Fighting.net Quiet Mind, Dangerous Body, Compassionate Soul™

JB's interest in both Zen and the martial arts occurred as a boy when he was given a copy of Bruce Lee's "Tao of Jeet Kune Do" for Christmas.  As a young man, he trained in Shorin-ryu Karatedo, Taekwondo Mudeokgwan, and Sibpalgi.

While in college, he began studying Rapid Assault Tactics and Progressive Fighting Systems under Phase One Instructor Harounah Soumah.  This experience expanded JB's martial horizons and gave him his first taste of Bruce Lee's Jeet Kune Do.

During this time,  JB also began studying and practicing Seon (the Korean pronounciation of Zen) at the Baltimore Zen Center.  Under the guidance of the Venerable Pohwa-seunim, Dharma Heir to a lineage of Zen practice, JB eventually took vows and became a member of the Blue Mountain Order of Seon Buddhism.  During this ritual, JB was given the Dharma name MuSsang, meaning "Unequaled".  JB took up residence at the Temple of the Enlightened King, outside of Baltimore, Maryland.  Under Pohwa-seunim's instruction,  JB eventually began teaching Seon Buddhism at the temple.  When Pohwa-seunim returned to South Korea to become the Guiding Teacher at Hwagye Temple,  JB was named Director and Dharma Teacher of the Baltimore Zen Center at the Temple of the Enlightened King.

In 2005, JB was charged by Pohwa-seunim to research the practice and connection between the martial arts and Zen, and was told to look for and train under the best martial arts teachers.  With this in mind, JB  looked to Paul Vunak and Progressive Fighting Systems.  With the advent of the Adapt for Life program, JB knew that the ideals of  Decendants of the Masters and the Baltimore Zen Center were a perfect match for each other.

Drawing from the centuries-old contemplative practice of Zen Buddhism, the brutal martial arts system of Paul Vunak, and the nurturing of the Adapt for Life program, JB hopes to embody the DoM motto of "Quiet Mind, Dangerous Body, Compassionate Soul".