élan vital" existed from antiquity. In the 18th century, Franz Mesmer ignited debate with his theory of animal magnetism. Attention to vitalism grew in the 18th and 19th centuries. Interest continued into the 20th century, largely fuelled by adherents of the New Age movement.[1][2]

As biologists studied embryology and developmental biology, particularly before the discovery of genes, a variety of organisational forces were posited to account for their observations. German biologist Hans Driesch (1867–1941), proposed entelechy, an energy which he believed controlled organic processes.[7][unreliable source] However such ideas are discredited and modern science has all but abandoned the attempt to associate additional energetic properties with life.[7]

It is not the scientific concept of energy that is being referred to in the context of spirituality and alternative medicine. As Brian Dunning writes:

> That's all that energy is: a measurement of work capability. But in popular culture, 'energy' has somehow become a noun. "Energy" is often spoken of as if it is a thing unto itself, like a region of glowing power, that can be contained and used. Here's a good test. When you hear the word "energy" used, substitute the phrase "measurable work capability". Does the usage still make sense? Remember, energy itself is not the thing being measured: energy is the measurement of work performed or of potential... Thus, this New Age concept of the body having an "energy field" is fatally doomed. There is no such thing as an energy field; they are two unrelated concepts.[8]

Despite the lack of scientific support, spiritual writers and thinkers have maintained ideas about energy and continue to promote them either as useful allegories or as fact.[9] The field of energy medicine purports to manipulate energy, but there is no credible evidence to support this.[3]

The concept of "qi" (energy) appears throughout traditional East Asian culture, such as in the art of feng shui and Chinese martial arts.[10] Qi philosophy also includes the notion of "negative qi", typically understood as introducing negative moods like outright fear or more moderate expressions like social anxiety or awkwardness.[11] Deflecting this negative qi through geomancy is a preoccupation in feng shui.[12] The traditional explanation of acupuncture states that it works by manipulating the circulation of qi through a network of meridians.[13]

## Locations

[edit]

There are various sacred natural sites that people of various belief systems find numinous or having an "energy" with significance to humans.[14] The idea that some kind of "negative energy" is responsible for creating or attracting ghosts or demons appears in contemporary paranormal culture and beliefs as exemplified in the TV shows Paranormal State and Ghost Hunters.[15]

## See also

[edit]

* Aether (classical element)
* Animal Magnetism
* Aṣẹ
* Aura (paranormal)
* Barakah
* Earth mysteries
* Ectoplasm (paranormal)
* Energy (psychological)
* Kundalini
* Lung (Tibetan Buddhism)
* Mana
* Manitou
* Numen
* Odic force
* Orgone
* Prana
* Qi
* Royal Commission on Animal Magnetism
* Shakti/Shaktipata
* Shrine
* Silap Inua
* Vril

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c Stenger, Victor J (Spring–Summer 1999). "Bioenergetic Fields". The Scientific Review of Alternative Medicine. 3 (1). Archived from the original on 2016-05-08. Retrieved 2017-04-20.
2. ^ a b c Smith, Jonathan C. (2010). Pseudoscience and Extraordinary Claims of the Paranormal: A Critical Thinker's Toolkit. Malden, MA: Wiley-Blackwell. pp. 268–274. ISBN 978-1405181228.
3. ^ a b "energy – (according to New Age thinking)". The Skeptic's Dictionary. 2011-12-19. Retrieved 2014-05-02.
4. ^ "Some Notes on Wilhelm Reich, M.D". Quackwatch.org. 2002-02-15. Retrieved 2014-05-02.
5. ^ Jarvis, William T. (2000-12-01). "Reiki". National Council Against Health Fraud. Retrieved 2014-05-02.
6. ^ Arias, A. G. (August 2012). "Use and misuse of the concept energy". Latin American Journal of Physics Education. 6 (1): 400. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.669.3285.
7. ^ a b Bechtel, William; Richardson, Robert C. (1998). "Vitalism". William Bechtel's Web. Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Retrieved 2014-05-02.
8. ^ Dunning, Brian (22 April 2014). "Skeptoid #411: Your Body's Alleged Energy Fields". Skeptoid.; Also see Dunning, Brian (11 October 2006). "Skeptoid #2: New Age Energy: An examination of energy, as new agers use the term". Skeptoid.
9. ^ Jonas, WB; Crawford, CC (March 2003). "Science and spiritual healing: a critical review of spiritual healing, "energy" medicine, and intentionality". Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine. 9 (2): 56–61. PMID 12652884.
10. ^ Latham, Kevin (2007). Pop Culture China!: Media, Arts, and Lifestyle. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO. p. 285\. ISBN 978-1851095827.
11. ^ Van Norden, Bryan W. (2011). Introduction to Classical Chinese Philosophy. Hackett Publishing. p. 98\. ISBN 978-1603846158.
12. ^ Leonard, George J. (1999). The Asian Pacific American Heritage: A Companion to Literature and Arts. New York: Garland Publishing. p. 204\. ISBN 978-0203344590.
13. ^ Lawson-Wood, Denis; Lawson-Wood, Joyce (1983). Acupuncture Handbook. Health Science Press. p. 133\. ISBN 0-8277-1427-0.
14. ^ Ivakhiv, Adrian (24 February 2007). "Orchestrating Sacred Space: Beyond the 'Social Construction' of Nature" (PDF). Journal for the Study of Religion, Nature and Culture. 8 (1): 11–29. doi:10.1558/ecotheology.v8i1.1642. ISSN 1363-7320. Retrieved 3 January 2017.
15. ^ Fahy, Thomas (2010). The Philosophy of Horror. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky. p. 77. ISBN 978-0813125732.

## External links

[edit]

* Media related to Energy (esotericism) at Wikimedia Commons

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Pseudoscience

List of topics characterized as pseudoscience

Terminology|

* Cargo cult science
* Charlatan
* Crank
* Fringe theory
* Fringe science
* Pseudoarchaeology
* Pseudohistory
* Pseudomathematics
* Junk science
* Paranormal
* Pathological science
* Quackery
* Snake oil
* Superseded scientific theory
* True-believer syndrome
* Voodoo Science

Topics
characterized as
pseudoscience|

| Medicine|

* Acupuncture
* Aromatherapy
* Adrenal fatigue
* Alternative medicine
* Anthroposophic medicine
* Applied kinesiology
* Ayurveda
* Bates method
* Biorhythms
* Bloodletting
* Body memory
* Chiropractic
* Chromotherapy
* Correactology
* Cryonics
* Crystal healing
* Cupping
* Detoxification
* Colon cleansing
* Doctrine of signatures
* Doktor Koster's Antigaspills
* Ear candling
* Electromagnetic hypersensitivity
* Energy medicine
* Fad diet
* FasciaBlaster
* Germ theory denialism
* HIV/AIDS denialism
* Homeopathy
* Humorism
* Iridology
* Leaky gut syndrome
* Lunar effect
* Macrobiotic diet
* Magnet therapy
* Miracle Mineral Supplement
* Naturopathy
* Palmistry
* Panchagavya
* Patent medicine
* Phrenology
* Primal therapy
* Radionics
* Reiki
* Traditional medicine
* Traditional Chinese medicine
* Trepanning
* Vertebral subluxation
* Wind turbine syndrome
* Young blood transfusion

|

Social science|

* 2012 phenomenon
* Ancient astronauts
* Arabian Judah theory
* Catastrophism
* Conspiracy theory
* 5G conspiracy
* 9/11 conspiracy theories
* Chemtrail conspiracy theory
* Climate change denial
* COVID-19 misinformation
* Moon landing conspiracy theories
* Conversion therapy
* Generational theory
* Generationism
* Strauss–Howe generational theory
* Hollow Earth theory
* Indigo children
* Japhetic theory
* Mediumship
* Nazi archaeology
* Nibiru cataclysm
* Parapsychology
* Pseudoarchaeology
* Pseudohistory
* Genocide denial
* Historical negationism
* Holocaust denial
* Pseudolaw
* Recovered-memory therapy
* Past life regression
* Scientific racism
* Aryan race
* Melanin theory
* Myers–Briggs Type Indicator
* Enneagram of Personality

Physics|

* Anti-gravity‎
* Cold fusion‎
* Faster-than-light travel‎
* Perpetual motion‎
* Quantum mysticism
* Reactionless drive
* Dean drive
* EMDrive
* Teleportation‎
* Tractor beam
* Water-fueled car

Other|

* Alchemy
* Aquatic ape hypothesis
* Astrology
* Biodynamic agriculture
* Biological transmutation
* Creation science
* Cryptozoology
* Dianetics
* Auditing
* Dowsing
* Electronic voice phenomenon
* Eugenics
* Facilitated communication
* Feng shui
* Flat Earth theory
* Graphology
* Intelligent design
* Laundry ball
* Law of attraction
* Levitation
* Lysenkoism
* Numerology
* Orgone
* Polygraph
* Pseudoscientific metrology
* Rapid prompting method
* Statement analysis
* Ufology
* Voice stress analysis
* Water memory

Promoters of
pseudoscience|

* Sucharit Bhakdi
* Del Bigtree
* Igor and Grichka Bogdanoff
* Brigitte Boisselier
* Rhonda Byrne
* Robert Charroux
* Deepak Chopra
* Clonaid
* Vernon Coleman
* Ignatius L. Donnelly
* Gaia, Inc.
* Max Gerson
* Nicholas Gonzalez
* Goop (company)
* Graham Hancock
* David Icke
* William Donald Kelley
* Robert F. Kennedy Jr
* Corentin Louis Kervran
* The Light (newspaper)
* Mike Lindell
* Jenny McCarthy
* Joseph Mercola
* Ministry of Ayush
* Theodor Morell
* Hans Alfred Nieper
* Mehmet Oz
* Raël (Claude Vorilhon)
* Randolph Stone
* Paul Joseph Watson
* Andrew Wakefield

Related topics|

* Bogdanov affair
* Bourgeois pseudoscience
* Demarcation problem
* Scientific method
* Suppressed research in the Soviet Union

Resources|

* Committee for Skeptical Inquiry
* Cults of Unreason
* An Encyclopedia of Claims, Frauds, and Hoaxes of the Occult and Supernatural
* Fads and Fallacies in the Name of Science
* Fortean Times
* James Randi Educational Foundation
* Quackwatch
* Skeptical Inquirer
* The Demon-Haunted World
* The Natural History of Quackery
* The Psychology of the Occult
* The Ragged Edge of Science
* The Skeptic Encyclopedia of Pseudoscience
* The Skeptic's Dictionary

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Parapsychology

Outline

Topics|

* Apparitional experience
* Astral projection
* Auras
* Bilocation
* Clairvoyance
* Deathbed phenomena
* Dermo-optical perception
* Dream telepathy
* Ectoplasm
* Electronic voice phenomenon
* Extrasensory perception
* Ganzfeld experiment
* Ghosts
* Kirlian photography
* Levitation
* Materialization
* Mediumship
* Near-death experience
* Orb
* Out-of-body experience
* Pam Reynolds case
* Paranormal
* Parapsychology research at SRI
* Past life regression
* Plant perception (paranormal)
* Poltergeist
* Precognition
* Psychic
* Psychic detective
* Psychic reading
* Psychic surgery
* Psychometry
* Pyrokinesis
* Reincarnation
* Remote viewing
* Retrocognition
* Second sight
* Sensory leakage
* Spoon bending
* Superconscious
* Telekinesis
* Telepathy
* Thoughtography
* Xenoglossy
* Zener cards

Active organizations|

* American Society for Psychical Research
* Association for the Scientific Study of Anomalous Phenomena
* College of Psychic Studies
* Institut Métapsychique International
* Institute of Noetic Sciences
* International Association for Near-Death Studies
* Koestler Parapsychology Unit
* Parapsychological Association
* Parapsychology Foundation
* Rhine Research Center
* Society for Psychical Research
* The Ghost Club

Defunct organizations|

* American Psychical Institute
* British College of Psychic Science
* Cambridge Ghost Society
* International Institute for Psychical Research
* London Dialectical Society
* Metropolitan Psychical Society
* National Laboratory of Psychical Research
* Oxford Phasmatological Society
* Princeton Engineering Anomalies Research Laboratory
* Society for the Study of Supernormal Pictures

People|

* List of parapsychologists
* Skeptics of parapsychology

Publications|

* An Experiment with Time
* Extrasensory Perception
* Irreducible Mind
* Journal of Near-Death Studies
* Journal of Parapsychology
* Journal of Scientific Exploration
* Life After Life
* Life Before Life
* Mental Radio
* Old Souls: The Scientific Evidence for Past Lives
* Parapsychology: Frontier Science of the Mind
* The Roots of Coincidence
* Twenty Cases Suggestive of Reincarnation
* Varieties of Anomalous Experience

* Category
* Commons

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