I’ve lost faith in the Chinese classical arts—though I still call mine Chinese—because basically all styles are products of dry-land swimming, even the Wing Chun school. So my line of training is more toward efficient street fighting with everything goes; wearing head gear, gloves, chest guard, shin/knee guards, etc. For the past five years now I’ve been training the hardest and for a purpose, not just dissipated hit-miss training.
I’ve named my style jeet kune do—reason for my not sticking to Wing Chun is because I sincerely feel that my style has more to offer regarding efficiency.
To reach me, you must move to me. Your preparation of attack offers me a directional commitment to intercept you.
I have never discontinued studying and practicing martial arts. While I am tracing the source and history of Chinese martial arts, this doubt always comes up: Now that every branch of Chinese gung fu has its own form, its own established style, are these the original intentions of the founder? I do not think so. Formality could be a hindrance to progress; this is applicable to everything, including philosophy.
The founder of any branch of Chinese gung fu must be more ingenious than the common man. If his achievement is not carried on by disciples of the same ingenuity, then things will only become formalized and get stuck in a cul-de-sac; whereby breakthrough and progress will be almost impossible.
Neither formality nor branches
It is this understanding that makes me forsake all that I have learned before about forms and formality. Actually, I never wanted to give a name to the kind of Chinese gung fu that I have invented, but for convenience sake, I still call it “jeet kune do.” However, I want to emphasize that there is no clear line of distinction between jeet kune do and any other kind of gung fu, for I strongly object to formality, and to the idea of distinction of branches.
I stress again, I have not created or invented any kind of martial art. Jeet kune do is derived from what I have learned, plus my evaluation of it. Thus, my JKD is not confined by any kind of martial arts. On the contrary, I welcome those who like JKD to study it and improve it.
This time I intercepted your emotional tightness. You see, if only one can just punch—from the head to the fist, how much time is lost!
Jeet kune do uses all ways and is bound by none, and likewise uses any technique or means which serves its end. Efficiency is anything that scores.
Jeet kune do is fitting in with one’s opponent, but there is no path, no self, and no goal.
Jeet kune do’s first concern is about its experience and not its modes of expression.
As to martial arts, I still practice daily. I train my students and friends twice a week. It doesn’t matter if they are Western boxers, tae kwon do students, or wrestlers, I will train them as long as they are friendly and don’t get uptight. Since I started to practice realistically in 1966 (protectors, gloves, etc.), I feel that I had many prejudices before, and they are wrong. So I changed the name of the gist of my study to jeet kune do.
Jeet kune do is only a name. The most important thing is to avoid having bias in the training. Although the principle of boxing is important, practicality is even more important.
True observation begins when one is devoid of set patterns.
Freedom of expression occurs when one is beyond system.
A style is a classified response to one’s chosen inclination.
Truth cannot be structured or confined.
Remember that a martial art man is not merely a physical exponent of some prowess he may have been gifted with in the first place. As he matures, he will realize that his side kick is really not so much a tool to conquer his opponent, but a tool to explode through his ego and all those follies. All that training is to round him up to be a complete man.
In order to cope with what is, one must have the awareness and flexibility of the styleless style. When I say “styleless style,” I mean a style that has the totality without partiality; in short, it is a circle without circumference where every conceivable line is included.
Because, after all, an opponent is capable of throwing all lines (in all kinds of broken rhythm) and if one is partial only to dealing with the straight, then he will run into friction with just the right line that will screw up his straight line. Let’s remember the word relationship: To do a technique is to study oneself in action with the opponent, which is relationship.
How on earth can we truthfully understand and feel relationship if we merely follow the one straight line—here we have merely isolation in an enclosed idea of a straight line; such an idea, no matter how noble, concentrates only on a partial aspect of combat and is fitting with the opponent through a screen of resistance. True that a straight line is definitely valuable; take the pendulum—in order to swing to one side (the side one favors), you need to initiate the movement from the other side. Why are we isolated out from one side? Indeed, why don’t we look at one continuous swing as one whole!
In order to cope with what is, one must be equipped with flexibility of line and fit in from moment to moment, depending on what is being given. Having the two halves of one whole, which is the straight and the curve, we can truly have the choiceless awareness, and choiceless awareness can lead to reconciliation of opposites in a total understanding of combat in its suchness. Thus, in the highest stage, one is in the center of a circle and there he stands while yes and no pursue each other around the circumference. One can achieve that because he has abandoned all thought of imposing a limit or taking sides; he rests in direct intuition, which is returning to original freedom.
Fighting and instruction
Instruction should comprise the fighting as well as the technical training. Fighting training should be given for each stroke before going on in the study of a new one.
• How it is done
• Why it is done
• When it is done
Jeet kune do—not a mass art
Of my art—gung fu and jeet kune do—only one of 10,000 can handle it. It is martial art. Complete offensive attacks. It is silly to think almost anyone can learn it. It isn’t really contemporary forms of the art I teach. Mainly that which I work with—martial attack. It is really a smooth rhythmic expression of smashing the guy before he hits you, with any method available.
On closing my schools
I was teaching martial art in the United States. I had three schools; one in Oakland, one in Seattle, and one in Los Angeles. And then later on I just closed them, you know, and just taught private lessons. I do not believe in “schools.”
I’ve disbanded all the schools of jeet kune do because it is very easy for a member to come in and take the agenda as “the truth” and the schedule as “the Way.”
The problem of styles
I do