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Jeet Kune Do (JKD) Jeet Kune Do (JKD) is the martial art created by Bruce Lee (Li Shiou Lung). JKD or Way of the Intercepting Fist may be classified as a form of modern martial art. Although Jeet Kune Do is primarily inspired from Chinese gung fu, Western fencing and boxing it is more accurately, Bruce Lee's martial art. Lee felt that a real fight was unpredictable and that most classical styles emphasized dead patterns instead of live and spontaneous training. Lee also came to the conclusion the MA was Universal and that "unless there is a being with more than two arms and two legs, that there is only one style of fighting, the human style". So, Lee conceptualized martial art as a whole and embarked upon a scientific course. Not one that blended styles but one that was born of the idea of non-style, geometry and physics. One as he described as "simple, direct and non-classical". At the same time that Lee was creating his martial art he was also very much into philosophy. One source of philosophy was Zen. One of the primary tenants of Zen is detachment or more clearly, non-attachment. The tenant of non-attachment can be a paradox for most. However for Bruce Lee it was the perfect vehicle of understanding (enlightenment) that he needed to create his Jeet Kune Do. While non-attachment is a mental state, non-engagement is its physical counterpart. In the sense of fighting attachment or engagement imputes struggle. So with non-engagement through the use of physical science, our goal is non-struggle or to fight with the least amount of struggle. JKD however is the way of the intercepting fist and seeks to end the fight as quickly as possible through striking. In JKD engagement is any touch reference other than the strike itself. So ours is a very aggressive form of non-engagement which is a paradox to most but the true vehicle of understanding and expressing JKD. JKD primarily emphasizes stepping and evading in order to strike without prior touch, secondarily deflecting in order to strike and lastly trapping & grappling in order to strike. For decades following Bruce Lee's death JKD was promoted as the concept of cross training and doing your own thing. This view of JKD gave birth to the creation of many freestyles and hybrids throughout the world. Not a bad thing but not JKD. Bruce Lee clearly researched the totality of martial art, which includes striking and grappling both standing up and on the ground. But because Lee found that the "height of cultivation lead to simplicity" and that non-engagement is the height of that simplicity. JKD is a scientific vehicle of expressing simplicity in the chaos of fighting. Although Lee is recognized as being an Action Superstar from Hong Kong, he was actually born in San Francisco and lived in Hong Kong until the age of 18. Around 1958 he returned to the U.S. and eventually attended the University of Washington in Seattle, where he majored in philosophy. There he began the journey of creating his own method of martial art. While in the States, Lee ran three schools of martial art, Seattle WA, Oakland CA and Los Angeles CA.
Although with distinctions, these periods of development include overlap and similarities.
In 1971 he returned to Hong Kong to make movies and in 1973 unexpectedly passed away. Around 1971, Bruce Lee abolished all ranking and closed all formal schools of his Jeet Kune DoTM, "for reasons both public and private". However, Lee gave permission to his three "assistant instructors", to carry on "in private" and teach a select and small group of individuals. Taky Kimura: Seattle, WA James Lee: Oakland, CA Dan Inosanto: Los Angeles, CA.
This is considered by many to be the purest form of Bruce Lee's art as well as the final stage of it's development, prior to Bruce Lees's passing.
My introduction to Bruce Lee and Jeet Kune Do began in 1975, when I read the compilation of his notes, which were condensed, edited and organized into the book, "Tao of Jeet Kune Do"
Like many other martial artists, I began integrating principles and techniques of Jeet Kune Do into "my martial art" from 1975-1986, based on my understanding of it, from books, magazines articles and Bruce Lee's movies.
In the fall of 1986 I moved from Michigan to California and began to actually train, in "BL Lineage MA"... This method was presented to me through the "Inosanto lineage" and was taught to me by my friend and training partner Louis Campos.
In 1987 I began to train at the Inosanto Academy in Marina Del Rey, California... At that time I participated in Sifu/Guro Dan Inosanto's "Phase Classes". On Saturdays and Sundays I trained with Sifu/Guro Ted Lucaylucay in his art of Kali/JKD.
In 1991 I had the pleasure of meeting one of Bruce Lee's private students, Ted Wong. Sifu Ted Wong attended the Grand Opening of a small gym that I opened in Canoga Park, California.
Between that time and 1994, I asked Sifu Ted Wong, on numerous occasions, to accept me as a student... He politely told me that he really wasn't accepting any new students but that he would keep me in mind.
In 1996, After the unexpected passing of my teacher and dear friend Ted Lucaylucay, I went through a period of confusion and lack of clear direction in regards to my martial art.
Was I to embrace the "Inosanto method" of multi-cultural martial arts/cross training, known as "JKD Concepts" or would I continue to practice and teach the "Filipino Dominant" art of Lucaylucay's Kali/JKD?
Dan Inosanto’s approach is one of cross training in different martial art styles in order to "discover one's own personal method". It is quite multi-cultural. Chinese, Philippine, Thai, Indonesian, French, you name it. Dan calls this idea "JKD Concepts" and attributes its inspiration from Bruce Lee's philosophical references and personal research into different martial arts.
Ted Lucaylucay having graduated from Dan’s teaching, discovered his personal method through the Philippine Martial Arts (kali). Teddy was also influenced by styles outside the Philippine methods, including Jun Fan Gung Fu, (Bruce Lee's Gung Fu)Wing Chun and boxing. However, "in my opinion" the primary source and principle structure of his teachings come from the Philippine source.
In the winter of 1997 I phoned Sifu Ted Wong and invited him to lunch. I hadn't seen him for at least 3 years. We met at the "Golden City" restaurant in L.A. Chinatown and we talked about many things... We talked about loyalty and dedication to one's teacher and to one's chosen method of martial art. He then invited me to go across the street to my gym and he proceeded to share with me, Bruce Lee's Jeet Kune Do. I have been a private student and friend of Ted Wong since that day and it has changed my entire perspective and path.
- Mark Stewart
In 1973 Bruce Lee passed away and Dan Inosanto was convinced by many to keep JKD alive. What to do? At first Inosanto continued teaching aspects of Jeet Kune Do and offered Kali (Philippine weaponry) as a separate subject. As time went on, the two arts were aligned and were referred to as Kali/JKD. These methods were blended and/or taught separately at different periods of time by Inosanto and his graduates.