Daniele Bolelli

Daniele Bolelli is a writer, martial artist, university professor, and podcaster. He was born in Italy and currently lives in Los Angeles.

Writing: 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. It was later published in the United States with three additional chapters under the title On the Warrior’s Path. Two more chapters were added for a second edition published in 2008. On the Warrior’s Path has been published in Russia and was published in Italy in a new updated edition in 2013. He next wrote a book about comparative religions that was published in Italy under the title iGod: Istruzioni per l’Uso di una Religione Fai da Te, and in the United States in 2013 under the title Create Your Own Religion: A How-To Book Without Instructions. Bolelli’s third book, 50 Things You’re Not Supposed To Know: Religion, was published in the United States in 2011. Some of the most influential thinkers to have affected his world view include Tom Robbins, Friedrich Nietzsche, Ikkyu Sojun, Thomas Paine, Henry David Thoreau, Lao Tzu, and Heraclitus.

Teaching career: After graduating from UCLA with a B.A. in Anthropology, and earning graduate degrees at UCLA (in American Indian Studies) and CSULB (History), Bolelli began teaching at several colleges 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 on a wide range of subjects including American Indian history and philosophy, history of the United States, world religions, history of ancient Rome, history and philosophy of martial arts, 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 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, taijiquan, baguazhang, xingyiquan, submission wrestling, Brazilian jiujitsu, boxing, and judo. He holds a fifth degree black belt in kung fu san soo–a style that he has taught for several years at UCLA’s John Wooden Center. Bolelli also coached and fought professionally in mixed martial arts (MMA).

Media and Podcasting: Bolelli was featured in I Am Bruce Lee which broke Spike TV’s rating record for documentaries. He has appeared as a guest on popular podcasts such as Duncan Trussell’s, Adam Carolla’s and Joe Rogan’s. In October 2012, Bolelli began his own podcast named The Drunken Taoist Podcast. A little over a month after its debut, The Drunken Taoist Podcast was ranked number 1 in the world in the Philosophy section of iTunes.