Liberate Yourself

 

I hope my comrades in the martial arts will read the following paragraphs with open-mindedness leaving all the burdens of preconceived opinions and conclusions behind.

TKDTutor Comments: Does this mean we must empty our minds of all we know as true, so we may accept Lee’s reasoning without considering its truthfulness.

This act, by the way, has in itself liberating power. After all, the usefulness of the cup is in its emptiness.

TKDTutor Comments: Bull! The usefulness of a teacup is in its ability to hold and transport tea to the mouth so one may drink the tea; one cannot drink from an empty cup and one need not empty the cup of any remaining tea before refilling the cup. One can learn and evaluate new things without emptying ones brain; in addition, the brain never fills and overflows with too much knowledge. Lee and his ilk stress that you must forget all you have learned before you may accept their way of doing things; the reason being, if you do not, you will see the illogic in their reasoning and will not accept what they say as they truth. In their view, if you do not accept their reasoning, it is your fault.

Make this article relate to yourself, because though it is on JKD, it is primarily concerned with the blossoming of a martial artist---not a "Chinese" martial artist, a "Japanese" martial artist, etc. A martial artist is a human being first. Just as nationalities have nothing to do with one's humanity, so they have nothing to do with martial arts. Leave your protective shell of isolation and relate 'directly' to what is being said. Return to your senses by ceasing all the intervening intellectual mumbo jumbo. Remember that life is a constant process of relating. Remember too, that I seek neither your approval nor to influence you towards my way of thinking. I will be more than satisfied if, as a result of this article, you begin to investigate everything for yourself and cease to uncritically accept prescribed formulas that dictate "this is this" and "that is that."