Zhu Xi

Zhu Xi (1130-1200) was a famous thinker and Confucian philosopher of the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279). He was revered as Master Zhu by later generations. Developed on the basis of assimilating Buddhism and Daoism, Neo-Confucianism represents a new high water mark for ancient China’s philosophical research. The core issue of Neo-Confucianism is the relationship between the principles of heaven and human desires, principles and vital force, nature and emotions, and the Tao and the mind.

Zhu Xi put together Neo-Confucian theories developed in the Song Dynasty, systematically building on the achievements of other Neo-Confucianists to develop a huge and mature set of philosophical concepts, covering the study of the mind, the theory of principles and vital force, cosmology, historical philosophy, and the Zhu Xi school of thought. Zhu Xi’s Neo-Confucianism emphasizes that the principles of heaven are the fundamental law that governs all things in the universe, and that the ultimate goal of self-cultivation is to align the mind with the principles of heaven. Zhu Xi’s philosophy began to spread to neighboring countries such as Korea, Japan, and Vietnam in the 13th century and shaped the development of Confucianism in East Asia.

朱熹

朱熹（1130—1200），南宋時期著名的思想家、理學家，被后人尊稱為“朱子”。理學是宋代儒者吸收佛教、道家思想而形成的一整套思想理論體系，是中國古代哲學的高峰。理學的核心問題是處理天理與人欲、理與氣、性與情、道與心等之間的關系。

朱熹是宋代理學的集大成者，他系統總結了北宋理學的成果，建立了龐大而成熟的心性論、理氣論、宇宙論、歷史 哲學與朱子理學。朱熹的理學思想強調天理是支配宇宙萬物 的根本法則與規律，人修養的最大目標就是使“心”與“理” 合一。朱熹的思想學說（“朱子學”）于13世紀初就開始傳入朝鮮、日本及越南等國，對東亞儒學的發展產生了深遠影響。