Building upon the traditional view of righteousness and benefit,Wang Fuzhi critiqued the Neo-Confucianism of the Song and Ming dynasties,starting from Zhang Zai's theory of"Qi Unity".He thoroughly examined the relationship between benefit and righteousness,arguing for their mutual Interdependence and integration.Wang Fuzhi more significantly acknowledged the legitimacy of private benefit and proposed that righteousness should guide benefit.He believed that when righteousness,as an external norm,becomes internalized in the mind,it has an educative function that humanizes individuals.He also highlighted the connection between"life"and"righteousness".Wang elaborated on three different levels and degrees of righteousness and conceptualized an ideal personality based on"universal righteousness".He suggested that true human nature is realized by acting righteously in accordance with both ancient and modern principles of universal righteousness.This reflects the progressive aspects of his view compared to earlier interpretations of righteousness and benefit.
Wang Fuzhiview of righteousness and benefitpublic and private distinctionideal personalityuniversal righteousness across time
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