Daniele Bolelli (born January 11, 1974) is an Italian writer, university

lecturer Lecturer is an academic rank within many universities, though the meaning of the term varies somewhat from country to country. It generally denotes an academic expert who is hired to teach on a full- or part-time basis. They may also conduct re ...

martial artist Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defence; military and law enforcement applications; competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; and the pres ...

, and

podcaster A podcast is a program made available in digital format for download over the Internet. Typically, a podcast is an episodic series of digital audio files that users can download to a personal device or stream to listen to at a time of their ...

based in

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...

. He is the author of several books on

philosophy Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

, and

martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defence; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; ...

, including ''On the Warrior's Path''. Known for his writing since the 1990s in Italy and the early 2000s in the United States, Bolelli rose to greater public prominence in the 2010s, beginning with his appearances on popular podcasts such as ''

The Joe Rogan Experience ''The Joe Rogan Experience'' is a podcast hosted by American comedian, presenter, and UFC color commentator Joe Rogan. It was initiated on December 24, 2009, on YouTube by Rogan and comedian Brian Redban, who was its sole co-host and produce ...

''. He went on to create his own podcasts, and has hosted ''The Drunken Taoist'' since 2012 and ''History on Fire'' since 2015. Bolelli holds M.As in

American Indian Studies Native American studies (also known as American Indian, Indigenous American, Aboriginal, Native, or First Nations studies) is an interdisciplinary academic field that examines the history, culture, politics, issues, spirituality, sociology and co ...

and

history History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the Human history, human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some t ...

from

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...

and

California State University, Long Beach California State University, Long Beach (CSULB), also known in athletics as Long Beach State University (LBSU), is a public teaching-focused institution in Long Beach, California, United States. The 322-acre campus is the second largest in the ...

, and did

postdoctoral research A postdoctoral fellow, postdoctoral researcher, or simply postdoc, is a person professionally conducting research after the completion of their doctoral studies (typically a PhD). Postdocs most commonly, but not always, have a temporary acade ...

in history at

Cardiff University Cardiff University () is a public research university in Cardiff, Wales. It was established in 1883 as the University College of South Wales and Monmouthshire and became a founding college of the University of Wales in 1893. It was renamed Unive ...

. As a professor, he has taught a wide variety of courses in

the arts The arts or creative arts are a vast range of human practices involving creative expression, storytelling, and cultural participation. The arts encompass diverse and plural modes of thought, deeds, and existence in an extensive range of m ...

humanities Humanities are academic disciplines that study aspects of human society and culture, including Philosophy, certain fundamental questions asked by humans. During the Renaissance, the term "humanities" referred to the study of classical literature a ...

, and

social sciences Social science (often rendered in the plural as the social sciences) is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of society, societies and the Social relation, relationships among members within those societies. The term was former ...

on topics including

Native American history Native Americans (also called American Indians, First Americans, or Indigenous Americans) are the Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous peoples of the United States, particularly of the Contiguous United States, lower 48 states and A ...

and

culture Culture ( ) is a concept that encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and Social norm, norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, Social norm, customs, capabilities, Attitude (psychology), attitudes ...

Taoist philosophy Taoist philosophy () also known as Taology refers to the various philosophical currents of Taoism, a tradition of China, Chinese origin which emphasizes living in harmony with the ''Tao, Dào'' (, Daoism–Taoism romanization issue, also romaniz ...

, and

Ancient Rome In modern historiography, ancient Rome is the Roman people, Roman civilisation from the founding of Rome, founding of the Italian city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the Fall of the Western Roman Empire, collapse of the Western Roman Em ...

. He teaches at CSULB and

Santa Monica College Santa Monica College (SMC) is a Public university, public community college in Santa Monica, California. Founded as a Junior college#United States, junior college in 1929, SMC enrolls over 30,000 students in more than 90 fields of study. The coll ...

Personal life

Bolelli was born in Milan, Italy, in a family of writers. His father, Franco Bolelli, was an Italian philosopher. His mother, Gloria Mattioni, is the author of four books and a freelance journalist. After high school, Bolelli moved to

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

, where he began attending

. He later graduated from

with a B.A. in Anthropology, and continued his graduate work at UCLA (in American Indian Studies), CSULB (History) and

(History). He currently lives in the Los Angeles area. In 2011, Bolelli's wife, Elizabeth Han, died from a brain tumor a little over a year after giving birth to their daughter, Isabella.

Writing

When he was 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, became popular in Italy even outside the confines of martial arts circles and it has been used as a textbook in several universities in the United States, Canada and Italy. 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'' was published in 2011, and an updated Italian edition was released in 2013. He next wrote a book on comparative religions, which was published in Italy in 2011 under the title ''iGod: Istruzioni per l'Uso di una Religione Fai da Te'', and in the United States in 2013 as ''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 December 2011. Bolelli's fourth book, ''Not Afraid: On Fear, Heartbreak, Raising a Baby Girl, and Cage Fighting'' was published in 2015. It's an autobiographical tale on the theme of facing fear which discusses Bolelli's experiences in martial arts, the death of his wife, and his raising his daughter as a single parent. He says that the most influential thinkers to have affected his world view include

Tom Robbins Thomas Eugene Robbins (July 22, 1932 – February 9, 2025) was an American novelist. His most notable works are "seriocomedies" (also known as "comedy dramas"). Robbins had lived in La Conner, Washington, since 1970, where he wrote nine of his ...

Friedrich Nietzsche Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (15 October 1844 – 25 August 1900) was a German philosopher. He began his career as a classical philology, classical philologist, turning to philosophy early in his academic career. In 1869, aged 24, Nietzsche bec ...

, Ikkyu Sojun,

Thomas Paine Thomas Paine (born Thomas Pain; – In the contemporary record as noted by Conway, Paine's birth date is given as January 29, 1736–37. Common practice was to use a dash or a slash to separate the old-style year from the new-style year. In ...

Henry David Thoreau Henry David Thoreau (born David Henry Thoreau; July 12, 1817May 6, 1862) was an American naturalist, essayist, poet, and philosopher. A leading Transcendentalism, transcendentalist, he is best known for his book ''Walden'', a reflection upon sim ...

Lao Tzu Laozi (), also romanized as Lao Tzu #Name, among other ways, was a semi-legendary Chinese philosophy, Chinese philosopher and author of the ''Tao Te Ching'' (''Laozi''), one of the foundational texts of Taoism alongside the ''Zhuangzi (book) ...

, and

Heraclitus Heraclitus (; ; ) was an Ancient Greece, ancient Greek Pre-Socratic philosophy, pre-Socratic philosopher from the city of Ephesus, which was then part of the Achaemenid Empire, Persian Empire. He exerts a wide influence on Western philosophy, ...

Teaching career

Bolelli teaches courses at CSULB and

. Unlike most scholars who tend to specialize in one particular field of knowledge, Bolelli describes himself as taking a "

renaissance man A polymath or polyhistor is an individual whose knowledge spans many different subjects, known to draw on complex bodies of knowledge to solve specific problems. Polymaths often prefer a specific context in which to explain their knowledge, ...

approach." This has led him to lecture for diverse departments including History, Social Sciences, American Indian Studies, Asian American Studies, and World Arts and Cultures. The range of subjects he teaches include American Indian history and philosophy, history of the United States, world religions, history of ancient

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

, history and philosophy of

, the ethnic experience in the United States, world history, and several courses on the relationship between cinema and history.

Martial arts

Bolelli has trained in several styles of martial arts including

kung fu Chinese martial arts, commonly referred to with umbrella terms Kung fu (term), kung fu (; ), kuoshu () or wushu (sport), wushu (), are Styles of Chinese martial arts, multiple fighting styles that have developed over the centuries in Greater Ch ...

san soo,

taijiquan is a Chinese martial art. Initially developed for combat and self-defense, for most practitioners it has evolved into a sport and form of exercise. As an exercise, tai chi is performed as gentle, low-impact movement in which practitioners p ...

baguazhang ''Baguazhang'' () is one of the three main Chinese martial arts of the '' Wudang'' school, the other two being tai chi and '' xingyiquan''. It is more broadly grouped as an internal practice (or ''neijia''). ''Baguazhang'' literally means "eigh ...

xingyiquan 形意拳, Xingyiquan , or Xingyi, is a style of internal Chinese martial arts. The word approximately translates to "Form-Intention Fist", or "Shape-Will Fist". The style is characterized by aggressive, seemingly linear movements, and expl ...

shuai jiao ''Shuai jiao'' () is the term pertaining to the ancient jacket wrestling Wushu (sport), wushu style of Beijing, Tianjin and Baoding of Hebei Province in the North China Plain which was codified by Shan Pu Ying (善撲营 The Battalion of Excel ...

, submission

wrestling Wrestling is a martial art, combat sport, and form of entertainment that involves grappling with an opponent and striving to obtain a position of advantage through different throws or techniques, within a given ruleset. Wrestling involves di ...

, Brazilian jiujitsu,

boxing Boxing is a combat sport and martial art. Taking place in a boxing ring, it involves two people – usually wearing protective equipment, such as boxing glove, protective gloves, hand wraps, and mouthguards – throwing Punch (combat), punch ...

, and

judo is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, combat sport, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyc ...

. He holds black belts in Judo, Brazilian Jiujitsu, and an eight degree black belt in kung fu san sooa style that he has taught for several years at

's John Wooden Center. Bolelli also coached and fought professionally in

mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting combat sport, sport based on strike (attack), striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-s ...

(MMA). His MMA role models are

Genki Sudo is a Japanese former mixed martial artist, singer, actor and politician. Between 1998 and 2006, Sudo was a professional athlete and then was in the entertainment industry from 2006 to 2019. He has since returned to his previous position in World ...

Evan Tanner Evan Lloyd Tanner (February 11, 1971 – September 5, 2008) was an American professional mixed martial arts fighter. He was a former UFC Middleweight Champion and was the first American to win the Pancrase Neo-Blood tournament in Tokyo, ...

Rumina Sato (, kanji for given name: 留美奈) is a Japanese retired mixed martial artist, famous for his career in the Shooto organization. In the past he fought mostly in the 155 lb division, but he moved down to the 145 lb division. Mixed mar ...

and

Kazushi Sakuraba is a Japanese professional wrestler, submission wrestling, submission wrestler and former mixed martial artist, currently signed to Pro Wrestling NOAH, Pro Wrestling Noah, where he was formerly one-half of the former GHC Tag Team Championship, G ...

. He also coaches and manages female MMA fighter Sovannahry Em. And teaches Brazilian jiu-jitsu and judo at Ojai Valley Martial Arts in Oak View, California. He is the author of an instructional video for BJJ Fanatics called "Prison Rules: The Not-So Gentle Art of Jiu-Jitsu"

Media and podcasting

Bolelli is the host of two popular podcasts: ''The Drunken Taoist'' and ''History on Fire''. Bolelli began hosting ''The Drunken Taoist'' in October 2012 after appearing on popular podcasts including

Adam Carolla Adam Carolla (born May 27, 1964) is an American radio personality, comedian, actor and podcaster. He hosts '' The Adam Carolla Show'', a talk show distributed as a podcast which set the record as the "most downloaded podcast" as judged by ''Guin ...

's,

Joe Rogan Joseph James Rogan (born August 11, 1967) is an American podcaster, Ultimate Fighting Championship, UFC color commentator, comedian, actor, and former television host. He hosts The Joe Rogan Experience, ''The Joe Rogan Experience'', which is o ...

's,

Duncan Trussell Charles Duncan Trussell (born April 20, 1974) is an American actor and stand-up comic, known for his podcast '' The Duncan Trussell Family Hour''. He appeared on and co-created the 2020 Netflix series '' The Midnight Gospel'', and starred alongs ...

's and

Skepticality ''Skepticality'' was the official podcast of The Skeptics Society's ''Skeptic'' magazine. Beginning in May 2005, the podcast explores rational thought, skeptical ideas, and famous myths from around the world and throughout history. Each episod ...

, the official podcast of the Skeptic Society. His foray into podcasting followed his appearance in Spike TV's ''I Am Bruce Lee'' documentary and a Jan. 24, 2012 interview about his book ''50 Things You’re Not Supposed to Know: Religion'', published in ''Wired'' magazine. A little over a month after its debut, ''The Drunken Taoist'' was ranked number 1 in the world in the Philosophy section of iTunes. Bolelli explained the naming of the podcast in his interview with Taoism Network: Taoism forms the philosophical roots of his worldview. The 'drunken' part links to a type of consciousness that emphasises on instinct, a celebratory and egalitarian attitude, and his hero Ikkyu Sojun . In 2014, Bolelli released a sixteen-part lecture series about Taoist philosophy. He has continued to appear on various popular podcasts, including

Mike Vallely Mike Vallely ( ; born 1970), also known as Mike V, is an American professional skateboarder and musician. From 2013 to 2025, he was the lead vocalist of the hardcore punk band Black Flag. Vallely was the second-longest-serving member of the ban ...

's ''The Mike V Show.'' Bolelli began hosting ''History On Fire'' in 2015, which was included in iTunes' list for 'Best of 2015' podcasts in the "Recent Debut" category. History on Fire was inspired by Dan Carlin's ''Hardcore History'', and Carlin later appeared as a guest on the show. Topics of podcasts have included

Oglala Lakota The Oglala (pronounced , meaning 'to scatter one's own' in Lakota language, Lakota) are one of the seven subtribes of the Lakota people who, along with the Dakota people, Dakota, make up the Sioux, Očhéthi Šakówiŋ (Seven Council Fires). A ...

leader

Crazy Horse Crazy Horse ( , ; – September 5, 1877) was a Lakota people, Lakota war leader of the Oglala band. He took up arms against the United States federal government to fight against encroachment by White Americans, White American settlers on Nativ ...

, U.S. President

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), also known as Teddy or T.R., was the 26th president of the United States, serving from 1901 to 1909. Roosevelt previously was involved in New York (state), New York politics, incl ...

, the Italian artist

Caravaggio Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio (also Michele Angelo Merigi or Amerighi da Caravaggio; 29 September 1571 – 18 July 1610), known mononymously as Caravaggio, was an Italian painter active in Rome for most of his artistic life. During the fina ...

, and the early 20th Century American boxer Jack Johnson.

References

External links

Danielebolelli.com
(official website) {{DEFAULTSORT:Bolelli, Daniele Italian male writers Living people 20th-century Italian philosophers 21st-century Italian philosophers Italian wushu practitioners Italian male judoka Sportspeople from Milan 20th-century American philosophers American wushu practitioners American male judoka American practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu Italian practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu People awarded a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu Italian emigrants to the United States Santa Monica College alumni Writers from Los Angeles California State University, Long Beach alumni University of California, Los Angeles alumni Alumni of Cardiff University 1974 births 21st-century American philosophers 20th-century American sportsmen