Zhu Xi 1130 – 1200
Zhu Xi was a Chinese philosopher and the most influential exponent of Neo-Confucianism. Drawing on the work of the eleventh-century masters, he synthesized a comprehensive metaphysical and ethical system in which all things consist of principle (li) and material force (qi). He selected and annotated the Four Books, which became the basis of Chinese civil-service examinations until the early twentieth century. Zhu Xi's school dominated East Asian intellectual life for centuries and shaped Korean and Japanese Confucian thought.
Key facts
- Nationality
- Chinese
- Era
- Medieval
- Movements
- Confucianism
Selected quotes
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Attributed to Zhu Xi:
“When you read, do not seek to discover anything in the books beyond what is in the books.”
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Attributed to Zhu Xi:
“The investigation of things is the foundation of learning.”
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Attributed to Zhu Xi:
“All things in the world have principle, and the investigation of principle must extend to every individual thing.”
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Attributed to Zhu Xi:
“If one is not sincere, one cannot move others.”
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Attributed to Zhu Xi:
“Hold fast to reverence; this is the foundation of self-cultivation.”