Episode notes
Alex and Benjamin discuss the state of Confucianism during the Ming Dynasty. Should "li" be understood as "principle" or "pattern"? What is the relationship between li and chi? While some theorists, like Zhu Xi, hold that studying the classics can help clear up your chi, Wang Yangming argues that the virtues are much easier to acquire, because for him li always already exists in the mind. He suggests there is a "unity of acting and knowing," so if a person acts in a virtuous way, that implies they have knowledge. This means that knowledge of the li can be found in the simple benevolent acts…
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Political Theory 101
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