#50 Intuition
Intuition is often described as your “gut feeling,” but Bruce Lee defined intuition in many different ways--as body feel, the root, the creative tide in us, natural instinct, guidance, and free movement of spirit.
“What we are after is the root and not the branches. The root is real knowledge; the branches are surface knowledge. Real knowledge breeds “body feel” and personal expression; surface knowledge breeds mechanical conditioning and imposing limitation and squelches creativity.”
Intuition is something that springs from our root and our creative tide. This tide is an ebb and flow of our inner energy and the logic of our mind. Bruce talked about intuition as true seeing, true awareness, looking within, and having deep perception.
In this modern world there is tension between our inner guidance and the logic of the mind. We want to see facts to weigh for or against something and it can overwhelm our intuition. If you need to make an importance decision or assess something critical , it's a good time to check in with your intuition or how you feel about it rather than just your linear thoughts.
“The superior man lets himself be guided.”
“Bring the mind into sharp focus and make it alert so that is can immediately intuit truth, which is everywhere. The mind must be emancipated from old habits, prejudices, restrictive thought process, and even ordinary thought itself.”
This allows you to see the wholeness of something. For Bruce, using intuition wasn’t just about making decisions; it was about walking a better path as a human.
And using intuition as a pathway back to wholeness and to consciousness.
“Don’t think – feel. Feeling exists here and now when not interrupted and dissected by ideas or concepts. The moment we stop analyzing and let go, we can start really seeing, feeling – as one whole.”
A truly awake person is using their mind, body, and heart all at once.
“Here is natural instinct and here is control. You are to combine the two in harmony. If you have one to the extreme, you will be very unscientific; if you have another to the extreme, you become a mechanical man and no longer a human being.”
If you don’t use your natural instinct, you’re moving away from being a human being.
“This achieving the center, being grounded in one’s self, is about the highest state a human being can achieve.”
These days sensitivity has gotten a bad reputation but if you’re a sensitive person you actually have a great tool to help you be aware of your surroundings and yourself.
“Awakening, self-realization, and seeing into one’s own being – these are synonymous.”
“Not conviction, not method – but perception is the way of truth. It is a state of effortless awareness, pliable awareness, choiceless awareness.”
“There is an awareness without choice, without any demand, an awareness in which there is no anxiety; and in that state of mind there is perception. It is the perception alone that will resolve all our problems.”
Being in touch with your feelings and inner-most self isn’t about being an emotional wreck.
“Trust the life-giving force within.”
Bruce wrote a letter to his friend Pearl when he was 21 where he discusses this feeling and he writes about all the things he wanted out of life and wanted to do with his life.
“I feel I have this great creative and spiritual force within me, that is greater than faith, that is greater than ambition, greater than confidence, greater than determination, greater than vision, it is all these combined. And my brain becomes magnetized with this dominating force which I hold in my hand.”
Bruce is talking about his life-giving force within and it’s clear from this letter that Bruce is identifying his intuition. At this young age, Bruce is becoming in touch with this inner energy and recognizing that if he can combine it with his dreams and what his mind wants, he can accomplish anything.
“Sharpen the psychic power of seeing in order to act immediately in accordance with what it sees.”
Often we can be too “in our heads” or analytical about a situation letting our minds decide everything for us. Even when we have an intuition about something, there can be a huge gap between knowing and doing. The awareness can be overwhelming, especially if you know that by acting on that awareness you’ll have to change many things.
Bruce was able to accomplish so much in his short life because he sharpened this ability to see the truth and then to act immediately in accordance with that. He was master of shortening that gap between awareness and action.
You don’t have to act on everything right away, but if you just write it down, like Bruce did, then you’ll be able to see a pattern emerge and recognize the conversation your creative tide wants to have with you.
“To raise our potential is to live and review every second refreshed.”
To raise our potential as a human being is to meet every moment as a new moment and ask “What is this new moment offering me?”
Intuition is heightening the ability to “see" with your whole body; which ultimately means your own freedom.
“Freedom lies in understanding yourself from moment to moment. If you look within yourself and know you have done right, what do you have to fear?”
This is about connecting to your own essential essence. For Bruce Lee, intuition was rooted in his true essence and he made an intentional practice of sharpening those skills to see and hear better, and then to act.
Take Action:
Listen to your whole body and follow your gut and make note of what types of themes keep coming up for you. Journal about it and create an awareness. Try a test of following your gut and see how it works out for you. Does following your gut work out to be the right choice for you? Understand how your body feels in those moments, and get used to tuning into that.
If you’d like to share how you’re doing with this action item you can email us at hello@brucelee.com.
We started the Bruce Lee Podcast Challenge a few days ago on Monday, we’re doing it and you should do it too! It’s for two weeks and it’s not too late to join us. We’re excited to have our friend actor Osric Chau participating in the challenge too!
What is the Bruce Lee Podcast Challenge?
1. Practice the 3 Action items listed below every day for 2 weeks: Affirmations, Nutrition/Fitness, Harmony.
2. Document your progress by journaling every day.
3. Submit your story on June 26th 2017 about your experience doing the 2 week challenge.
4. Final deadline for entries is June 30th, 2017.
#AAHA
(Awesome Asians and Hapas)
Shekhar Kapur
This week our #AAHA shout-out goes to Indian director Shekhar Kapur. He’s known for directing “Elizabeth” which was nominated for 7 Oscars. His parents wanted him to study accounting so he actually started out working as an accountant for a multinational oil company. In 1975, Kapur started his career in film as an actor in the movie “Jaan Hazir Hai” and later moved to directing with the movie “Massom” in 1983. In 1994, he directed the critically acclaimed “Bandit Queen,” and in 1998 he received international recognition for the Academy Award winning period film “Elizabeth” which catapulted Cate Blanchett’s career. Shannon is actually in talks with Kapur about doing a project, which is exciting. Shekhar Kapur, we respect your true artistry and think you’re awesome!
#BruceLeeMoment
This week’s #BruceLeeMoment comes from listener Grant:
“Hi!
Firstly I want to thank you and all involved in continuing Bruce Lee's legacy. I was first introduced to Bruce in the 90's by Greek restaurant owner where I lived on the South coast of England, he gave me a copy of Enter the Dragon and told me I needed to watch. 2-3 years ago I began delving more into Bruce Lee's philosophies and began learning the deeper wisdom he shared with the world. The podcasts have been a great source of looking more into his life and teachings and have really helped me center on my own journey.
My moment in understanding comes largely from a bad relationship. I'm a divorced father who has a bad relationship with my ex-wife. While we were married I believe she suffered from postpartum depression after our daughter was born and never sought any help, she had some other issues with depression and anxiety and overall our marriage failed. We've been in a pattern of trying to maintain a friendship and co-parent but ultimately it fails and we start over each time. My ex was in several bad relationships after our marriage and a therapist has said that she is suffering from PTSD and other issues because of those, she now has several mental health issues that challenge her and peaked in her accusing me of poisoning our daughter and telling me that my wife and I deserve to be killed because of my wife's skin color (my wife is Indian, from the Caribbean) - she was then admitted to hospital and kept for several days due to a mental breakdown. It has been a path that I accepted I had made my share of choices to be on and had to continue for my daughter. Whenever my daughter was with me and fights would start I would become distracted and my focus would be shifted from enjoying that time to entering into these arguments. My "be water" moment came during the accusations of attempted murder - I was listening to that second podcast at the time. I realized that I had allowed myself to enter the pattern and I was punching the water repeatedly and allowing my frustration to build because the results were always the same and that I needed to find a different way. I realized that the place I wanted to be was simply enjoying what time I have with my family and that I was choosing to step aside from that to focus on a sideshow aimed at making me unhappy. The solution was as simple as choosing where my focus would be aimed and not entertaining the negative relationship. I've realized that a lot of anger in my life comes from allowing a focus on this poor situation, where instead I can redirect to those people that make me happy and that brings me peace. I've seen that when people ask me about the situation, even sharing the experience neutrally with someone takes me to that place. The more I redirect those conversations to focus on how I can consider myself fortunate that I have 3 amazing children and the situation may not be ideal but I do have great relationships with them all, I'm entering a positive space instead. Many of Bruce's quotes have resonated with me and learning how to find a path that allows me to stay involved with my daughter and find happiness. I truly appreciate the guided tour through his teachings that have helped me center myself and hope that my kids all get to grow seeing me as a happy person who is present with them instead of being distracted and frustrated.
I also use Bruce Lee's philosophies for training employees at work, I've found that an hour training session can usually be summarized with a couple sentences from Bruce.
Thank you again for all of the energy that is poured into the podcasts and keeping Bruce Lee's legacy available. Grant”
Share your #AAHA and #BruceLeeMoment recommendations with us via social media @BruceLee or email us at hello@brucelee.com.
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