There is a lot of misinformation, speculation,
legend, and
myth behind the fabled
Drunken Boxing technique. The version that most are aware of is the humorous take on it in
Jackie Chan's "
Drunken Master" and "
Legend of the Drunken Master", where one must become inebriated to perform it properly, as the alcohol deadens pain, and allows the body to loosen up considerably. In point of fact, Jackie Chan was purposely making a satire of the
Taoist Legend. The "
Drunken Master" movies are to the legend of
Wong Fei Hung what "
Dracula, Dead and Loving it" is to
Vlad Dracul. It is not meant to be taken seriously, it is meant to entertain.
As the legend goes, there were
Eight Immortals from Taoist
Chinese Mythology: Liu Dong Bin, Lam Choy Wah, Ho Sen Ku, Cho Quat Kau, Cheung Guo Lo, Han Sing Tu, Han Chung Li and Tit Gwai Li. These eight were invited to a banquet under the sea and became extremely drunk, causing a racket. In retaliation the kingdom hosting the party attacked the eight
en masse. Too drunk to protect themselves in the normal fashion, they invented an impromptu style, a new "Drunken" technique, and defeated their attackers.
In practice,
Zui Quan (the
Choi Li Fut set of Drunken Boxing), or
Drunken Kung-fu is a rather secretive technique that utilizes a sudden release of power from awkward positions. The agile footwork enables the exponent to totter, sway and fall without harm, confusing his opponent, rising up on the tips of his toes then dropping to low, crouched positions. The hand-form which is readily identified with the Drunken style is the Cup-Holding hand-form although in the Choy Li Fut Drunken Set this is replaced with a more practical and lethal "
Phoenix Eye Fist" (
Fong-Ngan Chui). Execution of 'Drunken Boxing' demands extreme flexibility of the joints as well as suppleness, dexterity, power and the finest tuned coordination.
While it certainly can give the appearance of being drunk and staggering about, it should be noted that if even a skilled
Drunken Master were to get drunk and try to perform the real moves, he or she would likely break their ankles, wrists, legs, and/or dislocate several joints.