RT Article
T1 Reasserting the primacy of xing (human nature) and self-cultivation (xiushen): Li Cai’s (1529-1607) defense of Confucianism against the interpenetration of the three teachings
JF Asian philosophy
VO 33
IS 3
SP 233
OP 249
A1 Li, Lunan
LA English
PB Carfax
YR 2023
UL https://www.ixtheo.de/Record/1855077663
AB By the late Ming, the concept of ‘the mind/heart-cum-principle’ 心即理 had generated confusion in the relations between xing (human nature) and xin (mind/heart). Moreover, with the increasing interpenetration of the three teachings of Confucianism, Buddhism and Daoism, some scholars became gravely concerned that the perversion of traditional Confucian thinking had resulted in the degeneration of the moral and social order. Li Cai (1529–1607) was one of these concerned scholars. Wielding the two concepts of ‘zhizhi’ (knowing the ultimate end) and ‘xiushen’ (self-cultivation) in the Great Learning, Li wrestled with Wang Yangming’s teachings by reasserting the primacy of xing, insisting that moral reality must involve direct individual action in order to preserve the unity of substance and effort. Li’s keen awareness of the inner tension between the mind/heart and xing not only prompted his critical reflections on Wang ’s thought but also on Zhu Xi’s. In so doing, he sought to address the fundamental question of what Confucianism is by clarifying the boundaries between the three teachings, and reshaping the spiritual values of Confucianism.
K1 Three Teachings
K1 Confucianism
K1 self-cultivation修身
K1 xing性
K1 Li Cai 李材
DO 10.1080/09552367.2023.2202545