Bruce Lee: A Kung Fu Life and the Way of Martial Arts

This book collects the latest research results at home and abroad in the fields of Bruce Lee’s life history， kung fu movies， kung fu， and philosophy for more than 40 years， and not only deeply describes the influence of the Li family in Shangcun， Jun’an Town， Shunde District， Foshan City， Guangdong Province， and the Ho family in Hong Kong on Bruce Lee’s growth， but also deeply excavates the cultural traditions and ideological genes rooted in Bruce Lee， and includes various research results on Bruce Lee in the context of the metaverse， highlighting the epochal and academic nature of Bruce Lee’s research.

Guan Wenming

Guan Wenming is the former deputy director， professor， and master’s tutor of the Institute of Physical Education of South China Normal University， executive vice president， and secretary general of the Bruce Lee Research Association of Guangdong Province. He has long been engaged in the teaching and research of sports history and martial arts culture.

Huang Dechao

Huang Dechao has a Bachelor of Arts from Foshan University. He is the cadre of Shunde District Government， and director of the Bruce Lee Memorial Hall in Shunde District. He has won the first Civil Servant Creativity Award of the Shunde District Government and is the vice president of the Bruce Lee Research Association of Guangdong Province.

Liu Hong

Liu Hong is a Doctor of Martial Arts from Shanghai University of Sport and has published several papers.

Philosophical Expression

Bruce Lee symbolizes the spirit of a nation and a highlight of an era， representing the unyielding and fearless spirit of the Chinese people and the Third World in the face of powerful adversaries. His impact on China and the entire world is profoundly significant.

As a martial arts legend， Bruce Lee distinguished himself from ordinary martial artists and action stars fundamentally through his rich and profound martial arts philosophy， proposing his comprehensive system of martial arts thought. In the study of Bruce Lee， martial arts philosophy is of utmost importance. However， current global research on his martial arts is the weakest aspect. Bruce Lee was a martial arts philosopher and kung fu star. His creation， Jeet Kune Do， which integrates Eastern and Western thoughts and combines martial arts techniques from both cultures， is a model of East-West martial arts integration. His martial arts philosophy deserves deep study and should be highly valued by us. Understanding and recognizing Bruce Lee as “a global symbol of Chinese culture and a kung fu icon” and deriving significant insights for promoting Chinese martial arts worldwide and advancing the cultural industry holds practical significance. This also provides methodological guidance and reference for kung fu practice among Bruce Lee enthusiasts and martial arts lovers and offers reflections and examples for enhancing the practical combat effectiveness of traditional Chinese martial arts today.

Philosophy is the outcome of human thought about objective reality. Bruce Lee’s martial arts philosophy refers to his understanding and theoretical elevation of martial arts， primarily his own creation of Jeet Kune Do. In the evolution of martial arts， Bruce Lee gradually developed several martial arts philosophies.

Unique life experiences deeply influenced Bruce Lee’s thoughts through both Eastern and Western philosophies. He spent his childhood and adolescence in Hong Kong， deeply influenced by Chinese traditional culture， especially classical Chinese philosophy. He spent his teenage years in the United States， majoring in philosophy at the University of Washington， with his martial arts philosophy deeply influenced by the existentialist movements popular in the 1960s in the West. Bruce Lee often emphasized that the highest realm of martial arts should be adaptable like water， penetrating everywhere. When water is poured into a cup， it takes the shape of the cup. When water is poured into a bottle， it takes the shape of the bottle. The Tao Te Ching states: “The supreme good is like water. Water benefits all things without contention. Therefore it is nearly like the Tao，” and “Nothing in the world is as soft and yielding as water， yet for attacking the hard and strong， nothing can surpass it.” Bruce Lee’s kung fu principle begins with this “philosophy of water，” stepping into the highest manifestation of martial arts aligned with the Tao. The spirit of Jeet Kune Do is to adapt to any fighting style like water， not confined by traditional theories or rules; all defenses and attacks are impromptu， depending on the situation. Bruce Lee constantly encouraged his students to think creatively and devise their moves. Jeet Kune Do is an inspirational martial art. Unlike the rigid， fixed forms of traditional martial arts， it is a way of discovering oneself， expressing oneself， and perfecting oneself. Bruce Lee well understood that every individual is unique. Different races， heights， weights， personal experiences， and physical strengths are objective factors that led him not to impose his methods on others. He advocated for unrestricted free sparring， gaining experience through practice， which significantly differs from traditional martial arts that focus only on form practice or light-contact sparring (stop at touch).

Someone once asked Bruce Lee how to defend if attacked. He replied that it depends on the situation because his counterattack would incorporate the total of the opponent’s attack， which is the “whole” of fighting. In short， it is about striking the “void” with “solidity，” overwhelming “division” with “focus，” attacking the opponent’s “weakness” with one’s own “strength，” and avoiding the opponent’s “strength” with one’s own “weakness.”