Illustration of Wang Yangming's Philosophy of Mind: the Wisdom of Uniting Knowledge and Action

The unity of knowledge and action is actually the unity of conscience and action. The so-called good is not good, and evil is not evil, but good is moral and evil is practical. To put it simply, money is not everything, and nothing is impossible without money. Therefore, there is no need to learn from others to be pure-hearted and reticent; there is no need to learn from others to be greedy; there is no need to talk about benevolence and morality; there is no need to be cynical; there is no need to become a monk to cultivate equality and compassion for all living beings; there is no need to devote one's life to the court and die. Appetite, sexual desire, and selfish desires are human nature. Everyone loves food, everyone loves beauty, and everyone desires money. But only when one has good conscience and unites knowledge and action, everything will suddenly become clear and one can act according to one's nature.

Wang Yangming and the philosophy of mind he founded are enduring themes in the book market. In particular, it combines the thoughts of mind studies with success studies, and extracts the principles of teaching people how to behave in the world from the mind studies, which caters to the anxiety prevalent in the whole society. Therefore, in the first part of this book, the author takes the heart as the theme and proposes many action rules that can be applied to real social situations. At the same time, he illustrates them with mind-based thoughts and empirical cases, which is very targeted and practical. In addition, in the second part of this book, the author provides more detailed annotations and translations of the original text on Xinxue, making it easier for readers to understand Mr. Yangming's original meaning.

There are no things in the world that are outside the heart, and there are no principles outside the heart; so how do you check your own heart? The answer Mr. Yang Ming gave us is that cultivating the mind is the first priority. Those superficial glitz cannot help a person win; only inner wealth can help us be contented in good times and adversities. As long as we update ourselves every day and reflect on ourselves from time to time, we can always develop a broad mind. Complaining too much prevents heartbreak, and we should take a broad view of the long-lasting environment. This is the lesson we need most compared to financial management and fitness. To be a saint is not to be superior in talent to others, but to uphold the principles of nature and be free from greed, anger and distracting thoughts.

This book gave me a deeper understanding of Wang Yangming, and I benefited a lot from his spiritual wisdom. The proverbs in the book and the annotated translation of "Zhuanxilu" are very enlightening. Especially the story of his "Ge Zhu" made me understand the importance of practice and thinking. I like Wang Yangming's spirit of determination to become a saint and caring about the world. His life was full of ups and downs, but his theories and achievements had far-reaching influence. This book is worth reading!

The content is an interpretation of Zhuanxilu, but the editor Shengduo was too persistent in interpreting it with Chicken Soup for the Soul, which gave people the impression that it was a bit deviated from the ontology of Wang Yangming's theory of mind, giving a specious sense of déjà vu. It is recommended that everyone should read the original version of Zhuan Xilu, so that they will have a clearer understanding of the basic concepts such as the unity of knowledge and action, the mind without external objects, and the cultivation of conscience. Throughout our lives we are searching for our hearts and understanding what kind of people we are. I hope that everyone can return to their true hearts and find their true self.

Wang Yangming was a Chinese philosopher and thinker in the Ming Dynasty. His theory of mind emphasized the unity of knowledge and action, that is, the combination of knowledge and practice, and the pursuit of inner truth and moral behavior. This book introduces the core concepts and principles of Wang Yangming's philosophy of mind through illustrations and text explanations, such as studying things to gain knowledge, developing conscience, and integrating knowledge with action. It analyzes in detail the core ideas of Wang Yangming's philosophy of mind, and explores the nature of human nature, moral cultivation, the cultivation of willpower, and how to practice the unity of knowledge and action.

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