The five Pillars

--by Derrick Ho
Application, drills, chi sau, theory, and mook yan jong.  These are thing things that a Wing Chun Practitioner must practice.  Each of the pillars are intertwined and interrelated to each other.  For example, theory gives birth to chi sau while the chi sau confirms the theory.  The drills teach people the theory.

Theory and drills are the base.  They support the 3 pillars above.  Students new to the art should be taught Drills and Theory first.  They will have a strong desire to do the top three since it looks cool.  However, these three should come at the end.  It is almost like beginners want to run before they learn to walk.
You may have noticed that forms have not been included in this figure.  The Mook yan jong supercedes the 3 hand forms.  The forms can be considered an elaborate drill.  It can also be the teacher of theory, the birth of applications and the inspiration for chi sau.