Flow and Crash: The Philosophy of Bruce Lee

what made Bruce Lee such an icon was not as portfolio of martial-arts films but rather his philosophy this is what elevated him above other film stars at the time and cemented him as a legend with a legacy that would outlast his films but what exactly was Bruce Lee's philosophy all about if you dig a little deeper than the handful of quotes and memes circulating the web what do you find how does his philosophy define who he was and ultimately dictate the course of his career and personal development in this video we're going to find out [Music] Bruce Lee studied philosophy along with psychology in numerous other subjects at the University of Washington from 1961 onwards philosophy was not a passing interest then but rather a lifelong pursuit as crucial to the man as his martial arts it's also interesting to put Bruce Lee's philosophies into context by considering his influences of course Bruce Lee was Chinese living in the USA which instantly gave him an interesting dualism as we'll see the roots of many of his ideas also lie in the study of martial arts and particularly Wing Chun and don't forget as well that Bruce Lee was alive during the 60s when Eastern philosophies were particularly in vogue it should come as no surprise then that Bruce had countless musings and notes on a diverse range of topics like any good polymath Bruce Lee kept copious notes that recorded his training regime along with his diet his philosophical musings and more he always carried a 2x3 pocket book and perhaps this predilection for note-taking is the first thing we can learn from him it is from these notebooks that many of his views and ideas have been gleaned covering practically every topic Under the Sun recently did not just write about martial arts to demonstrate this diversity consider this passage on the nature of ideas there are three types of ideas innate ideas inborn adventitious ideas from outside events factitious ideas which one invents it's almost like reading Sun Tzu so if I were to try and cover all of Bruce Lee's thoughts and ideas this would be a very long video indeed instead let's appear on what appears to be the essence behind many of these ideas the governing principle if you wish by using something akin to qualitative analysis I've had a look at a lot of his notes and his ideas and I've looked for recurring themes and that way hopefully you can see if there's a case of narrative that we can take from all this so if we're to look through all of Bruce Lee's notes and quotes then one concept arises more than any other battle flow this is exemplified by one of his most famous quotes this is what it is okay I said empty your mind be formless shapeless like water now you put water into a cup it becomes the cup you put water into a bottle it becomes the bottle you're putting a teapot it becomes the teapot now water can flow oh it can crash be water my friend as well as many more lesser-known ones one of my favorite quotes moving be like water still be like a mirror respond like an echo or to put this bite-sized morsel within its larger context flow in the living moment we are always in a process of becoming and nothing is fixed have no rigid system in you and you'll be flexible to change with the ever-changing open yourself and flow my friend flow in the total openness of the living moment if nothing within you stays rigid outward things will disclose themselves moving me like water still be like a mirror respond like an echo this can be interpreted in many ways one of the most obvious connections to draw is to the martial arts application it appears that Bruce Lee is advising us as they adaptable to our opponents and almost describing motion the Zen expression of mind without mind and motion as I've explained on my website can be equated roughly to being in a flow state is the mental state when all other things fall away and your present purely in the moment this makes you faster to respond faster to adapt and less distracted by outside thoughts today we know that this state roughly correlates with a reduced activation in the prefrontal cortex called temporal hypofrontality and the state is reportedly experienced by many top level athletes as well as creative types during their peak performance Bruce speaks of being in the moment the moment has no yesterday or tomorrow it is not the result of thought and therefore has no time being in the moment can also be likened to more modern mindfulness practices and indeed Bruce's descriptions bear remarkable similarity listen can you hear the wind and can you hear the birds singing you have to hear it empty your mind you know how water fills a cup it becomes that cup you have to think about nothing you have to become enough this liquid flowing state can also see application and kung-fu practices such as pushing hands and Bruce has alluded to this concept directly there is another bit of Chinese philosophy that has a bearing on problems common to all humankind we say the oak tree is mighty yet it will be destroyed by a mighty wind because it resists the elements the bamboo bends with the wind and by bending survives he also developed this idea further in his own words the law of harmony in which one should be in harmony with and not in the opposition to the strength and force of the opposition this means that one should do nothing that is not natural or spontaneous the important thing is not to strain in any way this is seen income free when defending against strikes the objective here is not to block the strikes head-on but rather to redirect the energy gently the fighter thereby exerts less energy feels this impact from the blow and is able to put the assailant off-balance using their own force when performed correctly it should feel almost as though they are fighting a ghost the idea of remaining adaptable flexible and flowing can also be applied in other ways for example it can be seen as a retaliation against strict forms traditions and practices which is essentially what gave birth to Jeet Kune Do Jeet Kune Do is Bruce Lee's own approach to fighting that seeks to do away with the classical mess rigid forms and structures are meaningless and say why should one wrote to learn elaborate routines or add unnecessary flourishes to their movements why should a fighter be Wed to one style of martial art at all when all that does is to limit their options Jeet Kune Do is the way of the intercepting fist and it teaches the fighter to take the shortest and most powerful and instinctual line of attack it teaches them not to anticipate but to respond and to do so in the way that is most natural expression of that individual in Cantonese deep Kundel the way of the intercepting fist intercepting first or come on touch me any way you can you see to reach me you must move to me door attack offers me an opportunity to intercept you in this case I'm using my longest weapon bicycling against the nearest target Renuka Bruce Lee's final film The Game of Death was to demonstrate the futility of sticking too rigid fighting forms and the importance of adaptability you know baby this bamboo is longer more flexible and very much alive when your flashy routines cannot keep up with ski neelu sickness this thing here all I can say is you got to be in deep trouble in that film Bruce Lee was going to ascend a pagoda fighting masses of various different disciplines on his way to the top his character fights using a free and fluid style akin to Jeet Kune Do and this allows him to neutralize each opponent Bruce's weapons in the film would even reflect this nunchukas and a green bamboo whip both too fast and too lights to block or anticipate the idea flowing like water can also be applied to many other areas of one's life the idea of ignoring convention and structure in favor of flexibility for example can help to create harmony among religious groups two religions divide people just the styles in martial arts divide people if all the religions of the world will one world be united in Brotherhood constantly flowing and moving pores can also be a key to happiness learn to walk on why add the tension of emotion and thoughts to a situation which is illusion to the extent that it is real of a passing moment in any event the result of previous causes do what seems wise to be done forget it and walk on walk on and see a new view walk on and see the birds fly walk on and leave behind all things that would dam up the inlet or clog the outlet of experience and even the health the method for health promotion is based on water as flowing water never gross sale the idea is not to over develop or overexert but to normalize the function of the body and here's what I find so awesome about Bruce that he honed his body to become a living testament to the philosophies by which he led his life his power fluidity of movement speed and quickness of wit all allowed him to respond as a situation demanded and to truly and swiftly express himself in the moment this comes across in his films and I feel it's the real reason that you say magnetic to watch then you have to train you have to keep your reflexes so that when you want it it's there when you want to move you're moving and when you move you're determined to move not taking one inch not anything less than that if I want to punch I'm gonna do it man and I'm gonna do what you seen so I mean so that is the type of thing you have to train yourself into it to become one with the you think this is very earnest earnest attitude Bruce also believes strongly in the power of will in self-development and in achieving self-actualization this was around 1954 when Maslow described actualization in his hierarchy of human motivation so again this thinking may be a product of the time Bruce Lee believed in fulfilling your destiny on using mantras and self affirmations again similar to cognitive behavioral therapy he believed in reading copious amounts and on repetitious training in the extreme but how do these notions gel with the idea of being free and flowing is exerting your will and learning a set knowledge not a contradiction to being able to adapt and go with the flow not entirely if you think of yourself as a crucial part of nature that your will is something that exists within and that simply needs to be expressed and going with the flow means going with your own nature being true to who you are and working in harmony with your circumstances to express that true self to the fullest knowledge and repetition are simply tools that can be used to help you fulfill your own purpose and should not be seen as absolute truths and should not be allowed to guide or mold you into a different person as Bruce would say or type of knowledge ultimately rules self normal you should absorb what is useful and discard what is not instead of dedicating your life to actualize a concept of what you should be like actualize yourself the process of maturing does not mean to become a captive of conceptualization it is to come to the realization of what lies in our innermost selves many of us struggle to be here we are and instead find ourselves trying to live up to others ideas of what we should be to societal norms or to our herd instinct this is when we are going against our true nature and this is when our words and actions lose their conviction and their power the power that Bruce was so known for but to express oneself honestly not lying to oneself and to express myself once you know that my phone is very hard to do what a self-willed mean does it not mean having a will of one's own the human herd instinct demands adaptation and subordination but for his highest honors man elects not the meek the pusillanimous the supine but precisely the self willed man the heroes another a self willed man has no other aim than his own growth he values only one thing the mysterious peril in self which bids him live and helps him to grow his only living destiny is the silent and gain sable law in his own heart which comfortable habits make it so hard to obey for which the self world man is destined and Godhead in other words it is when we deny our true nature and will that we meet resistance even if it might seem easier at first to go along with those comfortable habits and those laws the yielding will has a repurpose filiz softest downy feathers a quietude a shrinking from action and appearance of inability to do the heart is humble but the work is forceful placidly free from anxiety one acts in harmony with nature one moves and revolves in the line of creation practice and research allows us to better fulfill our will but we must concentrate on the moon not the finger and we mustn't settle on one set of ideas or allow them to stop us from growing an intelligent mind is one that is constantly learning never concluding styles and patterns have come to conclusion therefore they have ceased to be intelligent absorb what is useful discard what is useless and add what is specifically your own of course there are some contradictions in Bruce Lee's thinking and this is to be expected after all we have only collections of notes written at different points during his life as the very nature of his philosophy demands Bruce's ideas were constantly changing flowing and developing and who are we to say whether his latter ideas should trump the former all we can do is listen to his teachings reflect on them and then move forwards allowing them to empower our own philosophy and purpose a teacher is never a giver of truth he is a guide a pointer to the truth that each student must find for himself a good teacher is merely a catalyst it is like a finger pointing away to the moon don't concentrate on the finger or you will miss all that heavenly glory do you understand the biggest tragedy of course is that Bruce was never able to fully develop and evolve his ideas as he was struck down before his time who knows what new insights he might have come to but even on the subject of death Bruce was philosophical the round of summer and winter becomes a blessing the moment we give up the fantasy of eternal spring remembrance is the only paradise out of which we cannot be driven away pleasure is the flower that fades remembrance is the lasting perfume remembrances last longer than present realities I have preserved blossoms for many years but never fruits as always guys thanks very much for watching I hope you found this interesting I was trying something a bit different here that seems like I'm always trying something a bit different anyways if you did find it interesting then please consider liking the video sharing leaving a comment below and maybe subscribing to the channel you can also check out my blog over at the Pioneer com stay tuned and I'll see you next time bye for now

Channel: The Bioneer

Views: 298,199

Keywords: brucee lee, philosophy, wing chun, martial arts, flow states, mushin, jeet kune do, the art of fighting without fighting, be like water my friend, self development

Id: zzzAURCTPfc

Length: 15min 11sec (911 seconds)

Published: Sat Jan 07 2017