From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Zui Quan (醉拳)

Also known as	Drunken Kung Fu, Drunken Fist, Drunken Boxing, Zuijiuquan (醉酒拳)
Focus	Hybrid
Country of origin	China
Creator	None

Part of the series on Chinese martial arts
List of Chinese martial arts
Terms
Kung fu (功夫) Wushu (武術)
Historical places
Shaolin Monastery (少林寺) Wudang Mountains (武當山) Mount Emei (峨嵋山) Kunlun Mountains (崑崙山)
Historical people
Bodhidharma / Putidamo / Damo (菩提達摩) Zhang Sanfeng (張三丰) Five Elders (五祖) Yim Wing-chun / Yan Yongchun (嚴詠春) Hung Hei-Gun / Hong Xiguan (洪熙官) Dong Haichuan (董海川) Yang Luchan (楊露禪) Wu Quanyou (吳全佑) Chen Fake (陈发科) Chan Heung / Chen Xiang (陳享) Wong Fei Hung / Huang Feihong (黃飛鴻) Huo Yuanjia (霍元甲) Yip Man / Ye Wen (葉問) Bruce Lee / Li Xiaolong (李小龍)
Related
Hong Kong action cinema Wushu (sport) Wuxia (武俠)
This box: view • talk • edit

Zui Quan (Traditional and Simplified Chinese: 醉拳; pinyin: Zuì Quán, literally Drunken Fist, also known as Drunken Boxing or Drunkard's Boxing) is a concept in traditional Chinese martial arts, as well as a classification of modern Wushu forms. Zui Quan is sometimes called Zuijiuquan (simplified Chinese: 醉酒拳; traditional Chinese: 醉酒拳; pinyin: zhìjiǔquán, literally "Drunken Alcohol Fist").

Concept

Zui Quan is a category of techniques, forms and fighting philosophy that appear to imitate a drunkard's movements.^[1] The postures are created by momentum and weight of the body, and imitation is generally through staggering and certain type of fluidity in the movements. It is considered to be among the more difficult wushu styles to learn due to the need for powerful joints and fingers. While in fiction, practitioners of Zui Quan are often portrayed as being actually intoxicated, Zui Quan techniques are highly acrobatic and skilled and require a great degree of balance and coordination, such that any person attempting to perform any Zui Quan techniques while intoxicated would be likely to injure themselves.^{[2] [3]}

Zui Quan within Chinese martial arts

Many traditional Chinese martial arts utilize drunken techniques and fighting philosophy within forms and techniques. For example:

• Some lineages of Choi Lei Fut contain "drunken" forms. Choi Lei Fut drunken technique teaches feints, explosive power generation, swaying motions and various other distraction techniques.^[4][5]
• Monkey Kung Fu contains a variation of monkey style called "Drunken Monkey" which involves "a lot of throat, eye and groin strikes as well as tumbling and falling techniques. It incorporates a lot of false steps to give the appearance it is defenseless and uses a lot of off-balance strikes. The practitioner waddles, takes very faltering steps and sometimes fall to the ground and lies prone while waiting the opponent to approach at which time a devastating attack is launched at the knees or groin areas of the opponent."^{[citation needed]}

• Performance Wushu contains several exhibition forms known as "drunken" forms, but which bear no actual connection to the forms found in traditional Chinese martial arts. ^[2]

Zui Quan in mixed and non-Chinese styles

Shaolin-Do teaches drunken forms beginning at the first degree blackbelt level.^[6]

Media appearances

Zui Quan received mainstream media attention outside of China after the premiere of the film Drunken Master in 1978. Drunken Fist's legendary style and execution is featured in many books, movies, comics and television shows.

References