The first is the primitive stage. It is a stage of original ignorance in which a person knows nothing about the art of combat. In a fight, he simply blocks and strikes instinctively without a concern for what is right and wrong. Of course, he may not be so-called scientific, but, nevertheless, being himself, his attacks or defenses are fluid. The second stage — the stage of sophistication, or mechanical stage — begins when a person starts his training. He is taught the different ways of blocking, striking, kicking, standing, breathing, and thinking — unquestionably, he has gained the scientific knowledge of combat, but unfortunately his original self and sense of freedom are lost, and his action no longer flows by itself. His mind tends to freeze at different movements for calculations and analysis, and even worse, he might be called “intellectually bound” and maintain himself outside of the actual reality. The third stage — the stage of artlessness, or spontaneous stage — occurs when, after years of serious and hard practice, the student realizes that after all, gung fu is nothing special. And instead of trying to impose on his mind, he adjusts himself to his opponent like water pressing on an earthen wall. It flows through the slightest crack. There is nothing to try to do but try to be purposeless and formless, like water. All of his classical techniques and standard styles are minimized, if not wiped out, and nothingness prevails. He is no longer confined.
Source: The Warrior Within : The Philosophies of Bruce Lee (1996), p. 108-109
Source: A General View of Positivism (1848, 1856), p. 104
“Maturity comes in three stages: dependence, independence and interdependence”
Source: How to Make Love Like a Porn Star: A Cautionary Tale
Source: Trauma and Recovery: The Aftermath of Violence - From Domestic Abuse to Political Terror
“Every institution goes through three stages — utility, privilege, and abuse.”
As quoted in Culture and Progress (1930) by Wilson Dallam Wallis.
Original Preface, p. 1
The Principles of Political Economy and Taxation (1821) (Third Edition)
(Leslie T. Lyall. A Passion for the Impossible: The Continuing Story of the Mission Hudson Taylor Began. London: OMF Books, 1965, 5).
Source: A Short History of Nearly Everything
Source: A General View of Positivism (1848, 1856), p. 36
