Song Dynasty
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Cheng Yi
Luoyang (Henan), Song Dynasty
Archival Overview
Northern Song dynasty philosopher who, alongside his brother Cheng Hao, established the School of Principle (Lixue) that formed the philosophical foundation of the Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucian orthodoxy.
Biographical Record
Cheng Yi (1033–1107) was an intellectual prodigy who studied under Zhou Dunyi. Serving as imperial tutor to the young Song Emperor Zhezong, Cheng Yi rigorously formulated the doctrine that every object, event, and moral relationship is governed by an eternal, inherent principle (Li).
Cheng Yi championed 'the investigation of things' (Gewu) as the systematic empirical method to understand Li and achieve moral perfection, declaring that 'To investigate principle to the utmost is to understand the nature of things.' His commentaries on the 'I Ching' and 'The Great Learning' shaped Chinese civil service thought for eight centuries.
Key Life Milestones
Imperial Lecturer to Emperor Zhezong
Instructed the young emperor in moral statecraft and classical Confucian governance.
Completion of Commentary on the I Ching
Finished the 'Yichuan Yizhuan', the definitive Neo-Confucian philosophical reading of the Book of Changes.
Memorial Guestbook & Tributes
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Final Resting Place
Perpetual MemorialYichuan (Henan), China