Quote Originally Posted by crazedjustice88 View Post
Hey guys, I was wondering how much does the mui fah jeong play into the training of these styles?
All the lama schools have stories about this, if not exactly the same methods. In my tradition we start with Mui Fa Johng on 5 posts in a quincunx pattern (like the 5 spots on a gaming die) then move on to a slightly more elaborate take on the same form, Dai Johng Muih Fa, with a nine-post pattern. This is completely different from the fourteen-post needle-in-cotton posts.

The ability to jump up onto the posts is a difficult skill to achieve in itself. After becoming adept at the footwork the posts were gradually pared to a smaller diameter with a spokeshave until the tops were only a few inches in diameter. The problem with this sort of skill, according to my sifu, is that your steps become so habitual it is hard to vary your footwork--steps will always tend to be the same distance.