Zui Quan is literally Drunken Fist, also known as Drunken Boxing or Drunkard's Boxing) is a concept in traditional Chinese martial arts

Chinese martial arts

Chinese martial arts, also referred to by the Mandarin Chinese term wushu and popularly as kung fu , are a number of fighting styles that have developed over the centuries in China. These fighting styles are often classified according to common traits, identified as "families" , "sects" or...

, as well as a classification of modern Wushu

Wushu (sport)

The sport of wushu is both an exhibition and a full-contact sport derived from traditional Chinese martial arts. It was created in the People's Republic of China after 1949, in an attempt to nationalize the practice of traditional Chinese martial arts...

 forms. Zui Quan is sometimes called Zuijiuquan .

Concept

Zui Quan is a category of techniques, forms and fighting philosophy that appear to imitate a drunkard

Drunkenness

Alcohol intoxication is a physiological state that occurs when a person has a high level of ethanol in his or her blood....

's movements. 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 most 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.

Style

Even though the style seems irregular and off balance it takes the utmost balance to be successful. To excel one must be relaxed and flow with ease from technique to technique. Swaying, drinking, and falling are used to throw off opponents. When the opponent thinks the drunken boxer is vulnerable he is usually well balanced and ready to strike. When swigging a wine cup the practitioner is really practicing grabbing and striking techniques. The waist movements trick opponents into attacking sometimes even falling over. Falls can be used to avoid attacks but also to pin attackers to the ground while vital points are targeted.

Zui Quan within Chinese martial arts

Many traditional Chinese martial arts

Chinese martial arts

Chinese martial arts, also referred to by the Mandarin Chinese term wushu and popularly as kung fu , are a number of fighting styles that have developed over the centuries in China. These fighting styles are often classified according to common traits, identified as "families" , "sects" or...

 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.

• Monkey Kung Fu
  Monkey Kung Fu
  Monkey Kung Fu, or Monkey Fist , is a Chinese martial art which utilizes ape or monkey-like movements as part of its technique.There are a number of independently developed systems of monkey kung fu...
  
   contains a variation of monkey style called "Drunken Monkey
  Drunken Monkey
  Drunken Monkey Form or Drunken Monkey Pole Form of Kung Fu is a Korean martial art, and one of the variations of the Monkey Style.This style is different from Zui Quan , as the practitioner is imitating gestures of an intoxicated monkey, rather than a human fighter.Drunken Monkey does not begin...
  
  " 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 of 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."

• Performance Wushu
  Wushu (sport)
  The sport of wushu is both an exhibition and a full-contact sport derived from traditional Chinese martial arts. It was created in the People's Republic of China after 1949, in an attempt to nationalize the practice of traditional Chinese martial arts...
  
   contains several exhibition forms known as "drunken" forms, but which bear no actual connection to the forms found in traditional Chinese martial arts.

• Most lineages of Hung Gar and Hung Fut contain drunken forms.

Zui Quan in mixed and non-Chinese styles

Shaolin-Do

Shaolin-Do

Shaolin-Do is a group of schools founded by Sin Kwang Thé that teaches a curriculum of various Chinese martial arts collected and further developed in Kuntao schools of Chinese Indonesian communities, formulated under the banner of Shaolin and inspired by the legends found in Chinese Wuxia...

 teaches drunken forms beginning at the first degree blackbelt level.

Media appearances

Zui Quan received mainstream media attention outside of China after the premiere of the Jackie Chan

Jackie Chan

Jackie Chan, SBS, MBE is a Hong Kong actor, action choreographer, comedian, director, producer, martial artist, screenwriter, entrepreneur, singer and stunt performer. In his movies, he is known for his acrobatic fighting style, comic timing, use of improvised weapons, and innovative stunts...

 film Drunken Master

Drunken Master

Drunken Master, also known as Drunk Monkey In The Tiger's Eye, is a 1978 Hong Kong martial arts comedy film directed by Yuen Woo-ping, and starring Jackie Chan, Yuen Siu-tien, and Hwang Jang Lee...

in 1978. There are sequels. Drunken Fist's legendary style and execution is featured in many books, movies, comics, games and television shows.