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"Do not pray for an easy life, pray for the strength to endure a difficult one."
― Bruce Lee
  • Profile picture of the author Sarevok
    Bruce was a boss.

    Another golden piece of wisdom:

    I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times
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    • Profile picture of the author thunderbird
      Originally Posted by Sarevok View Post

      Bruce was a boss.

      Another golden piece of wisdom:

      I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times
      This is the most basic kick taught in martial arts classes. Anderson Silva had been practicing it a lot just prior to this fight:
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    • Profile picture of the author Claude Whitacre
      Originally Posted by Sarevok View Post

      Bruce was a boss.

      Another golden piece of wisdom:

      I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times
      After reading all the arguments, I thought I would go back to this quote. There is wisdom here. rare in someone so young.

      Malcolm Gladwell said that it takes 10,000 hours of practice to become great at something. that's about 10 years of daily (3 hours a day) practice. He has several examples to validate his observation.

      The "One kick 10,000 times" can be used as a metaphor, but is also practical.
      After practicing a technique 10,000 times, your nervous system makes the move automatic. It becomes a reflex. And it is done correctly.

      Motion studies are done of people working at repetitive tasks over a period of years. They become extremely efficient at the movements. They become fluid...and effortless.

      Great martial artists (the striking arts anyway) are usually faster at 60 than they were at 30 years old. Are their muscles faster? No the muscles are slower. But the movement is faster. The technique is faster.

      Steven Seagal is faster at 60 than he was at 30. He's an overweight guy that obviously isn't as fit as he used to be. But I've seen videos of him lately. He's faster. But only because his movements are so much more efficient.

      So, yeah, a kick practiced 10,000 times (or any technique, even sales techniques) becomes very strong with repetition.

      Anyway, I don't think there was enough arguing here, so I wanted to chime in.



      Originally Posted by Dennis Gaskill View Post

      I will end this post with this... We hammer and forge our own character. Circumstances that help one rise to the top destroy another. It's not the hardships that build character, it's the hardships that sometimes reveal it.
      Good enough to repeat. Thanks.
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  • Profile picture of the author Dennis Gaskill
    Originally Posted by thunderbird View Post

    “Do not pray for an easy life, pray for the strength to endure a difficult one.”
    ― Bruce Lee
    Since Bruce Lee died at age 32, I'm not so sure this is good advice.

    Be careful what you wish for, you might get it. Just sayin'...
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    • Profile picture of the author thunderbird
      Originally Posted by Dennis Gaskill View Post

      Since Bruce Lee died at age 32, I'm not so sure this is good advice.

      Be careful what you wish for, you might get it. Just sayin'...
      That's neither here nor there, Dennis. He died of an extreme reaction to aspirin, characterized by causing the brain to swell (Reyes Syndrome).
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      • Profile picture of the author Dennis Gaskill
        Originally Posted by thunderbird View Post

        That's neither here nor there, Dennis. He died of an extreme reaction to aspirin, characterized by causing the brain to swell (Reyes Syndrome).
        There seems to be some controversy about how he died, but the "how" of it is what is neither here nor there in my opinion. A cynic might say he didn't get what he prayed for, but I wouldn't go that far.

        My point was, be careful what you wish for, you may get it. That, in my mind, is always relevant.
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        • Profile picture of the author thunderbird
          Originally Posted by Dennis Gaskill View Post

          There seems to be some controversy about how he died, but the "how" of it is neither here nor there in my opinion.
          He died when his brain massively swelled up after taking medication containing aspirin and meprobamate.

          Bruce Lee had developed a habit of ingesting a lot of hashish. That combined with taking medication may have contributed to his early demise.

          My point was, be careful what you wish for, you may get it. That, in my mind, is always relevant.
          It is a wonderful point and all that, but a non sequitur to Bruce Lee's advice.
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          • Profile picture of the author Dennis Gaskill
            Originally Posted by thunderbird View Post

            “Do not pray for an easy life, pray for the strength to endure a difficult one.”
            ― Bruce Lee
            Originally Posted by Dennis Gaskill View Post

            Be careful what you wish for, you might get it.
            Originally Posted by thunderbird View Post

            It is a wonderful point and all that, but a non sequitur to Bruce Lee's advice.
            I'm sorry, but I don't understand. What I wrote has a very logical correlation to the quote, IMO. If you pray for the strength to endure a difficult life, rather than praying for a solution that makes life better, you may get the strength you need but no end to the difficulties. Hence, be careful what you wish for...

            Please explain to me how it's a non sequitur.
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            • Profile picture of the author Newbieee
              Well, his siblings are still alive.

              So we can just ask them.
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              Pain is a perception, so is defeat & happiness!
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              • Profile picture of the author gearmex
                Originally Posted by Newbieee View Post

                Well, his siblings are still alive.

                So we can just ask them.
                I'm a big fan of Bruce and Brandon Lee it was so sad when his son died of mysteriously by an accident as well in 1994 during a movie shoot in film set, somethings just don't go right.
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            • Profile picture of the author jambaman2
              Originally Posted by Dennis Gaskill View Post

              ...If you pray for the strength to endure a difficult life, rather than praying for a solution that makes life better, you may get the strength you need but no end to the difficulties. Hence, be careful what you wish for...
              I can understand your thinking here but I think the essence of the teaching is to make your life better by effectively dealing with life's hardship's... even creating hardship for yourself.

              But also, I think if you review your own life experiences - especially after putting in some decades, you'll see that life was most enjoyable and meaningful when it was difficult... if you approached things with the "strength" BL is talking about here.

              If you look into the life experiences of others you will notice that people really got a lot out of some very bad experiences.
              Some of course succumbed.

              But this is what life is about - you struggle and win or lose.
              Victory can mean life OR death... Loss is a possibility at every juncture.

              Win or lose you cheerfully face the next struggle.
              Even seek it out!

              When things are easy, that's good too - a well earned respite perhaps, an "end" to the difficulty.
              This too is part of the rhythms of life.

              But I think you will agree: An everlasting easy life is a life no one can be proud of...
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              • Profile picture of the author Dennis Gaskill
                Originally Posted by jambaman2 View Post

                I can understand your thinking here but I think the essence of the teaching is to make your life better by effectively dealing with life's hardship's... even creating hardship for yourself.
                I think what he was trying to say is that one should endure hardships with grace and dignity. That's noble in its own way, but falls short of being well-balanced advice. In my opinion that's not where your focus should be unless you want to stay in that place of suffering and hardship.

                But also, I think if you review your own life experiences - especially after putting in some decades, you'll see that life was most enjoyable and meaningful when it was difficult... if you approached things with the "strength" BL is talking about here.
                Um...no, I'm not a masochist. I may have gained understanding, or strength, or even a measure of wisdom from the hard times, but no way did I enjoy it. Not now, not then, not ever in this lifetime.

                I'm actually surprised you'd speculate like that since you don't know me or know what I've been through. Generalizations like that seldom apply universally.

                And by the way, as for "putting in the decades" ...I'll be 58 next month, so I've seen a few of them roll by.

                If you look into the life experiences of others you will notice that people really got a lot out of some very bad experiences.
                I like to think I have too . . . but that doesn't mean I enjoyed it. I also like to think I get a lot out of whatever I do. I'm one of those weird people who follows the advice of Pythagoras of Samos to live an examined life. Pain, suffering, and hardship can teach us lessons, but they are far from the only sources of life lessons.

                Unfortunately, the only wisdom some people gain is what they learn the hard way when life beats them up. How wise is that?

                But I think you will agree: An everlasting easy life is a life no one can be proud of...
                No, sorry, I don't agree. Having a hard life isn't necessarily something to be proud of ... a hard life is often a direct result of stupidity and recklessness. Ease is often the result of wise choices. But I don't measure life by how hard or easy it is, I think there are better values to use.
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                • Profile picture of the author Daniel Evans
                  The quote doesn't suggest that having a difficult life is key.

                  To me it suggests that if someone has the strength to potentially endure hardship then they live in total harmony in times when there is none and they are exempt of the anxiety of it coming about.

                  Daniel
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                • Profile picture of the author jambaman2
                  Originally Posted by Dennis Gaskill View Post

                  I think what he was trying to say is that one should endure hardships with grace and dignity. That's noble in its own way, but falls short of being well-balanced advice. In my opinion that's not where your focus should be unless you want to stay in that place of suffering and hardship.
                  If you really think all you can do is "endure" hardship, I truly believe you are missing the point.

                  Bruce Lee was referencing some basic Eastern philosophy that recognizes the beauty that can arise from an ugly situation - precisely BECAUSE of that adversity.

                  They typically reference the lotus plant that only grows in a nasty swamp, but produces a most beautiful white blossom.

                  If you don't know the joy of overcoming hardship, I'm afraid you just haven't lived.
                  And don't tell me about being 58!
                  I learned this in my 20's and have seen this occur in many lives some 4 decades now.

                  Just look at people's lives.
                  Handicapped people for example, have produced wonderful works of art, science and philosophy precisely because of their hardship.

                  Athletes too have proved this with their own life - many having suffered hardships in youth such as bad health, bullying, terrible tragedies and the like which motivated them to excel (many a world class fighter was bullied as a child, many others were sickly, barely surviving their youth).

                  Abused women (Oprah Winfrey, for one) have gone on to do great things for themselves as well as others.
                  The list really goes on and on.

                  I think many people realize this.
                  The examples are just too many for it to be otherwise.

                  And I could really name a long list of those who have benefited greatly because of some tragedy or hardship they had to deal with.

                  The point is not to be AFRAID of hardship, you can't really avoid hardship in life anyway - it's simply impossible.

                  But you CAN do something about it, and even thrive because of it, with the right outlook.

                  I'll confidently go one step further and say that you must endure hardship to become something admirable.

                  But that doesn't happen simply because you "endure"...
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                  • Profile picture of the author Dennis Gaskill
                    Originally Posted by jambaman2 View Post

                    A good place to start would be honesty and humility.

                    There's a possibility your viewpoint could use some tweaking.

                    Or you can be forever hard and unyielding - VERY unlike water.

                    Your choice.
                    Wow! You're suggesting I lack honesty and humility because your opinion differs from mine? Or was it because I chose not to respond to your inaccurate assumptions?

                    Either way, it doesn't indicate a lack of honesty or humility on my part. People have different perspectives for a multitude of explainable and valid reasons. That doesn't mean someone lacks honesty or humility, it doesn't even mean someone has to be wrong.

                    That you would infer a lack of honesty and humility is not only presumptive of you, but it's a completely useless comment that serves no purpose other than to insult me and cast aspersions on my character.

                    Is that your idea of a mature discussion?

                    This is why I chose not to rebut your previous comment. You made inaccurate assumptions based on a very limited amount of information. That you did it again in your ensuing post serves to validate my reasoning. Your personal misinterpretations aren't my reality. You might want to quit pretending they are.

                    I will end this post with this... We hammer and forge our own character. Circumstances that help one rise to the top destroy another. It's not the hardships that build character, it's the hardships that sometimes reveal it.
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                    • Profile picture of the author jambaman2
                      Originally Posted by Dennis Gaskill View Post

                      Wow! You're suggesting I lack integrity and humility because your opinion differs from mine? Or was it because I chose not to respond to your inaccurate assumptions?
                      I'm suggesting that your expressed viewpoint is one of fear.

                      BL expressed a viewpoint that reflected courage in the face of hardship v. people who seek an easy life.

                      Stick to the topic.

                      Not everyone is going to always agree with you.

                      If you can discuss and disagree, without disrespect, THAT is maturity.
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                    • Profile picture of the author jambaman2
                      Originally Posted by Dennis Gaskill View Post

                      It's not the hardships that build character, it's the hardships that sometimes reveal it.
                      Hardship does nothing.

                      It all depends on the human being (their approach to hardship) as to what is revealed or built.

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                      • Profile picture of the author Dennis Gaskill
                        Originally Posted by jambaman2 View Post

                        I'm suggesting that your expressed viewpoint is one of fear.

                        BL expressed a viewpoint that reflected courage in the face of hardship v. people who seek an easy life.
                        There you go again, assuming a meaning I did not suggest. It's impossible to have a conversation with someone who insists on making up what both sides of a conversation means.

                        Stick to the topic.
                        Physician, heal thyself. You're the one that keeps making incorrect assumptions.

                        If you can discuss and disagree, without disrespect, THAT is maturity.
                        Which you didn't. You're the one that strayed into insults by inferring I lacked honesty and humility.

                        Originally Posted by jambaman2 View Post

                        Hardship does nothing.

                        It all depends on the human being as to what is revealed or built.

                        lol - that just another way of saying the same thing you quoted from me. :rolleyes:
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                        • Profile picture of the author jambaman2
                          How about just sticking to the topic?
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                          • Profile picture of the author Dennis Gaskill
                            Originally Posted by jambaman2 View Post

                            How about just sticking to the topic?
                            Again I say, "Physician, heal thyself. You're the one that keeps making incorrect assumptions."
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                            • Profile picture of the author jambaman2
                              Originally Posted by Dennis Gaskill View Post

                              Again I say, "Physician, heal thyself. You're the one that keeps making incorrect assumptions."
                              Just can't stay on topic can you?
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                              • Profile picture of the author Dennis Gaskill
                                Originally Posted by jambaman2 View Post

                                Just can't stay on topic can you?
                                If you don't understand how that relates to the posts I used it in reply to, then I feel sorry for you.
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                • Profile picture of the author jambaman2
                  Originally Posted by Dennis Gaskill View Post

                  No, sorry, I don't agree. Having a hard life isn't necessarily something to be proud of ... a hard life is often a direct result of stupidity and recklessness. Ease is often the result of wise choices. But I don't measure life by how hard or easy it is, I think there are better values to use.
                  You are definitely twisting my words here.

                  I clearly did not state that merely having a hard life is "something to be proud of".

                  Now, can you name anyone with an easy life that has done anything of merit - because of their "easy" life?
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          • Profile picture of the author KimW
            Originally Posted by thunderbird View Post

            He died when his brain massively swelled up after taking medication containing aspirin and meprobamate.

            Bruce Lee had developed a habit of ingesting a lot of hashish. That combined with taking medication may have contributed to his early demise.



            It is a wonderful point and all that, but a non sequitur to Bruce Lee's advice.
            I have never heard that before. Can you give me a source? And I am being serious,not a smartass.
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            • Profile picture of the author Big Rob
              Originally Posted by KimW View Post

              I have never heard that before. Can you give me a source? And I am being serious,not a smartass.
              I heard it before,also.
              Here is a link amongst many if you google it:
              Bruce Lee : The Divine Wind
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              • Profile picture of the author ozzie2012
                Originally Posted by Big Rob View Post

                I heard it before,also.
                Here is a link amongst many if you google it:
                Bruce Lee : The Divine Wind
                Thank you for the link. Very interesting read.
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          • Profile picture of the author jambaman2
            Originally Posted by thunderbird View Post

            Bruce Lee had developed a habit of ingesting a lot of hashish. That combined with taking medication may have contributed to his early demise.
            So, can you prove this assertion, or are you simply talking off the top of your head?
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            • Profile picture of the author thunderbird
              Originally Posted by jambaman2 View Post

              So, can you prove this assertion, or are you simply talking off the top of your head?
              I am not talking off the top of my head. It is well-documented and easy to find. I have always respected Bruce Lee. He was a human being with that minor footnote in his amazing legacy.
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              • Profile picture of the author jambaman2
                Originally Posted by thunderbird View Post

                I am not talking off the top of my head. It is well-documented and easy to find...
                So show us this "well-documented and easy to find." proof...
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                • Profile picture of the author thunderbird
                  Originally Posted by jambaman2 View Post

                  So show us this "well-documented and easy to find." proof...
                  Have you tried researching it yourself? Have you Googled it or anything?
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                  • Profile picture of the author jambaman2
                    Originally Posted by thunderbird View Post

                    Have you tried researching it yourself? Have you Googled it or anything?
                    1. researched... Nothing but hearsay.

                    2. YOU make the claim. I merely asked that you prove it. You have NOT.

                    3. I should NOT have to do the research - YOU made the claim. YOU show the proof.
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                    • Profile picture of the author thunderbird
                      Originally Posted by jambaman2 View Post

                      1. researched... Nothing but hearsay.

                      2. YOU make the claim. I merely asked that you prove it. You have NOT.

                      3. I should NOT have to do the research - YOU made the claim. YOU show the proof.
                      OK, you researched it and probably came across the same sources that I did, but have ascertained that it is all hearsay. Maybe it is all lies. Heck if I know for sure. It is not something I want to fixate on and is not a significant factor to his great legacy.

                      Bruce Lee - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

                      "The preliminary opinion of Peter Wu, the neurosurgeon who treated Lee during his first seizure, was that the cause of death should have been attributed to either a reaction to cannabis or Equagesic. However, Wu later backed off from this position, stating that:
                      "Professor Teare was a forensic scientist recommended by Scotland Yard; he was brought in as an expert on cannabis and we can't contradict his testimony. The dosage of cannabis is neither precise nor predictable, but I've never known of anyone dying simply from taking it."[143]"
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                      • Profile picture of the author jambaman2
                        Originally Posted by thunderbird View Post

                        OK, you researched it and probably came across the same sources that I did, but have ascertained that it is all hearsay. Maybe it is all lies. Heck if I know for sure. It is not something I want to fixate on and is not a significant factor to his great legacy.
                        Do you really think I researched this claim of yours and didn't come across WIKIPEDIA??

                        NOTHING in your Wiki-quote proves your assertion. Not in the slightest.


                        All I did was challenge you to provide proof of your claim.

                        You still have not.
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                        • Profile picture of the author thunderbird
                          Originally Posted by jambaman2 View Post

                          Do you really think I researched this claim of yours and didn't come across WIKIPEDIA??

                          NOTHING in your Wiki-quote proves your assertion. Not in the slightest.


                          All I did was challenge you to provide proof of your claim.

                          You still have not.
                          By strict documentary and journalistic standards, I, indeed, have not "proven" it. If you believe this widely held and disseminated story that's in his biography is incorrect and want to debunk it, all power to you. Have you noticed that you're the only one fighting here?
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      • Profile picture of the author HeySal
        Originally Posted by thunderbird View Post

        That's neither here nor there, Dennis. He died of an extreme reaction to aspirin, characterized by causing the brain to swell (Reyes Syndrome).
        I know a close friend of his and that "official story" doesn't sit well with him - and neither does the official story of how Brandon (Bruce's son) died either. There might have been more to that saying than meets the eye.

        Anyhow = Chuck Norris practiced one kick to ad nauseum and got famous for it. Other than that roundhouse kick he wasn't the caliber of artist that would have landed up in Hollywood, so there's a point to that one, too.
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        • Profile picture of the author thunderbird
          Originally Posted by HeySal View Post

          I know a close friend of his and that "official story" doesn't sit well with him - and neither does the official story of how Brandon (Bruce's son) died either. There might have been more to that saying than meets the eye. <snip>
          Who knows, it could be. In the human body, various factors influence each other. When a person takes drugs, mainstream pharmaceuticals, herbs, or other, along with food and beverages, it forms chemical cocktails. The effects of such chemical cocktails within the body are impossible to tell from scientific experiments which demand strictly controlled conditions, otherwise they are basically meaningless.

          Bruce Lee did have enemies. Could he have been poisoned? I don't know.
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    • Profile picture of the author Abrar Tariq
      Originally Posted by Dennis Gaskill View Post

      Since Bruce Lee died at age 32, I'm not so sure this is good advice.

      Be careful what you wish for, you might get it. Just sayin'...
      hahaha, damn right,!
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  • Profile picture of the author KimW
    I was going to point that out too. Some say jealous lover of the chinese actress,others say chinese mafia, the list goes on and on. I believe the "official" report says reaction to some drug.
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  • Profile picture of the author KimW
    Interesting,thanks for the link.
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  • Profile picture of the author twister85
    Well that's why I have him in my avatar. Iam a big fan of bruce lee. Don't be sick, just get your ass off to kick!
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  • Profile picture of the author yukon
    Banned
    I think I've seen Chuck Norris working out on a Gazelle exercise machine, or was that Tony Little?
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    • Profile picture of the author KimW
      Originally Posted by yukon View Post

      I think I've seen Chuck Norris working out on a Gazelle exercise machine, or was that Tony Little?
      Gazelle = Tony Little
      Total Gym = Chuck Norris
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  • Profile picture of the author bizgrower




    There is a theory that if you just pray for rain, you might get floods.
    So you need to pray for the right amount of rain.





    Yes, learn one kick vs many:




    Chuck Norris' take on Bruce Lee's death starting at 4:10:

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    • Profile picture of the author socialentry
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      Originally Posted by bizgrower View Post

      Oh thanks a lot man.

      Growing up Bruce was my hero. I always taught that it was out of character of him to smoke marijuana and to have died from it.. I taught it was a stain on his image.
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      • Profile picture of the author bizgrower
        Originally Posted by socialentry View Post

        Oh thanks a lot man.

        Growing up Bruce was my hero. I always taught that it was out of character of him to smoke marijuana and to have died from it.. I taught it was a stain on his image.
        You're welcome. So happens I stumbled across the YouTube clip of the movie fight with
        Chuck a few months ago. I did not think they even crossed paths and it turns out they were pretty good friends.

        Here are some other interesting related clips:
        (Hit the closed caption - cc - button for English subtitles)


        He died in Betty Ting Pei's apartment.


        Dan
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  • Profile picture of the author voneyfly
    Good quote.
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  • Profile picture of the author kimmokia
    Good quote.
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  • Profile picture of the author Ephrils
    Bruce Lee must be watching my life now :p

    He was a smart guy with some really insightful things to say. I bought Tao of Jeet Kune Do as a teen and never regretted it.
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  • Profile picture of the author Dennis Gaskill
    jambaman 2 - You're reading so many things into my words that I didn't say I don't even know where to start. It seems pointless to even try. I would have to address your comments line by line, and it doesn't seem worth the effort to me.

    I stand by my original comment, be careful of what you wish for, you may get it.
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    • Profile picture of the author jambaman2
      Originally Posted by Dennis Gaskill View Post

      jambaman 2 - ...I don't even know where to start.
      A good place to start would be honesty and humility.

      There's a possibility your viewpoint could use some tweaking.

      Or you can be forever hard and unyielding - VERY unlike water.

      Your choice.
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  • Profile picture of the author socialentry
    Banned
    ^^ Bruce didn't say to wish for a hard life, he said wish for strength.

    Of course, everyone including me would prefer an easy life....but really, how many of us have not had hardship in life?
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  • Profile picture of the author MikeTucker
    Another quote chopped-up by Bruce Lee and he still gets the credit?
    Serious hero-worship on this guy, we should all be so lucky to die young and
    be held as infallible immortals, with excellent marketers hiding our
    failures and promoting our successes.
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  • Profile picture of the author bizgrower
    "We hammer and forge our own character. Circumstances that help one rise to the top destroy another. It's not the hardships that build character, it's the hardships that sometimes reveal it." - Dennis Gaskill

    Great statement Dennis.

    When I was going through a difficult thing at age 13, my Dad told me:
    "Adversity make for a stronger person."

    It's scientifically true:
    Nietzsche was right: adversity makes you stronger - Telegraph

    But, to balance things out:

    "God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
    The courage to change the things I can,
    And wisdom to know the difference."

    Dan
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  • Profile picture of the author Claude Whitacre
    Originally Posted by thunderbird View Post

    “Do not pray for an easy life, pray for the strength to endure a difficult one.”
    ― Bruce Lee
    I heard this in a Viking movie. The Viking handed a smaller man a sword. The smaller man said "The sword is too heavy". The Viking said "No. Your arm is too weak".

    Bruce Lee was a smart guy and a skilled martial artist. But he wasn't a god. One of the things he had going for him was that he produced his Magnum Opus Enter The Dragon at the absolute peak of the American Kung Fu craze. Two years before, this country had never heard of Kung Fu.

    Was he skilled? Sure. Was he bright with training ideas we hadn't heard before? I think so. But not all great martial artists are in the movies, and none of them are without flaws...just like all of us.

    Anyway, when I was 6 or 7 years old, my dad was beating me at checkers for the millionth time. I complained about the rules, because he kept beating me.
    He said "Don't complain about the rules. Get better at the game".

    That stuck with me word-for-word until today.

    In other words...Don't pray for a lighter load, work for a stronger arm.

    I'm not sure why you guys are arguing. You're saying 98% the same thing.
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  • Profile picture of the author Dennis Gaskill
    Along the same lines...

    "Do not pray for easy lives. Pray to be stronger men. Do not pray for tasks equal to your powers. Pray for powers equal to your tasks. Then the doing of your work shall be no miracle, but you shall be the miracle."

    - Phillips Brooks
    US Episcopal bishop (1835 - 1893)
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    • Profile picture of the author thunderbird
      Originally Posted by Dennis Gaskill View Post

      Along the same lines...

      "Do not pray for easy lives. Pray to be stronger men. Do not pray for tasks equal to your powers. Pray for powers equal to your tasks. Then the doing of your work shall be no miracle, but you shall be the miracle."

      - Phillips Brooks
      US Episcopal bishop (1835 - 1893)
      Bruce Lee attended a Catholic school as a teen, so there is a strong chance he came across that quote.
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      • Profile picture of the author Dennis Gaskill
        Originally Posted by thunderbird View Post

        Bruce Lee attended a Catholic school as a teen, so there is a strong chance he came across that quote.
        If I'm not mistaken John F. Kennedy used the first two lines in a speech once as well. I don't have a problem with that, though. A lot of people say things very similar to the way something has been said before. There's only so many ways to express the same idea.

        I'd guess a lot of times someone will say or write something they think is an original thought, only it's something the may have read or heard years prior and forgot about.
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        • Profile picture of the author MikeTucker
          Originally Posted by Dennis Gaskill View Post

          If I'm not mistaken John F. Kennedy used the first two lines in a speech once as well. I don't have a problem with that, though. A lot of people say things very similar to the way something has been said before. There's only so many ways to express the same idea.

          I'd guess a lot of times someone will say or write something they think is an original thought, only it's something the may have read or heard years prior and forgot about.
          You are correct, JFK did quote it once.

          The issue with Bruce Lee is that he was constantly chopping-up
          quotes and bits of wisdom for his movies and book (and notes
          that were later turned into books).

          He treated everything like it was PLR.
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          • Profile picture of the author thunderbird
            Originally Posted by MikeTucker View Post

            You are correct, JFK did quote it once.

            The issue with Bruce Lee is that he was constantly chopping-up
            quotes and bits of wisdom for his movies and book (and notes
            that were later turned into books).

            He treated everything like it was PLR.
            We don't live in a vacuum. All things come from somewhere. Everything is PLR if you reinvent and apply it to actual life in innovative and effective ways.That is what made Bruce Lee great.
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            • Profile picture of the author geoscash1
              There is no question and I believe no one will argue, the late Bruce Lee was a great man and martial artist. His ideals and principles were a ground work of struggles within himself in which he later became what he had worked hard and strived to become.

              His philosophies (whether old or unique) became an inspiration to many including myself when I saw one of his movies for the first time in 1974, I was 9 and he had a profound impact upon me as he did with millions of others too. I also bought (my mom did) the "Tao of Jeet Kune Do" in 1977 which still sits in front of me right here behind my monitor as I write this. (yep, still the original my mom bought me in 77)


              I conclude there really should be no argument whether one man changed the world or whether he changed his own. Its plain to see that you must take it for what it teaches you as your own person and to come away with something of value in your own life.

              The point is ( And I wrote this myself in 1983) "Your path to freedom depends on the road you choose to take". When I wrote that I was 18 and had no previous knowledge of philosophy other than Bruce Lees writing which may have influenced me in some way shape or form.

              It can be harder (your path to freedom) than the next persons or it may be easier, it is the path within itself that teaches us what we need in order to become what we want. Its a simple mental choice.

              I felt compelled to chime is as well just based upon the fact I have enjoyed Bruce Lee as an inspiration in my life and the message he brought forth that I perceive.

              It has made me not only a better martial artist (no longer practicing physical or tournies) but has had profound ideals in how I perceive knowledge especially when it is passed on from another with experience in life that I know nothing of.

              Great thread and thanks for posting.

              Geo
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            • Profile picture of the author MikeTucker
              Originally Posted by thunderbird View Post

              We don't live in a vacuum. All things come from somewhere. Everything is PLR if you reinvent and apply it to actual life in innovative and effective ways.That is what made Bruce Lee great.
              Perhaps my point wasn't clear... He intentionally left out the
              fact that what he was doing was in no way original. He refused
              to give credit where credit was due, because he wanted to
              market himself.

              This has important implications on a marketing forum, even in the
              Off Topic section. It may have worked for him in the late 60's and
              early 70's, but we have now entered the Information Age, where
              the Internet allows every child to fact-check and share everything
              they see. Those who follow Bruce's methods in this day and age
              are going to find themselves embarrassed and entangled in expensive
              legal battles.
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              • Profile picture of the author Frank Donovan
                Actually, I think the Bruce Lee quote is a fairly cumbersome and ambiguous variation of an otherwise worthy sentiment. A better, more succinct version of what I believe BL was trying to get at was provided by the late Jim Rohn:

                “Don't wish it were easier. Wish you were better.”

                Simple, clear, and applicable.

                Frank
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                • Profile picture of the author thunderbird
                  Originally Posted by Frank Donovan View Post

                  Actually, I think the Bruce Lee quote is a fairly cumbersome and ambiguous variation of an otherwise worthy sentiment. A better, more succinct version of what I believe BL was trying to get at was provided by the late Jim Rohn:

                  “Don't wish it were easier. Wish you were better.”

                  Simple, clear, and applicable.

                  Frank
                  I still like Bruce Lee's quote the most. It is more poignant, recognizes suffering, yet hopeful. I find it simultaneously projects his Catholic/Buddhist upbringing. It presents a way to make life easier -- by becoming stronger, but in doing so, one will have to endure some hardship to reach that point.

                  Do others get the meaning I get? Of course not. It is totally subjective which renders this entire debate absurd. But that's ok -- life entails a lot of absurdity and would be absurd without it. Vive l'absurdité!
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                • Profile picture of the author jambaman2
                  Originally Posted by Frank Donovan View Post

                  Actually, I think the Bruce Lee quote is a fairly cumbersome and ambiguous variation of an otherwise worthy sentiment. A better, more succinct version of what I believe BL was trying to get at was provided by the late Jim Rohn:

                  "Don't wish it were easier. Wish you were better."
                  Good quote!

                  A big life can handle big problems...

                  I don't think BL was trying to teach the world, it's just some words he said.
                  He didn't even believe in god, so you can't take his "pray for" advice literally in the first place!!

                  The source I found this teaching in was Buddhism.
                  The teaching is more like what you have described here, but of course, more in depth.

                  It specifically chided those who complained about their hardship and wished for an easy life.
                  The teaching was that difficulties arise when one seeks to elevate one's life condition... That the foolish will be fearful... Angry that their Buddhist practice has brought hardship into their lives...

                  The wise see it as proof that they are on the right path and are joyful - even in their struggle.

                  It's hard to swallow for most westerners, especially Americans, as we are taught, in commercial after commercial for one, to seek out an easy and comfortable life.

                  Aikido Founder M. Ueshiba said: "Do not look upon this world with fear and loathing... BRAVELY face what the gods have to offer"!

                  Great people must surmount great obstacles... There's no other way I am aware of.

                  I've never heard a person/politician/leader, seeking to lead others, tell the masses what an easy life they had!
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  • Profile picture of the author goindeep
    Originally Posted by thunderbird View Post

    "Do not pray for an easy life, pray for the strength to endure a difficult one."
    ― Bruce Lee
    Bruce V Chuck... bgiybuuFFKbfIYU tB876y7y8ybN&(Y&*^&^B**FUVVR^dFHggFGFuyvgft&r^%T*& *(Trvc!s!!!!!!!!!!!!!11 AAAhhh sorry I just released some stress on the keyboard
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  • Profile picture of the author Monika Verma
    Originally Posted by thunderbird View Post

    "Do not pray for an easy life, pray for the strength to endure a difficult one."
    ― Bruce Lee
    Surely agree ...............................
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