Every now & then I come across a Bruce Lee quote on this forum; I never knew before this that he was such a philosopher as well. I just decided to go on the 'net to look through his quotes, and some of them really kicked me in the ass, so i'm gonna post them here. Be warned - there's a lot of 'em:
From
http://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/ ... Lee?page=1:
Bruce Lee
born:
in San Fransisco, California, The United States
November 27, 1940
died:
July 20, 1973
website
http://www.bruceleefoundation.com/
influences:
martial arts, philosophy, martial arts movies
About this author:
Bruce Lee was an American-born martial artist, philosopher, instructor, martial arts actor and the founder of the Jeet Kune Do martial arts system, widely regarded as the most influential martial artist of the 20th century and a cultural icon. He was the father of actor Brandon Lee and of actress Shannon Lee.
“I’m not in this world to live up to your expectations and you’re not in this world to live up to mine.”
“Adapt what is useful, reject what is useless, and add what is specifically your own.”
“It is not a daily increase, but a daily decrease. Hack away at the inessentials.”
You know who you are......
“Always be yourself, express yourself, have faith in yourself, do not go out and look for a successfull personality and duplicate it.”
“The meaning of life is that it is to be lived, and it is not to be traded and conceptualized and squeezed into a pattern of systems.”
“Many people dedicate their lives to actualizing a concept of what they should be like, rather than actualizing themselves.
This difference between self-actualization and self-image actualization is very important. Most people live only for their image”
“...we have more faith in what we imitate than in what we originate. We cannot derive a sense of absolute certitude from anything which has its roots in us. The most poignant sense of insecurity comes from standing alone and we are not alone when we imitate. It is thus with most of us; we are what other people say we are. We know ourselves chiefly by hearsay.”
“The stillness in stillness is not the real stillness; only when there is stillness in movement does the universal rhythm manifest.”
“Set patterns, incapable of adaptability, of pliability, only offer a better cage. Truth is outside of all patterns.”
“Those who are unaware they are walking in darkness will never seek the light.”
Steaaaaaaaaak!
“...if you always put limits on what you can do, physical or anything else, it’ll spread over into the rest of your life. It’ll spread into your work, into your morality, into your entire being. There are no limits. There are plateaus, but you must not stay there, you must go beyond them. If it kills you, it kills you. A man must constantly exceed his level.”
“Do not pray for an easy life, pray for the strength to endure a difficult one”
“Be happy, but never satisfied.”
“Mistakes are always forgivable, if one has the courage to admit them.”
“The doubters said,
"Man can not fly,"
The doers said,
"Maybe, but we'll try,"
And finally soared
In the morning glow
While non-believers
Watched from below.”
“If you spend too much time thinking about a thing, you'll never get it done.”
“Don't fear failure. — Not failure, but low aim, is the crime. In great attempts it is glorious even to fail.”
“Empty your cup so that it may be filled; become devoid to gain totality.”
“If there is a God, he is within. You don't ask God to give you things, you depend on God for your inner theme.”
“For it is easy to criticize and break down the spirit of others, but to know yourself takes a lifetime.”
“Showing off is the fool's idea of glory.”
“The More we value things, the less we value ourselves”
“Knowledge will give you power, but character respect.”
“The idea is that flowing water never goes stale, so just keep on flowing.”
“You cannot force the Now. — But can you neither condemn nor justify and yet be extraordinarily alive as you walk on? You can never invite the wind, but you must leave the window open.
“To know oneself is to study oneself in action with another person.”
“Don't think. FEEL. It's like a finger pointing at the moon. Do not concentrate on the finger, or you will miss all of the heavenly glory.”
Sounds familiar.....
“The less effort, the faster and more powerful you will be.”
“All fixed set patterns are incapable of adaptability or pliability. The truth is outside of all fixed patterns.”
“Because one does not want to be disturbed, to be made uncertain, he establishes a pattern of conduct, of thought, a pattern of relationship to man etc. Then he becomes a slave to the pattern and takes the pattern to be the real thing.”
“It is compassion rather than the principle of justice which can guard us against being unjust to our fellow men.”
“The man who is really serious, with the urge to find out what truth is, has no style at all. He lives only in what is.”
“The consciousness of self is the greatest hindrance to the proper execution of all physical action.”
“If you think a thing is impossible,you'll only make it impossible.”
“Obey the principles without being bound by them.”
“The successful warrior is the average man, with laser-like focus.”
“Do not deny the classical approach, simply as a reaction, or you will have created another pattern and trapped yourself there.”
“As you think, so shall you become.”
“Now I see that I will never find the light
Unless, like the candle, I am my own fuel,
Consuming myself.”
“Be self aware, rather than a repetitious robot”
“A good teacher protects his pupils from his own influence. ”
“Notice that the stiffest tree is most easily cracked, while the bamboo or willow survives by bending with the wind.”
“A quick temper will make a fool of you soon enough.”
“Use only that which works, and take it from any place you can find it.”
“If you don't want to slip up tomorrow, speak the truth today.”
“A goal is not always meant to be reached, it often serves simply as something to aim at.”
“The key to immortality is first living a life worth remembering.”
“To hell with circumstances; I create opportunities.”
“A wise man can learn more from a foolish question than a fool can learn from a wise answer.”
“I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who had practiced one kick 10,000 times.”
“Be like water making its way through cracks. Do not be assertive, but adjust to the object, and you shall find a way around or through it. If nothing within you stays rigid, outward things will disclose themselves.
Empty your mind, be formless. Shapeless, like water. If you put water into a cup, it becomes the cup. You put water into a bottle and it becomes the bottle. You put it in a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Now, water can flow or it can crash. Be water, my friend.”