Neo-Confucianism (Chinese: 宋明理學; pinyin:
Sòng-Míng lǐxué, often shortened to lixue
理學) is a moral, ethical, and metaphysical
Chinese philosophy influenced by Confucianism,
and originated with Han Yu and Li Ao (772–841)
in the Tang Dynasty, and became prominent
during the Song and Ming dynasties.
Neo-Confucianism could have been an attempt
to create a more rationalist and secular form
of Confucianism by rejecting superstitious
and mystical elements of Taoism and Buddhism
that had influenced Confucianism during and
after the Han Dynasty.
Although the neo-Confucianists were critical
of Taoism and Buddhism, the two did have an
influence on the philosophy, and the neo-Confucianists
borrowed terms and concepts.
However, unlike the Buddhists and Taoists,
who saw metaphysics as a catalyst for spiritual
development, religious enlightenment, and
immortality, the neo-Confucanists used metaphysics
as a guide for developing a rationalist ethical
philosophy.
== Origins ==
Neo-Confucianism has its origins in the Tang
Dynasty; the Confucianist scholars Han Yu
and Li Ao are seen as forebears of the neo-Confucianists
of the Song Dynasty.
The Song Dynasty philosopher Zhou Dunyi (1017–1073)
is seen as the first true "pioneer" of neo-Confucianism,
using Daoist metaphysics as a framework for
his ethical philosophy.
Neo-Confucianism developed both as a renaissance
of traditional Confucian ideas, and as a reaction
to the ideas of Buddhism and religious Daoism.
Although the neo-Confucianists denounced Buddhist
metaphysics, neo-Confucianism did borrow Daoist
and Buddhist terminology and concepts.One
of the most important exponents of neo-Confucianism
was Zhu Xi (1130–1200).
He was a rather prolific writer, maintaining
and defending his Confucian beliefs of social
harmony and proper personal conduct.
One of his most remembered was the book Family
Rituals, where he provided detailed advice
on how to conduct weddings, funerals, family
ceremonies, and the veneration of ancestors.
Buddhist thought soon attracted him, and he
began to argue in Confucian style for the
Buddhist observance of high moral standards.
He also believed that it was important to
practical affairs that one should engage in
both academic and philosophical pursuits,
although his writings are concentrated more
on issues of theoretical (as opposed to practical)
significance.
It is reputed that he wrote many essays attempting
to explain how his ideas were not Buddhist
or Taoist, and included some heated denunciations
of Buddhism and Taoism.
After the Xining era (1070), Wang Yangming
(1472–1529) is commonly regarded as the
most important neo-Confucian thinker.
Wang's interpretation of Confucianism denied
the rationalist dualism of Zhu's orthodox
philosophy.
There were many competing views within the
neo-Confucian community, but overall, a system
emerged that resembled both Buddhist and Taoist
(Daoist) thought of the time and some of the
ideas expressed in the I Ching (Book of Changes)
as well as other yin yang theories associated
with the Taiji symbol (Taijitu).
A well known neo-Confucian motif is paintings
of Confucius, Buddha, and Lao Tzu all drinking
out of the same vinegar jar, paintings associated
with the slogan "The three teachings are one!"
While neo-Confucianism incorporated Buddhist
and Taoist ideas, many neo-Confucianists strongly
opposed Buddhism and Taoism.
Indeed, they rejected the Buddhist and Taoist
religions.
One of Han Yu's most famous essays decries
the worship of Buddhist relics.
Nonetheless, neo-Confucian writings adapted
Buddhist thoughts and beliefs to the Confucian
interest.
In China neo-Confucianism was an officially
recognized creed from its development during
the Song dynasty until the early twentieth
century, and lands in the sphere of Song China
(Vietnam and Japan) were all deeply influenced
by neo-Confucianism for more than half a millennium.
== Philosophy ==
Neo-Confucianism is a social and ethical philosophy
using metaphysical ideas, some borrowed from
Taoism, as its framework.
The philosophy can be characterized as humanistic
and rationalistic, with the belief that the
universe could be understood through human
reason, and that it was up to humanity to
create a harmonious relationship between the
universe and the individual.The rationalism
of neo-Confucianism is in contrast to the
mysticism of the previously dominant Chan
Buddhism.
Unlike the Buddhists, the neo-Confucians believed
that reality existed, and could be understood
by humankind, even if the interpretations
of reality were slightly different depending
on the school of neo-Confucianism.
But the spirit of Neo-Confucian rationalism
is diametrically opposed to that of Buddhist
mysticism.
Whereas Buddhism insisted on the unreality
of things, Neo-Confucianism stressed their
reality.
Buddhism and Taoism asserted that existence
came out of, and returned to, non-existence;
Neo-Confucianism regarded reality as a gradual
realization of the Great Ultimate...
Buddhists, and to some degree, Taoists as
well, relied on meditation and insight to
achieve supreme reason; the Neo-Confucianists
chose to follow Reason.
The importance of li in Neo-Confucianism gave
the movement its Chinese name, literally "The
study of Li."
== Schools ==
Neo-Confucianism was a heterogeneous philosophical
tradition, and is generally categorized into
two different schools.
=== Two-school model vs. three-school model
===
In medieval China, the mainstream of neo-Confucian
thought, dubbed the "Tao school", had long
categorized a thinker named Lu Jiuyuan among
the unorthodox, non-Confucian writers.
However, in the 15th century, the esteemed
philosopher Wang Yangming took sides with
Lu and critiqued some of the foundations of
the Tao school, albeit not rejecting the school
entirely.
Objections arose to Yangming's philosophy
within his lifetime, and shortly after his
death, Chen Jian (1497–1567) grouped Wang
together with Lu as unorthodox writers, dividing
neo-Confucianism into two schools.
As a result, neo-Confucianism today is generally
categorized into two different schools of
thought.
The school that remained dominant throughout
the medieval and early modern periods is called
the Cheng-Zhu school for the esteem it places
in Cheng Yi, Cheng Hao, and Zhu Xi.
The less dominant, opposing school was the
Lu–Wang school, based on its esteem for
Lu Jiuyuan and Wang Yangming.
In contrast to this two-branch model, the
New Confucian Mou Zongsan argues that there
existed a third branch of learning, the Hu-Liu
school, based on the teachings of Hu Hong
(Hu Wufeng, 1106–61) and Liu Zongzhou (Liu
Jishan, 1578–1645).
The significance of this third branch, according
to Mou, was that they represented the direct
lineage of the pioneers of neo-Confucianism,
Zhou Dunyi, Zhang Zai and Cheng Hao.
Moreover, this third Hu-Liu school and the
second Lu–Wang school, combined, form the
true mainstream of neo-Confucianism instead
of the Cheng-Zhu school.
The mainstream represented a return to the
teachings of Confucius, Mengzi, the Doctrine
of the Mean and the Commentaries of the Book
of Changes.
The Cheng-Zhu school was therefore only a
minority branch based on the Great Learning
and mistakenly emphasized intellectual studies
over the study of sagehood.
=== Cheng-Zhu school ===
Zhu Xi's formulation of the neo-Confucian
world view is as follows.
He believed that the Tao (Chinese: 道; pinyin:
dào; literally: "way") of Tian (Chinese:
天; pinyin: tiān; literally: "heaven") is
expressed in principle or li (Chinese: 理;
pinyin: lǐ), but that it is sheathed in matter
or qi (Chinese: 氣; pinyin: qì).
In this, his system is based on Buddhist systems
of the time that divided things into principle
(again, li), and function (Chinese: 事; pinyin:
shì).
In the neo-Confucian formulation, li in itself
is pure and almost-perfect, but with the addition
of qi, base emotions and conflicts arise.
Human nature is originally good, the neo-Confucians
argued (following Mencius), but not pure unless
action is taken to purify it.
The imperative is then to purify one's li.
However, in contrast to Buddhists and Taoists,
neo-Confucians did not believe in an external
world unconnected with the world of matter.
In addition, neo-Confucians in general rejected
the idea of reincarnation and the associated
idea of karma.
Different neo-Confucians had differing ideas
for how to do so.
Zhu Xi believed in gewu (Chinese: 格物;
pinyin: géwù), the Investigation of Things,
essentially an academic form of observational
science, based on the idea that li lies within
the world.
=== Lu–Wang school ===
Wang Yangming (Wang Shouren), probably the
second most influential neo-Confucian, came
to another conclusion: namely, that if li
is in all things, and li is in one's heart-mind,
there is no better place to seek than within
oneself.
His preferred method of doing so was jingzuo
(Chinese: 靜坐; pinyin: jìngzuò; literally:
"quiet sitting"), a practice that strongly
resembles zazen or Chan (Zen) meditation.
Wang Yangming developed the idea of innate
knowing, arguing that every person knows from
birth the difference between good and evil.
Such knowledge is intuitive and not rational.
These revolutionizing ideas of Wang Yangming
would later inspire prominent Japanese thinkers
like Motoori Norinaga, who argued that because
of the Shinto deities, Japanese people alone
had the intuitive ability to distinguish good
and evil without complex rationalization.
Wang Yangming's school of thought (Ōyōmei-gaku
in Japanese) also provided, in part, an ideological
basis for some samurai who sought to pursue
action based on intuition rather than scholasticism.
As such, it also provided an intellectual
foundation for the radical political actions
of low ranking samurai in the decades prior
to the Meiji Ishin (1868), in which the Tokugawa
authority (1600–1868) was overthrown.
== Neo-Confucianism in Korea ==
In Joseon Korea, neo-Confucianism was established
as the state ideology.
The Yuan occupation of the Korean peninsula
introduced Zhu Xi's school of neo-Confucianism
to Korea.
Neo-Confucianism was introduced to Korea by
An Hyang during Goryeo dynasty.
At the time that An Hyang introduced neo-Confucianism,
the Goryeo dynasty was in the last century
of its existence and influenced by the Mongol
Yuan dynasty.Many Korean scholars visited
China during the Yuan dynasty and An Hyang
was among them.
In 1286, he happened to read a book of Zhu
Xi in Yanjing.
He was so moved by this book that he transcribed
this book in its entirety and came back to
Korea with his transcribed copy.
It greatly inspired Korean intellectuals at
the time and many, predominantly from the
middle class and disillusioned with the excesses
of organized religion (in the form of Buddhism)
and the old nobility, embraced neo-Confucianism.
The newly rising neo-Confucian intellectuals
were leading groups aimed at the overthrow
of the old (and increasingly foreign-influenced)
Goryeo dynasty.
After the fall of the Goryeo dynasty and the
establishment of the Joseon Dynasty by Yi
Song-gye in 1392 AD, neo-Confucianism was
installed as the new dynasty's state ideology.
Buddhism, and organized religion in general
was considered poisonous to the neo-Confucian
order.
Buddhism was accordingly restricted and occasionally
persecuted by the new dynasty.
As neo-Confucianism encouraged education,
there were a number of neo-Confucian schools
(서원 seowon and 향교 hyanggyo) founded
throughout the country.
Such schools produced many neo-Confucian scholars,
including individuals such as Jo Gwang-jo
(조광조, 趙光祖; 1482–1520), Yi Hwang
(이황, 李滉; pen name Toegye 퇴계, 退溪;
1501–1570)
and Yi I (이이, 李珥; 1536–1584).
In the early 16th century, Jo Gwang-jo attempted
to transform Joseon into the ideal neo-Confucian
society with a series of radical reforms until
he was executed in 1520.
Despite the failure of his attempted reforms,
neo-Confucianism soon assumed an even greater
role in the Joseon Dynasty.
Soon Korean neo-Confucian scholars, no longer
content to only read and remember the Chinese
original precepts, began to develop new neo-Confucian
theories.
Yi Hwang and Yi I were the most prominent
of these new theorists.
Yi Hwang's most prominent disciples were Kim
Seong-il （金誠一, 1538–1593), Yu Seong-ryong
(柳成龍 1542–1607）and Jeong Gu (한강
정구, 寒岡 鄭逑, 1543—1620), known
as the "three heroes".
These were followed by a second generation
of scholars which included Jang Hyungwang
(張顯光, 1554—1637)
and Jang Heung-Hyo (敬堂 張興孝, 1564—1633),
and by a third generation (including Heo Mok,
Yun Hyu, Yun Seon-do, Song Si-yeol) which
brought the school into the 18th century But
neo-Confucianism in the Joseon Dynasty became
so dogmatic in a relatively rapid time that
it prevented much needed socio-economic development
and change, and led to internal divisions
and criticism of many new theories, regardless
of their popular appeal.
For instance, Wang Yangming's theories, which
were popular in the Chinese Ming Dynasty,
were regarded as heresy and severely condemned
by Korean neo-Confucianists.
Furthermore, any annotations on Confucian
canon which are different from Zhu Xi were
excluded.
During the Joseon Dynasty, the newly emerging
ruling class, called Sarim(사림, 士林),
also became divided into political factions
according to their diversity of neo-Confucian
views on politics.
There were two large factions and many subfactions.
During the Japanese invasions of Korea (1592–1598),
many Korean neo-Confucian books and scholars
were taken to Japan.
They influenced Japanese scholars such as
Fujiwara Seika and affected the development
of Japanese neo-Confucianism.
== Neo-Confucianism in Japan ==
== 
Bureaucratic examinations ==
Neo-Confucianism became the interpretation
of Confucianism whose mastery was necessary
to pass the bureaucratic examinations by the
Ming, and continued in this way through the
Qing dynasty until the end of the Imperial
examination system in 1905.
However, many scholars such as Benjamin Elman
have questioned the degree to which their
role as the orthodox interpretation in state
examinations reflects the degree to which
both the bureaucrats and Chinese gentry actually
believed those interpretations, and point
out that there were very active schools such
as Han learning which offered competing interpretations
of Confucianism.
The competing school of Confucianism was called
the Evidential School or Han Learning and
argued that neo-Confucianism had caused the
teachings of Confucianism to be hopelessly
contaminated with Buddhist thinking.
This school also criticized neo-Confucianism
for being overly concerned with empty philosophical
speculation that was unconnected with reality.
== Confucian canon ==
The Confucian canon as it exists today was
essentially compiled by Zhu Xi.
Zhu codified the canon of Four Books (the
Great Learning, the Doctrine of the Mean,
the Analects of Confucius, and the Mencius)
which in the subsequent Ming and Qing Dynasties
were made the core of the official curriculum
for the civil service examinations.
== New Confucianism ==
In the 1920s, New Confucianism, also known
as modern neo-Confucianism, started developing
and absorbed the Western learning to seek
a way to modernize Chinese culture based on
the traditional Confucianism.
It centers on four topics: The modern transformation
of Chinese culture; Humanistic spirit of Chinese
culture; Religious connotation in Chinese
culture; Intuitive way of thinking, to go
beyond the logic and to wipe out the concept
of exclusion analysis.
Adhering to the traditional Confucianism and
the neo-confucianism, the modern neo-Confucianism
contributes the nation's emerging from the
predicament faced by the ancient Chinese traditional
culture in the process of modernization; Furthermore,
it also promotes the world culture of industrial
civilization rather than the traditional personal
senses.
== Prominent neo-Confucian scholars ==
=== 
China ===
Cheng Yi and Cheng Hao
Lu Xiangshan also known as Lu Jiuyuan (1139–1193)
Ouyang Xiu (1007–1072)
Shao Yong (1011–1077)
Su Shi, also known as Su Dongpo (1037–1101)
Wang Yangming also known as Wang Shouren
Wu Cheng (1249-1333)
Ye Shi (1150–1223)
Zhang Shi (1133–1180)
Zhang Zai
Zhou Dunyi (1017–1073)
Zhu Xi (1130–1200)
Cheng Duanli (1271–1345)
=== Korea ===
An Hyang (1243–1306)
Yi Saek (1328–1396)
Jeong Mong-ju (1337–1392)
Jeong Dojeon (1342–1398)
Gil Jae (1353–1419)
Ha Ryun
Gwon Geun
Jeong Inji (1396–1478)
Kim Suk-ja
Kim Jong-jik (1431–1492)
Nam Hyo-on
Kim Goil-pil
Jo Gwang-jo (1482–1519)
Seo Gyeongdeok
Yi Eon-jeok
Yi Hwang (Pen name Toegye) (1501–1570)
Jo Sik (1501–1572)
Ryu Seongryong
Yi Hang
Kim Inhu
Ki Daeseung (1527–1572)
Song Ik-pil (1534–1599)
Seong Hon (1535–1598)
Yi I (Pen name Yulgok) (1536–1584)
Kim Jangsaeng (1548–1631)
Song Si-yeol (1607–1689)
Yi Gan (1677–1727)
Yi Ik (1681–1763)
Han Wonjin (1682–1751)
Hong Daeyong (1731–1783)
Park Jiwon (1737–1805)
Park Jega (1750–1815)
Jeong Yak-yong (1762–1836)
=== Japan ===
Fujiwara Seika (1561–1619)
Hayashi Razan (1583–1657)
Nakae Tōju (1608–1648)
Yamazaki Ansai (1619–1682)
Kumazawa Banzan (1619–1691)
Yamaga Sokō (1622–1685)
Itō Jinsai (1627–1705)
Kaibara Ekken (also known as Ekiken) (1630–1714)
Arai Hakuseki (1657–1725)
Ogyū Sorai (1666–1728)
Nakai Chikuzan (1730–1804)
Ōshio Heihachirō (1793–1837)
=== Vietnam ===
Chu Văn An (1292–1370)
Lê Quý Đôn (1726–1784)
Nguyễn Khuyến (1835–1909)
Phan Đình Phùng (1847–1896)
Tự Đức (1829–1883)
== Notes
