The Presentation and Utilization of WangGen's Conscience

Abstract

Since Mencius first created the moral concept of “conscience” and then Wang Yangming established the teaching of “conscience”, combining the essence of conscience with the work of knowledge, the connotation and extension of “conscience” have been continuously enriched and developed. WangGen, as a famous “Confucian in Cloth” among the scholars of Wangxue in the middle of Ming Dynasty, reinterpreted ‘conscience’ with the help of his teacher Wang Yangming and his fellow scholars, and combined with his own special experience of becoming a scholar, and put forward his own “theory of conscience”. With the help of his teacher Wang Yangming and his fellow disciples, and with his own special experience, he reinterpreted “conscience” and put forward his own “doctrine of conscience”, which was interpreted by WangGen with a new meaning and innovated at both theoretical and practical levels. Under the background of social environment change and personalized ideological liberation in the middle of Ming Dynasty, the presentation and application of “conscience” transformed the Confucianism of the scholars and scholars into the daily study of the common people, transcending the traditional Confucianism of saintly and foolish and noble, and establishing a realistic channel for the common people to become saints and sages, thus contributing significantly to the transformation of Confucianism into a commoner. This is a far-reaching contribution to the turn of Confucianism towards the common people.