Daniele Bolelli is an Italian writer, martial artist, and university professor. He is the author of On the Warrior's Path one of the modern classics on the philosophy of martial arts.

Personal life

Bolelli was born in Milan, Italy, in a family of writers. His father, Franco Bolelli

Franco Bolelli

Franco Bolelli is one of the leading modern Italian philosophers. A very prolific writer with many books to his credit, he explores the most advanced areas of evolution in order to connect and enhance different creative worlds...

, is one of the most influential modern Italian philosophers. His mother, Gloria, is the author of four books and a freelance journalist. After high school, Bolelli moved to Los Angeles

Los Ángeles

Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...

, where he began attending Santa Monica College

Santa Monica College

Santa Monica College is a two-year, public, junior college located in Santa Monica, California.Santa Monica College was first opened in 1929 as Santa Monica Junior College. Current enrollment is over 30,000 students in more than 90 fields of study...

. He later graduated from UCLA with a B.A. in Anthropology, and continued his graduate work at UCLA (in American Indian Studies), CSULB (History) and Cardiff University

Cardiff University

Cardiff University is a leading research university located in the Cathays Park area of Cardiff, Wales, United Kingdom. It received its Royal charter in 1883 and is a member of the Russell Group of Universities. The university is consistently recognised as providing high quality research-based...

 (History.) He currently lives in the Los Angeles area.

Writing

When he was only 20 years old, Bolelli co-authored his first book Mitologie Felici, which was published in Italy. He later co-authored two more books in Italy Starship, and Frontiere.
His first solo book, La Tenera Arte del Guerriero, was published when Bolelli was 22 years old. This work, which is a philosophical exploration of the martial arts, went on to become a cult classic in Italy even outside the confines of martial arts circles. Bolelli later translated it into English and added three additional chapters. The end result was published in the United States in 2003 under the title On the Warrior's Path. Two new chapters were later added for a second edition published in 2008. A Russian edition of On the Warrior's Path is scheduled to be published soon.

In addition to continuing to write for several magazines, Bolelli recently finished a book on comparative religions It was published in Italy in 2011 under the title iGod: Istruzioni per l'Uso di una Religione Fai da Te. This book has not yet been released in the United States.

However, Bolelli's third book, 50 Things You're Not Supposed To Know: Religion, is scheduled to be published in the United States in December 2011

Some of the most influential thinkers to have affected his world view include Tom Robbins

Tom Robbins

Thomas Eugene "Tom" Robbins Thomas Eugene "Tom" Robbins Thomas Eugene "Tom" Robbins (born July 22, 1936 is an American author. His best-selling novels are serio-comic, often wildly poetic stories with a strong social and philosophical undercurrent, an irreverent bent, and scenes extrapolated from...

, Friedrich Nietzsche

Friedrich Nietzsche

Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche was a 19th-century German philosopher, poet, composer and classical philologist...

, Ikkyu

Ikkyu

was an eccentric, iconoclastic Japanese Zen Buddhist monk and poet. He had a great impact on the infusion of Japanese art and literature with Zen attitudes and ideals.-Childhood:...

 Sojun, Thomas Paine

Thomas Paine

Thomas "Tom" Paine was an English author, pamphleteer, radical, inventor, intellectual, revolutionary, and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States...

, Henry David Thoreau

Henry David Thoreau

Henry David Thoreau was an American author, poet, philosopher, abolitionist, naturalist, tax resister, development critic, surveyor, historian, and leading transcendentalist...

, Lao Tzu, and Heraclitus

Heraclitus

Heraclitus of Ephesus was a pre-Socratic Greek philosopher, a native of the Greek city Ephesus, Ionia, on the coast of Asia Minor. He was of distinguished parentage. Little is known about his early life and education, but he regarded himself as self-taught and a pioneer of wisdom...

.

Teaching career

Bolelli regularly teaches at several colleges and universities in Southern California. Unlike most scholars who tend to specialize in one particular field of knowledge, Bolelli adopts a "renaissance" man-approach to teaching that has led him to lecture for very diverse departments such as History, Social Sciences, American Indian Studies, Asian American Studies, and World Arts and Cultures. The very wide range of subjects he teaches include American Indian history and philosophy, history of the United States, world religions, history of ancient Rome

Rome

Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...

, history and philosophy of martial arts

Martial arts

Martial arts are extensive systems of codified practices and traditions of combat, practiced for a variety of reasons, including self-defense, competition, physical health and fitness, as well as mental and spiritual development....

, the ethnic experience in the United States, world history, plus several courses on the relationship between cinema and history. Perhaps even more peculiar than his unusually extensive repertoire is Bolelli's lecturing style. Much like his writing, in fact, his lecturing style combines discussions of complex, deep subjects with much humor and "street lingo." For this reason, he has been defined as "half stand up comedian and half Zen

Zen

Zen is a school of Mahāyāna Buddhism founded by the Buddhist monk Bodhidharma. The word Zen is from the Japanese pronunciation of the Chinese word Chán , which in turn is derived from the Sanskrit word dhyāna, which can be approximately translated as "meditation" or "meditative state."Zen...

 master." This odd mix has made him extremely popular among students.

Martial Arts

Bolelli has trained in several styles of martial arts including kung fu san soo

San soo

Kung Fu San Soo is a martial art based on techniques from all over China, both Northern and Southern Chinese martial arts systems, acoording to Grandmaster Woo in a 1970's interview. The 5 Family Fist , practiced in the Taishan region of the Guangdong province. Kung Fu San Soo has many traditional...

, taijiquan, baguazhang

Baguazhang

Bāguàzhǎng is one of the three main Chinese martial arts of the Wudang school, the other two being Taijiquan and Xingyiquan. It is more broadly grouped as an internal practice...

, xingyiquan

Xingyiquan

Xingyiquan is one of the major "internal" or Wudang styles of Chinese martial arts. The word translates approximately to "Form/Intention Boxing", or "Shape/Will Boxing", and is characterized by aggressive, seemingly linear movements and explosive power...

, submission wrestling

Wrestling

Wrestling is a form of grappling type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. A wrestling bout is a physical competition, between two competitors or sparring partners, who attempt to gain and maintain a superior position...

, Brazilian jiujitsu, boxing

Boxing

Boxing, also called pugilism, is a combat sport in which two people fight each other using their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee over a series of between one to three minute intervals called rounds...

, and judo

Judo

is a modern martial art and combat sport created in Japan in 1882 by Jigoro Kano. Its most prominent feature is its competitive element, where the object is to either throw or takedown one's opponent to the ground, immobilize or otherwise subdue one's opponent with a grappling maneuver, or force an...

. He holds a fourth degree black belt in kung fu san soo

San soo

Kung Fu San Soo is a martial art based on techniques from all over China, both Northern and Southern Chinese martial arts systems, acoording to Grandmaster Woo in a 1970's interview. The 5 Family Fist , practiced in the Taishan region of the Guangdong province. Kung Fu San Soo has many traditional...

--a style that he has taught for several years at UCLA's John Wooden

John Wooden

John Robert Wooden was an American basketball player and coach. Nicknamed the "Wizard of Westwood", he won ten NCAA national championships in a 12-year period — seven in a row — as head coach at UCLA, an unprecedented feat. Within this period, his teams won a record 88 consecutive games...

 Center. Bolelli also coached and fought professionally in mixed martial arts

Mixed martial arts

Mixed Martial Arts is a full contact combat sport that allows the use of both striking and grappling techniques, both standing and on the ground, including boxing, wrestling, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, muay Thai, kickboxing, karate, judo and other styles. The roots of modern mixed martial arts can be...

 (MMA). His MMA role models are Genki Sudo

Genki Sudo

is a retired Japanese mixed martial artist and a kickboxer who, up until December 31, 2006 competed in the Japanese fighting organization HERO'S and before that, the Ultimate Fighting Championship and Pancrase. He is notable for his elaborate ring entrances and unorthodox fighting style. His...

, Evan Tanner

Evan Tanner

Evan Loyd Tanner was an American professional mixed martial arts fighter. He was a former UFC Middleweight and USWF Heavyweight champion with a professional record of 32 wins and 8 losses...

, Rumina Sato

Rumina Sato

is a Japanese mixed martial artist, currently competing in the Shooto organization. Being the first mixed martial artist to beat a black belt Brazilian Jiu Jitsu fighter by a submission, Sato is considered by many to be an exciting shoot wrestling-based fighter in MMA and has been nicknamed...

 and Kazushi Sakuraba

Kazushi Sakuraba

is a Japanese professional mixed martial artist and former professional wrestler. He has competed in pro-wrestling for New Japan Pro Wrestling, UWFi and Kingdom Pro Wrestling. He has fought in MMA competition in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, PRIDE Fighting Championships, K-1 Hero's and Dream...

.