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    Tao of Jeet Kune Do PDF

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    Marius Stefan
    Three swordsmen taunted a martial arts master in hopes of provoking a duel. When their insults escalated, the master effortlessly caught four flies with chopsticks without breaking his calm demeanor, prompting the swordsmen to leave in awe. This illustrated the oriental view that complete mastery is shown through composure in all actions. Martial arts techniques aim to destroy inner obstacles like greed and anger, not just opponents. True mastery comes from equanimity developed through self-discipline, allowing one to respond skillfully to any situation from a place of calm awareness.

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    Tao of Jeet Kune Do PDF

    Uploaded by

    Marius Stefan
    6K views213 pages
    Three swordsmen taunted a martial arts master in hopes of provoking a duel. When their insults escalated, the master effortlessly caught four flies with chopsticks without breaking his calm demeanor, prompting the swordsmen to leave in awe. This illustrated the oriental view that complete mastery is shown through composure in all actions. Martial arts techniques aim to destroy inner obstacles like greed and anger, not just opponents. True mastery comes from equanimity developed through self-discipline, allowing one to respond skillfully to any situation from a place of calm awareness.

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    Three swordsmen taunted a martial arts master in hopes of provoking a duel. When their insults escalated, the master effortlessly caught four flies with chopsticks without breaking his calm demeanor, prompting the swordsmen to leave in awe. This illustrated the oriental view that complete mastery is shown through composure in all actions. Martial arts techniques aim to destroy inner obstacles like greed and anger, not just opponents. True mastery comes from equanimity developed through self-discipline, allowing one to respond skillfully to any situation from a place of calm awareness.

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    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    6K views213 pages

    Tao of Jeet Kune Do PDF

    Uploaded by

    Marius Stefan
    Three swordsmen taunted a martial arts master in hopes of provoking a duel. When their insults escalated, the master effortlessly caught four flies with chopsticks without breaking his calm demeanor, prompting the swordsmen to leave in awe. This illustrated the oriental view that complete mastery is shown through composure in all actions. Martial arts techniques aim to destroy inner obstacles like greed and anger, not just opponents. True mastery comes from equanimity developed through self-discipline, allowing one to respond skillfully to any situation from a place of calm awareness.

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    The passage discusses Bruce Lee's philosophy on Jeet Kune Do and mastery of oneself through martial arts and self-discipline.

    The oriental would see mastery in subtle actions while the westerner may not make that connection.

    The primary function of martial arts tools is for self-improvement by overcoming negative traits like greed and anger.

    Essay on Jeet Kune Do

    Bruce Lee

    Three swordsmen sat down at a table in a crowded Japanese inn


    and began to make loud comments about their neighbor, hoping to
    goad him into a duel. The master seemed to take no notice of them,
    but when their remarks became ruder and more pointed, he raised
    his chopsticks and, in quick snips, effortlessly caught four flies
    wings. As he slowly laid down the chopsticks, the three
    swordsmen hurriedly left the room.
    The story illustrates a great difference between oriental and
    western thinking. The average westerner would be intrigued by
    someones ability to catch flies with chopsticks, and would
    probably say that has nothing to do with how good he is in
    combat. But the oriental would realize that a man who has
    attained such complete mastery of an art reveals his presence of
    mind in every action. The state of wholeness and imperturbability
    demonstrated by the master indicated his mastery of self.
    And so it is with martial arts. To the westerner the finger jabs,
    the side kicks, and the back fist, etc, are tools of destruction
    and violence which is, indeed, one of their functions. But the
    oriental believes that the primary function of such tools is
    revealed when they are self-distracted and destroy greed, fear,
    anger and folly.
    Manipulative skill is not Orientals goal. He is aiming his kicks and
    blows at himself and when successful, may even succeed in
    knocking himself out. After years of training, he hopes to achieve
    that vital loosening and equability of all powers which is what
    the three swordsmen saw in the master.
    In every day life the mind is capable of moving from one thought
    or object to another being mind instead of having mind.
    However, when face to face with an opponent in a deadly
    contest, the mind tends to stick and loses it mobility. Stick ability
    or stoppage is a problem that haunts every martial artist.
    Kwan in (avalokitesvara), the goddess of mercy, is sometimes
    represented with one thousand arms, each holding a different
    instrument. If her mind stops (999) will be of no use whatever, it is
    only because of her mind not stopping with the use of one arm,
    but moving from one instrument to another, that all her arms
    prove useful with the utmost degree of efficiency. Thus the
    figure is meant to demonstrate that, when the ultimate truth is
    realized even as many as one thousand arms on one body may each
    be service able in one way or another.
    Purposelessness, empty mindedness or no art are
    frequent terms used in the orient to denote the ultimate
    2

    achievement of a martial artist. According to Zen, the spirit is by


    nature formless and no objects are to be harbored in it. When
    anything is harbored there, psychic energy is drawn toward it,
    and when psychic energy loses its balance, its native activity
    becomes cramped and it no longer flows with the stream, where
    the energy is tipped, there is too much of it in one direction and a
    shortage of it in another direction. Where there is too much
    energy, it overflows and cannot be controlled. In either case, it
    is unable to cope with ever changing situations. But when there
    prevails a state of purposelessness (which is also a stage of
    fluidity or mindlessness) , the spirit harbors nothing in it, nor is it
    tipped in one direction; it transcends both subject and object; it
    responds empty mindedly to whatever is happening.
    True mastery transcends any particular art. It stems from
    mastery of oneself the ability, developed through self
    discipline, to be calm, fully aware, and completely in tune with
    oneself and the surroundings. Then, and only then, can a person
    know himself.
    ---- Bruce Lee

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