At
only 5-7, 145 pounds, Bruce Lee was considered the greatest martial artist
the world has ever seen. From performing his one fingered pushups or thumbs-only
pushups, to sending individuals (some outweighing him by as much as 100
pounds) flying to about 15 feet away as a result of experiencing his "one-inch"
punch, or to supporting a 125-pound barbell at arm's length in front of
him (with elbows locked), Bruce Lee's incredible feats of strengths inspired
many individuals in their approach towards daily training.
Bruce Lee gave martial arts recogintion, using it as a stepping stone
to launch his career, and in the process bringing the art out of the shadows
of secrecy. Thus Bruce Lee paved the way for martial artist turned actors
such as Steven Siegal, Chuck Norris, and Jean Claude Van Damme. However
these second rate (no offense intended) martial artists pale incomparison
to the skills of the Dragon.
Bruce Lee is arguably the greatest martial artist ever for a number of
reasons. Bruce had the natural talent necessary to excel in the field
of martial arts. However he was not satisfied at his own physical fitness
and thus he went about creating a way to achieve the perfect body he deemed
necessary in a "real-world" fighting situation. He realised that "natural
talent" alone was insufficeint in actual combat situations.
The areas he developed through body building not only looked good, but
also serve the additional function of augmenting his already incredible
fighting ability. Notice that when you look at Bruce Lee's physique, his
upper body was not overly huge, for he believe that too much muscles in
the upper body slows down the individual. The areas of his upper body
which he fully developed were his lats, his forearms, biceps, deltoids,
and especially the abdoment which is the target of most attackers. Thus
by developing these core muscles which he believed were the neccessities
of actual combat situations, Bruce Lee created "the physique" that we
see in his films.
However the major difference between Bruce Lee and other martial artists
is that not only was he able to critisize himself (which other martial
artists fail to do), but he was able to use this critisism in the production
of what he believed encompasses all of martial arts. Thus JKD was developed
by Bruce Lee to express himself beyond his previous style of Wing-Chun.
Also if you compare Bruce Lee's work ethic to that of todays martial artists,
you would find that the training schedule of todays martial artists, were
nothing compared to Lee's. Bruce would train EVERY SINGLE DAY! Lifting
weights, and practicing his martial arts for hours. Even after film takes,
Bruce was reported to be constantly exercising, using his EMS machine.
Others would say that there are other martial artists such as those of
Shaolin or some other Grand Master that could have beaten Bruce Lee in
combat, but I believe that they would have been easily dealt with by Bruce
Lee, for Bruce not only had the skill, but he had the strength which he
developed from extensive weight training, which I don't think that other
martial artists would have encorporated as part of their training. ( I
mean I don't think those Shaolin monks had a gym in their temple!!) Thus
although they may have been slightly quicker or knew more moves than him,
in actual combat, Bruce would overwhelm his opponent not only because
of his physical skills and quickness, but more importantly with his incredible
strength.
Bruce Lee was believed to be the first one to encorporate weight training
with martial arts, teaching these principles to his students such as Joe
Lewis and Kareem Abdul Jabbar. The power that Bruce Lee could readily
channel was no doubt evident in his demonstrations of his famous "one-inch"
punch.
It is through these reasons that I believe no one will ever suprass
Bruce Lee interms of his skills, physical fitness, and popularity, and
why I feel he is great martial artist of all time, barring none.
To sum up my admiration for Bruce Lee, I liken him to another individual
who in his own field is considered to be the greatest of all time. That
person is Michael Jordan. For these two individuals are not only considered
to be the greatest performers ever in their respected fields, but they
have also surprassed the boundaries of race, gender, and age, gaining
admiration through their unparalleled mastery of their fields.
"You know what I want to think of myself? As a human being.
Because, I mean I don't want to sound like as Confusion say, but under
the sky, under the heaven man, there is but one family. It just so happens
man... that people are different"(Bruce Lee interview)
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