Confucianism is Divided into Three Streams:Returning to the Intellectual Scene of the Mid-Ming Dynasty
The Confucian branch of the Song and Ming dynasties was affected by contemporary and regional factors in academic circles.The study of Qi,which built a system around the Qi of the form,should receive more attention.Neo-Confucianism,Xinxue and Qixue constituted the three main schools of Confucianism in the mid-Ming Dynasty.As an orthodox thought,the"official Neo-Confucianism"had been internally modified by"Neo-Confucianism in scholars'circle"and externally faced the impact of Xin Xue and Qi Xue.The declining of its status had left room for the activity of the ideological market.The Xinxue part filled the gap left by Neo-Confucianism.Its political practicality helped the Xinxue movement to spread vigorously among subordinate officials,students and other groups.Its theoretical practicality promoted the development of Confucianism in a direction that respected individual subjectivity more.On the premise of"de-metaphysical",Qi science failed to properly handle moral,political,physical and other issues,dooming its reconstruction road to be bumpy.On the whole,the diverse development of Confucianism in the mid-Ming Dynasty was an important manifestation of the richness of Confucianism in the Song and Ming Dynasties.
Official Neo-ConfucianismNeo-Confucianism in Scholars'CirclePracticalityDe-MetabolismMonism