Name: Be Water, My Friend
Rating: 4.6 (272 reviews)
Author: Shannon Lee

What’s in it for me? Let Bruce Lee guide you to your fullest potential.

You don’t have to be a die-hard martial arts fan or film aficionado to know the name Bruce Lee. A rare master of both disciplines, Lee was beloved by many and is often credited with helping bridge the wide divide between East and West in the twentieth century.

Yet underneath the Herculean physical feats and Hollywood glitz and glamor was a deep thinker who prized personal growth and enlightened living above all. In fact, Lee believed his external achievements wouldn’t have been possible – nor had meaning – if not for his philosophical system, frequently distilled to the simple maxim, “Be water.”

Lee’s philosophical system was rigorous, to say the least, but he was always wary of imposing his teachings upon others. Instead, he sought to be “a finger pointing at the moon” – a conduit by which his students and followers might experience truths for themselves.

That said, he saw the ultimate goal as one we all share: self-actualization. To make the best version of ourselves a reality.

In this Blink, we’ll explore five core tenets of Lee’s philosophy: the wisdom of water, the value of emptiness, the gifts of opponents and obstacles, the truth of kinship, and the way of jeet kune do.

At times, the teachings may seem contradictory. That’s intentional. Life is an ever-changing ecosystem, and enlightened living requires an arsenal of responses to draw on, according to your context. Challenge yourself to be receptive to contrasting ideas. After all, the approach you’ll need tomorrow may very well be the polar opposite of the one you take today.

As Lee himself acknowledged, the path to self-actualization is a long one, but it begins with a single step. And although he’s no longer here to guide us, the teachings he left behind are. So, pack lightly and join us. The journey toward your fullest potential starts now.

The wisdom of water

Reflecting on his love for martial arts, Lee once mused that “everything” he knew he learned from them. For Lee, these practices were more than just physical. They mirrored and reflected life – they formed a remarkable microcosm. But it wasn’t always that way.…

Lee was 13 when he started learning wing chun under the skilled sifu (teacher) Yip Man. Yip Man wrapped his training in Taoist philosophy, the concepts of yin and yang, and imagery from the natural world. However, these threads didn’t come as naturally as the physical components to the hotheaded young Lee. He was far less interested in heeding the flow of nature than he was in asserting himself over it.

So how did this fiery teenager come to adopt “Be water” as his guiding philosophy?

The revelation came after he was sent home for a week to meditate on his sifu’s instructions. Frustrated and resentful, he rowed a small boat out into Hong Kong harbor and infamously punched at the South China Sea. In doing so, the water became his teacher, conveying the message his human sifu had tried to convey for so long: there is strength in softness, power in pliability.

You may not be a martial artist, but remember – Lee’s philosophy was primarily concerned with self-actualization and enlightened living, two aspirations we can all relate to. So how can we apply the way of water to these endeavors?

First, consider water’s unparalleled ability to respond deftly to its environment. Sometimes water flows; sometimes it crashes. Sometimes water runs around obstacles; sometimes it runs obstacles into the ground. The same applies to us amid the flux of life. Sometimes the wisest response is to yield; other times, to assert. We can follow water’s example and recognize that each response has its time and place.

In this way, water can also be described as “being whole,” as it embodies yin and yang. Yin and yang are often depicted as black and white, negative and positive, cold and hot – and therefore opposites. Yet this isn’t exactly right – “complementary” is a more accurate description.

And isn’t it true that we possess both yin and yang, and that life itself does, too? We each have strengths and weaknesses; life has joy and sorrow. Water can remind us that the healthiest way to move through life is to acknowledge both. That's what makes us, and life, ultimately complete and indivisible.

The gift of emptiness

“Empty your mind.” This was Lee’s ongoing counsel to himself. After all, as several wisdom traditions have pointed out, the value of a vessel – whether a cup, pot, or bottle – is in its emptiness.

To Lee, emptiness in the context of enlightened living was twofold: operating from neutrality, and being an “eternal student.”

The gift of opponents and obstacles

Opponents and obstacles: as long as we’re living, breathing organisms, we can guarantee we will encounter both – and often.

For the most part, opponents and obstacles are seen as adversarial. Very few of us would volunteer to encounter either if we had the choice.

The truth of kinship

When Lee was interviewed by Canadian journalist Pierre Berton, he was asked whether he identified as Chinese or American. His response is as poignant today as it was then: he identified as human. After all, as he continued in the now famous clip, “Under the sky, under the heavens, there is but one family.”

Those close to Lee remember him just as much for his kindness and generosity as they do his expansive mind and physical prowess. Even those who weren’t in his inner circle fondly recall his use of the expression “my friend” – the warm refrain that littered Lee’s conversation and writing.

The way of jeet kune do

Here’s a little-known fact: Bruce Lee was quite a controversial figure in the martial arts scene.

According to the tradition of the time, Lee, being “only” three-quarters Chinese, shouldn’t have been allowed to learn Chinese kung fu. It was thanks to his sage sifu, Yip Man, who trained Lee in private to avoid public uproar, that he had the opportunity.

Key ideas in Be Water, My Friend