Little John R. - Bruce Lees commentaries on the martial way

Martial art has a very, very deep meaning as far as my life is concerned because, as an actor, as a martial artist, as a human being, all these I have learned from martial art. Bruce Lee This book is dedicated to every martial artist who has an inquiring, rational, and compassionate mind; to every person who can throw off the chains of comfortable habit and unwarranted assumption and move in a new direction that is guided by reason and observational evidence, no matter where that direction may lead; and to every person who tries a thing and immediately thinks How can I make this better? By both word and deed, Bruce Lee taught us that a true champion is seldomif everone who wins a tournament, but rather one who is able to look at people and not see members of a particular sect or nationality, but human beings; one who is unafraid to challenge the false beliefs of the herd; and one who has the additional courage necessary to lead others out of the caves into the light. It is to these champions of the human spirit and those still to come that we owe our enormous gratitude.

C ONTENTS Disclaimer: Please note that the publisher and author(s) of this instructional book are NOT RESPONSIBLE in any manner whatsoever for any injury that may result from practicing the techniques and/or following the instructions given within. Martial arts training can be dangerousboth to you and to othersif not practiced safely. If youre in doubt as to how to proceed or whether your practice is safe, consult with a trained martial arts teacher before beginning.

Since the physical activities described herein may be too strenuous in nature for some readers, it is also essential that a physician be consulted prior to training. The family of Bruce Lee wishes to acknowledge: The dedication of John Little, whose passion for the art and philosophy of Bruce Lee has inspired this publication, and who has spent countless hours researching, studying, annotating, and organizing Bruce Lees prolific writings, photos, memorabilia and gathering the recollections of friends and students. And, Adrien Marshall, attorney for the estate of Bruce Lee for nearly thirty years, who, with caring attention to the best interests of his friend, Bruce Lee, has been instrumental in the publication of this series. All photos appearing in this book are courtesy of the archive of Linda Lee Cadwell, the Estate of Bruce Lee, and Warner Brothers Films. Published by Tuttle Publishing, an imprint of Periplus Editions (HK) Ltd. www.tuttlepublishing.com Copyright 1997 Linda Lee Caldwell All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without prior written permission from the publisher. Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 97061948 ISBN 978-0-8048-3132-1
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F OREWORD By Ted Wong It is tough to know how to begin this foreword. After all, how does one capsulize in a few brief paragraphs the magnitude of what was given to me by a man such as Bruce Lee? [He was my mentor, my sifu, my personal advisor, and, most importantly, my close friend.] He gave me confidence in myself, he taught me how to relate to other people, he taught me about life, the world, my place in it, the nature of relationships, health, fitness (both physical and mental), spirituality, and, of course, he gave hundreds of hours of his time teaching me his martial art of jeet kune do. Simply acknowledging the magnitude of the debt I owe Bruce Lee makes me realize how one-sided our relationship was. He was the giver and I the willing recipient of his gifts. Yes, he obviously considered me more than simply a student and I was proudextremely proudto be considered his close friend.

And though I learned much, if not all, that I know about martial art directly from Bruce Lee, having had the tremendous privilege of spending close to six years in private study with him, it is the post-workout conversations, the in-car discourses during drives to bookstores and to martial arts supply stores, the laughter we shared over dim sum in our favorite Chinese restaurants, the family get-togethers and just general day-to-day experiences with him that I count among my most precious and redeeming time spent with him. For it is in witnessing firsthand how a person leads their life that one gains insight into another persons character. And, based upon my observations (of which there were plenty), Bruce Lees character was pure platinum. If you were fortunate enough to be his friend, there was no one as loyal and devoted as Bruce Lee. If you were down, hed be the first one to try to cheer you up; if you needed money and he had it, hed give it to you; if you were up, hed remember stories and jokes that would lift you up even higher. Many words come to mind when I think about Bruce, but the two that come to mind most frequently are great company.

Ive never met a person who Ive more enjoyed spending time with. Not only was it intellectually rewarding to spend time in his presence, it was an emotionally uplifting experience as well. My soul actually felt fortified at the end of a day spent with Bruce. I was fortunate in being able to train and share life experiences with Bruce in Los Angeles, Oakland, and Hong Kong. I remember coming to visit him at this house in Bel Air after he had hurt his back in 1970 and he was forced to stay in bed for six months. However, during that timeand true to his philosophy of turning a stumbling block into a stepping-stoneBruce didnt complain or lament this apparently cruel twist of fate.

Instead, he began to writeand his writings filled volumes (seven of them, in fact). I marveled then (and again now that I think about it) how productive and artistic he waseven while injured. Lesser human beings would simply have given up, but then Bruce Lee was never a lesser human being. He was always a great human being; an inspiration and role model for not only individuals of Chinese ancestry such as myself, but for ail individuals who value, as Bruce did, the potential of the human spirit for achievement and producing work of outstanding and enduring quality. And while some of the combative beliefs, philosophy, and illustrations that Bruce committed to paper during this period of his convalescence became The Tao of jeet Kune Do, (Ohara Publications, 1975), many of them did not. And it is these other writings that have filled this book, in combination with some incredible never-before-seen written and photographic material of Bruces, that I believe have made this book, Jeet Kune Do: Bruce Lees Commentaries on the Martial Way, the definitive presentation of Bruce Lees way of martial art.

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