Walking With The Tengu

We have another story from the Zhuangzi today. About a little frog in a well and a turtle who tells him of something impossible called "the ocean." I also give you a bonus Chinese idiom known as a cheng yu that I think works well in English too.

Listen to today's episode to find out what that means!

To sign up for new episode notifications and to receive the  "Very Brief Introduction to Philosophy for Martial Artists" PDF as well  as a full translation of Chapter 51 of the Budoushoshinshu about  disciplined martial arts training... go to: walkingtengu.wix.com/tengu and scroll to the bottom to enter your email.

We return to the Zhuangzi today where we hear the tale of a monkey who showed off to a king and got some unintended consequences despite his very real skill.

To sign up for new episode notifications and to receive the  "Very Brief Introduction to Philosophy for Martial Artists" PDF as well  as a full translation of Chapter 51 of the Budoushoshinshu about  disciplined martial arts training... go to: walkingtengu.wix.com/tengu and scroll to the bottom to enter your email.

In this episode we look at a new book coming out in November in the US and December 2023 globally. It is being published by YMAA. I have several of their books on my shelves. This new book is called "Blurred Boundaries: A Martial Arts Legacy and the Shaping of Taiwan” by Hong, Tse-han and translated by Chris Bates.

It is a deeply philosophical and yet practical book relevant to all martial artists. I relate a short story about the Hong brothers confronting an organized crime group that was interfering with their family's business in today's episode.

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/blurred-boundaries-tse-han-hong/1142981332

https://www.amazon.com/Blurred-Boundaries-Martial-Legacy-Shaping/dp/1594399808

We meet Hrolleif and his mother Ljot who are the worst neighbors ever in this section. Find out how salmon fishing brings about the end of dear old Ingimund and how seppuku, ritual suicide, relates to this section of the saga.

Maps of locations mentioned in the Sagas: sagamap.hi.is

To sign up for new episode notifications and to receive the  "Very Brief Introduction to Philosophy for Martial Artists" PDF as well  as a full translation of Chapter 51 of the Budoushoshinshu about  disciplined martial arts training... go to: walkingtengu.wix.com/tengu and scroll to the bottom to enter your email.

Ingimund finally gives in to "fate" and moves to Iceland. We find out he's pretty boring at naming things and that he's not above manipulating people on legal technicalities to get what he wants. Find out what happens when you bring a weapon into a Norse temple.

Maps of locations mentioned in the Sagas: sagamap.hi.is

To sign up for new episode notifications and to receive the  "Very Brief Introduction to Philosophy for Martial Artists" PDF as well  as a full translation of Chapter 51 of the Budoushoshinshu about  disciplined martial arts training... go to: walkingtengu.wix.com/tengu and scroll to the bottom to enter your email.

Our saga takes us through the battle of Havsfjord, a kind of Norwegian battle of Sekigahara, and into the fate and destiny that eventually drives the reluctant Ingimund to move to Iceland. Plus there are some shamans. Some who predict Ingimund's future and in a moment of petulance transports an amulet of his all the way to Iceland just to prove a point. Plus some others who are hired to track it down, while locked in a shed, and are to be paid in butter and tin.

We get a little more insight into free-will, predestination, and what his honorable to this people.

Maps of locations mentioned in the Sagas: sagamap.hi.is

To sign up for new episode notifications and to receive the  "Very Brief Introduction to Philosophy for Martial Artists" PDF as well  as a full translation of Chapter 51 of the Budoushoshinshu about  disciplined martial arts training... go to: walkingtengu.wix.com/tengu and scroll to the bottom to enter your email.

We continue the saga of the people of Vatnsdal today. Thorstein gets married, has a son and we learn a bit about naval combat between Viking groups. As well as what characteristics can be inferred from the text about the qualities of a good warrior and the basics of good strategy.

Maps of locations mentioned in the Sagas: sagamap.hi.is

To sign up for new episode notifications and to receive the  "Very Brief Introduction to Philosophy for Martial Artists" PDF as well  as a full translation of Chapter 51 of the Budoushoshinshu about  disciplined martial arts training... go to: walkingtengu.wix.com/tengu and scroll to the bottom to enter your email.

We begin the saga of the people of Vatnsdal today. As we see how standards about great deeds, some backhanded comments, and a very large bandit results in a marriage suggestion. We look at some of the tactics used and talk a little about the morals and ethics we can infer and interpret from this part of the saga.

Maps of locations mentioned in the Sagas: sagamap.hi.is

To sign up for new episode notifications and to receive the  "Very Brief Introduction to Philosophy for Martial Artists" PDF as well  as a full translation of Chapter 51 of the Budoushoshinshu about  disciplined martial arts training... go to: walkingtengu.wix.com/tengu and scroll to the bottom to enter your email.

We lay the groundwork for looking at the Icelandic Sagas today. What philosophical ideas did they hold about ethics, violence, and the intersection of the two. What makes the Sagas different from other literature of the time and what biases do we need to be aware of? Why were serious duels called "going to the island?" Let's take a look at these questions and get ready to jump into a world oddly both very different from our own and yet also more familiar to us than the rest of Europe at the time.

Maps of locations mentioned in the Sagas: sagamap.hi.is

To sign up for new episode notifications and to receive the  "Very Brief Introduction to Philosophy for Martial Artists" PDF as well  as a full translation of Chapter 51 of the Budoushoshinshu about  disciplined martial arts training... go to: walkingtengu.wix.com/tengu and scroll to the bottom to enter your email.

What is the "art of fighting without fighting?" Where did Bruce Lee get the idea for this story and what classical Japanese work did it originate in?

We explore these ideas in today's episode.

For more information check out: https://sourcingbrucelee.blogspot.com/2020/12/where-did-bruce-lee-get-idea-for.html

To sign up for new episode notifications and to receive the  "Very Brief Introduction to Philosophy for Martial Artists" PDF as well  as a full translation of Chapter 51 of the Budoushoshinshu about  disciplined martial arts training... go to: walkingtengu.wix.com/tengu and scroll to the bottom to enter your email.

Image Credit: Bruce Lee's "Enter The Dragon" movie still