The twelve main and eight extra meridians define the energetic anatomy within which practitioners of Chinese medicine operate. These are usually what is being referred to, within Taoism, by the word "mai" or "meridian." The Taoist art and science of Fengshui is also rooted in the capacity to perceive flows of energy, in both natural and architectural settings - similar to the way an acupuncturist perceives the flow of qi through the meridians.

But what exactly are these meridians through which - according to Taoist practitioners - life-force energy flows? Joseph Campbell once remarked, with his characteristically wry sense of humor, that "you won't find them on the operating table." If, with our conventional vision, they can't be seen, then how do we know that they exist?

It has been proposed that the earth herself has a meridian system: an energy grid composed of ley lines, which function in much the same way, with respect to the planet, as the meridian system does with respect to the human body. Putting these two systems into relationship gives birth to a vision of the human body and the cosmos interconnected in countless ways along such "channels of awareness" - an idea reflected in the Buddhist/Hindu image of "Indra's Net."

Which leaves unanswered, still, the question: how do we know that these meridians actually exist? The answer given by Taoism is that it is through the practice of qigong and meditation that the ancient sages were able to perceive these subtle structures - and that we also, by practicing, can enter this same magical and natural terrain.

All intimately connected to: getting along.