Wu Li
The toneless pinyin phrase "Wu Li" in the title is most accurately rendered in Chinese characters, one Chinese translation of the word "physics" in the light of the book's subject matter. This becomes somewhat of a pun as there are many other Chinese characters that could be rendered as "wu li" in atonal pinyin, and chapters of the book are each titled with alternative translations of "Wu Li", such as "Nonsense", "My Way" and "I Clutch My Ideas". Zukav participated as a journalist in a 1976 physics conference of eastern and western scientists at Esalen Institute, California; and he used the occasion as material for his book. At the conference, it was said that the Chinese term for physics is 'Wu Li', or "patterns of organic energy." Zukav, among others, conceptualized 'physics' as the dance of the Wu Li Masters – teachers of physical essence. Zukav explains the concept further: