JKD and Korean martial arts

[Happy Cat]

MW, why do you keep it up? No one has attacked your "Guru." I have noticed that whenever anyone says something that you do not agree with you say it is an attack on your "Guru." Are you studying JKD or is it some kind of a cult?

I probably disagree with you on a lot of things, why do you keep dragging your "Guru" into it.

Evidently it is not sufficient for me to say I respect your teacher, you want us too kiss his feet. It reminds me a lot of religion. If I say that Jesus was born on December 25, it is not reasonable for you to say that I have offended one of your teachers, who says that he was born in January.

I am beginning to wonder about what you have been learning, more so because you are not the only one from that class who takes that attitude, i.e. Juju above.

Now I know very well that most of the "JKD" people on this web site are from your Sifu's liniage. But your attitues that you have some monopoly on the truth is sad. the more you insist on it, in fact, the further you get from the truth.

Good posts Michael! I too would be perfectly content to just train and come on here when time permits to shoot the sh*t. However, I will never stand idly by when some underhanded person comes on here to insinuate that guru Dan doesn't know or is somehow lying to his students about the nature & history of jkd.

Juju,

I’ve been down that road on here, The Cat and I have scratched claws many a time. Ultimately though, we don’t need to defend anything.

Over the last 35 years Guro has been subjected to the most unbelievable attack of unjust, inaccurate, malicious bullshit, by pretty much anyone and everyone who wants to make JKD their own. How has this affected him? An athlete at 71. The most popular seminar guest in the world. Teacher to over 300 renowned Instructors worldwide. Owner of a school that thousands of people fly round the world to train at each year. He is loved, respected and admired by all who know him. In my opinion, he is the greatest living martial artist on the planet.

Happy Cat, and those like him, write what they write out of an impassioned need to affirm the beliefs given to them by their teachers. I have no such need, as I’m sure you don’t, because we have Guro.

[Jujujason]

Whatever internet troll.

[Happy Cat]

You just can't have a frendly conversation with some people. Juju apears to be very easaly offended. I have great respect for your Sifu. If you would keep your mind open you might not be so easaly offended by what is said in a forum.

[Jujujason]

Good posts Michael! I too would be perfectly content to just train and come on here when time permits to shoot the sh*t. However, I will never stand idly by when some underhanded person comes on here to insinuate that guru Dan doesn't know or is somehow lying to his students about the nature & history of jkd. For the record Happycat, I don't need to reread the Tao. I've read it several times since I first read it in 1982. Additionally, my memory is refreshed on a weekly basis when guru Dan busts out sijo Bruce's origInal notes (which make up the Tao) in class. Peace.

[Liberty]

I do not know about that one. Bruce was experimenting with everything. Tword the end he believed that speed could be increased by entering into an an extreem relaxed state, similer to sleep. He was reportedly working on some self hypnosis tequniques to induce "sleep" while fighting. He was way ahead of his time, or any time.

I do agree with the consepts people that we should not try too hard to "be" Bruce. We should try to express ourselves and not express "Bruceness." But that said, the more I know of him the more I find him to be an inspiration (again no spell check, sorry).

Thanks all the same, Happy. And yeah, I know what you mean. The non-nuthugging part about his legacy that matters. Again, thanks. If I run accross that device, I'll let you know. Til then, it's back to that other reality; the mat. Peace.

[Happy Cat]

I do not know about that one. Bruce was experimenting with everything. Tword the end he believed that speed could be increased by entering into an an extreem relaxed state, similer to sleep. He was reportedly working on some self hypnosis tequniques to induce "sleep" while fighting. He was way ahead of his time, or any time.

I do agree with the consepts people that we should not try too hard to "be" Bruce. We should try to express ourselves and not express "Bruceness." But that said, the more I know of him the more I find him to be an inspiration (again no spell check, sorry).

[Liberty]

Liberty, thanks for the links.

The history maters if you are into it, and does not mater if you are not. Most people probably want to learn something that will be of benefit to them personaly, and do not care about the rest.

I am interested in the history fo the sake of learning the history. But I also feel that there is more depth to Bruce and James Lee than can be seen on the surface. By exploring those depth we may come closer to an understanding of the art. I personaly feel that this has greatly benefited me. But I understand if others have little interest.

On that note, are you familiar with that training device Herb Johnson (rip) was developing for Lee near the time of Lee's death? The one that would come at a person from consistently unpredicatable angles? Saw an article on it somewhere, with diagrams, but lost track of it.

[Happy Cat]

Liberty, thanks for the links.

The history maters if you are into it, and does not mater if you are not. Most people probably want to learn something that will be of benefit to them personaly, and do not care about the rest.

I am interested in the history fo the sake of learning the history. But I also feel that there is more depth to Bruce and James Lee than can be seen on the surface. By exploring those depth we may come closer to an understanding of the art. I personaly feel that this has greatly benefited me. But I understand if others have little interest.

[Liberty]

Liberty,

To clarify, I was saying that the term "Origonal JKD" is not a good term for the branch of JKD that I am studying, because what I am studying is evolving. Some may be studying a JKD which has not evolved since 1973, in in their case "origonal" may be an aptly descriptive term.

What is Origonal? Is that like Oregano, the spice? Just messin. None of this matters, really. I've taken the attitude that, to me, we're just guys hanging out here every so often, shootin the sh*t when we're not training, or what have you. So, I kinda felt that's where you were coming from as well, so, no sweat. Peace.

To re-iterate my last post, I'm way past caring guys. I don't even use the name anymore, I have my own path. You guys follow yours and good luck to you.

Over and Out.

[Happy Cat]

Liberty,

In regard to the TKD high kicks, Bruce usualy limited his high kicks to the movies and demos. High kicks look good, and Bruce was a showman. But in terms of JKD, Bruce thought that Kicking a man in the head made as much sence as punching him in the foot.

Not that such a kick was forbiden in JKD, nothing is forbiden. (sorry, no spell check)

[Happy Cat]

Liberty,

To clarify, I was saying that the term "Origonal JKD" is not a good term for the branch of JKD that I am studying, because what I am studying is evolving. Some may be studying a JKD which has not evolved since 1973, in in their case "origonal" may be an aptly descriptive term.

[Happy Cat]

Fenwick,

Those who trained with him say that HW's side kick was second in power only to Bruce's.

HW has made a DVD which he was happy to sell to me. You can contact him at: HWJKD@aol.com. My take on him is that he likes his privacy, so do not contact him unless you are prepared to buy the DVD.

And Mike, some could read your description of the history to suggest that JKD was the joint creation of Bruce and Sifu Dan. As you probably are well aware, most JKD historians credit Bruce and secondarily James Lee for the development of JKD.

OF course many of us in the Oakland school believe that James had a much larger influence that he has been generally credited with. Part of the reason for this is James’s early death, which left the LA school a free hand in writing the history as it saw it. The fact that you say that the early LA curriculum included Kali really says a lot to me.

I know that all of this is divisive, and it is not my intention to perpetuate an argument. I come from an Oakland student's perspective, and am always willing to learn more. When I have more time on my hands I will PM you and we can perhaps share views on the art and its history.

As I have said before, I believe that each branch of the tree may have a separate piece of the puzzle. I think that those who do not see a puzzle do not understand the nature of JKD.

[Liberty]

I’m back. Happy belated New Year to all. Greece has got to be one of the most beautiful places on the planet! And the Pankration training and competition is by far the best I have yet engaged in! Will post some clips of me whipping some butt Pankration style in some very grueling matches as soon as they send me my copy! In the meantime, I was catching up on the site here and thought I’d share my two cents.

“Yes of course. Chuck Norris influenced bruce to kick high. Jhoon Rhee taught bruce to break a hanging board and to perform the spinning hook kick. Ji Han Jae taught Bruce the basic hapkido takedown. Bruce was influenced by Korean arts” – Akia

Jesse Glover, Bruce Lee’s first American student (1959-1963), claims in his book, “Bruce Lee: Between Wing Chun and Jeet Kune Do” that one evening, during the time Glover studied with Lee, he and Lee attended a Karate demo put on by Shtokan’s Hidetaka Nishiyama. That Lee was so impressed with Nishiyama’s control over his high kicks that he (Lee) went over afterwards and the two men [Lee and Nishiyama] spoke at length about the subject.

“The name Jeet Kune Do was not even conceived until 1967 in Los Angeles, three years after Bruce and James Yimm Lee formulated the content of the Oakland teaching outline” – Michael Wright

“Jeet Kune Do… started in around 1965” – Bruce Lee (clip below at 2:24)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O4CVTq44icg

“Origonal JKD is not good, because it sugests stagnation, while our art has evolved” – Happy Cat

“If it is their inclination, students are encouraged to study other martial arts and add their own personal developments once they have the experience and intellectual sophistication to do so. Nevertheless, we simply want JFJKD teachers to concentrate and focus on JFJKD, that is Bruce Lee's (TM) personal expression in the martial arts, when they claim to teach it. In this way, JFJKD can be spread out in a much more consistent way with less confusion” -Ted Wong

http://www.totallyjkd.com/tw_articles_later_developments.php