080 – The Tao of Daniele Bolelli

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We are back with a conversation with Daniele Bolelli. If you don’t know Daniele, he is a writer, martial artist, university professor, and podcaster. He was born in Italy and currently lives in Los Angeles. He is the author of several books, including On the Warrior’s Path, Second Edition: Philosophy, Fighting, and Martial Arts Mythology, Create Your Own Religion: A How-To Book Without Instructions, and Not Afraid: On Fear, Heartbreak, Raising a Baby Girl, and Cage Fighting.

He is the host of the History on Fire podcast, where Daniele becomes your guide on a journey where history and epic collide. He’s also the host of The Drunken Taoist podcast, which is full of discussions and interviews. He’s also the author of the Taoist Lecture series, which tackles some of the essential points found in the Tao Te Ching and the writings of Chuang Tzu. Michael and Patrick discuss Taoist philosophy’s main points, including what it is and how it applies to real life in this illuminating interview that tries to bring Taoism to our everyday lives.

Topics Discussed Today

[03:24] Daniele Bolelli talks about taoism. Sometimes things click suddenly and have deeper meaning.

[04:43] Main books of Taoist philosophy include the Tao Te Ching and Chuang Tzu. Daniele goes into the history and myths of the books and authors.

[09:01] We talk about not getting lost in semantics. Meanings attached to words can be slightly different.

[10:20] The concept is the way and its power. The way of life and the way that the universe works. It’s the primordial energy that is out there before everything.

[14:56] It’s the ability to see things for what they are, and then you can adapt.

[19:26] We can’t take all of the great books completely literally. We need to use the information in order to create a living breathing entity in our own lives. Everything in our sphere of perception needs to be interpreted in our mind.

[20:10] We have to be able to adapt to situations.

[20:30] With Taoism, there’s an idea of learning in three stages. We start with ignorance. Then we learn the way things should be. Knowing stuff is just a stepping stone. The third stage is when knowledge turns into wisdom.

[21:39] Applied knowledge comes through making mistakes in life.

[22:20] Balance and harmony can be one and the same.

[23:32] Everything is moving and changing but allows the organism to maintain some functionality.

[24:20] You may have never heard of Taoism, but if you understand biology or some other discipline, the same principles will apply.

[30:45] Reading the energy of the situation and deciding what action needs to be applied at the moment.

[31:16] How ideas form interactions. The way you read your ideas could be very different from the way I read them.

[33:40] Perception and input in your mind with all of your history can create actions. Sometimes an action can mean no action. Options cause the brain to stop and think. This can slow down all of the endorphins and energy.

[35:39] If you’re in a place where you don’t know people but maybe your friend does, you could pull your friend aside and tell them your perceptions of the people around you. Then when your friend responds, you can get a gauge of how you’re reading people.

[39:26] Some of the responsibilities of being a good leader is making sure that everyone else is taken care of.

[46:35] Once you find the pathway to a goal, you know you can achieve it when you invest mind, body and spirit working towards that pathway. Life can be a series of goals.

[51:21] Our natural state is relaxation. When we tense up, we make things harder on ourselves. We need to be in a state of relaxation as opposed to a state of fear even when we want something really badly.

Links and Resources:
Uncle Michael @TheHollowTube on Twitter
Uncle Michael @TheHollowTube on Instagram
Michael Bays on Facebook
The Hollow Tube Facebook Page
Daniele Bolelli
Luminary History on Fire
History on Fire Podcast
The Drunken Taoist Podcast
Taoist Lecture Series
On the Warrior’s Path, Second Edition: Philosophy, Fighting, and Martial Arts Mythology
Create Your Own Religion: A How-To Book Without Instructions
Not Afraid: On Fear, Heartbreak, Raising a Baby Girl, and Cage Fighting
Tao Te Ching
The Book of Chuang Tzu

Quotes:

“When you write something down it becomes dead. It can not interact with the reader. It can’t respond to the reader. It’s something that’s bound to be misunderstood.” Daniele Bolelli

“As long as we understand that what we’re talking about is a distant second to the real experience. It’s okay then let’s talk about it.” Daniele Bolelli

“As a surgeon we walk into an operating room or patient room and within a millisecond, we pretty much know all of the factors involved and what we need to do next.” Dr. Michael Bays

“With the sphere of perception, every bit of information that we’re getting whether we’re reading it, hearing it, or seeing it has to be interpreted in the mind. It’s through this interpretation that we develop an action plan.” Dr. Patrick Bays

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