Zhu Xi · Philosophy

Human Nature and the Mind

Zhu Xi&rsquo;s moral psychology: our <em>original nature</em> is principle and therefore wholly good, while our <em>physical endowment</em> - nature lodged in a particular vital force - is where imperfection creeps in; and the <em>mind</em> is what unites nature and the feelings, commanding both.

What you'll be able to recall

You learned that Zhu Xi distinguished the original nature (nature as principle, wholly good) from the physical endowment (nature as lodged in turbid vital force, where evil arises), and held that the mind unites nature and the feelings (xin tong xing qing). Explain these distinctions and why, for Zhu Xi, evil is never…

Leads to Mencius.

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