Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v1.c7.s7.t7.7

v1.c7.s7.t7.7

later generations regarded the schools represented by Zhou Dunyi, Cheng Hao and Cheng Yi, Zhang Zai, Shao Yong, and Chu Hsi as Lian, Luo, Guan and Min School. Together with Chu Hsi, Lu Jiuyuan, Lv Zuqian, Chen Liang, Ye Shi and other scholars were also famous across the country. Lu Jiuyuan started "Xinxue", took "enlightening the mind" as the principle; he thought that "Mind is Principle", put forward "the Universe is my mind and my mind is the Universe', which was excellent and outstanding and had a trend to surpass the philosophies of Cheng Hao, Cheng Yi and Chu Hsi. Lv Zuqian combined the theories of different scholars and was famous for his various learning; while the theories of Chen Liang and Ye Shi reflected their minds of obtaining justice and benefit, which was thought to be the utilitarianism. Between Jin and Yuan Dynasties, the trend of study was weakened and there was no distinguished scholar; until the middle of Ming Dynasty, Yu Yao and Wang Yangming who were not successful of being officials started researching Xinxun, the Neo-Confucian School of Mind. They followed Lu Jiuyuan's philosophy, and put forward the thoughts "Nothing outside the Mind" and "No principle outside the Mind", regarded "Conscience" as the root and emphasised "The Unity of Knowing and Doing". Chen Xianzhang, at the same time with Wang Yangming, came up with "to know the truth with peaceful and clarified mind". It also inherited the trend of Lu Jiuyuan. The Confucians in Qing Dynasty just inherited the theories of former Confucians and didn't put forward any other excellent theories, and they even criticised that Xinxue in Song and Ming Dynasty was empty, and then restored the chapters kept exegetical study style in Han and Tang Dynasty. However, the Neo-Confucianism didn't vanish, it only existed weakly. Listed in Zhang Zhidong's book, *Questions and Answers about the Catalogue of Books*, there still were 22 Confucians. During the period of Republican of China, there were many scholars who were famous for their Neo-Confucianism theories, such as Ma Yifu, in Kuaiji, etc. The main schools of Neo-Confucianism in Song and Ming Dynasty can be summarised with eight words, and they are "Lian, Luo, Guan, Min and Cheng, Chu, Lu, Wang Schools".