United Under the Dao: Facets of Integration Between Wang Yangming and Daoism

Abstract

This article examines the interactions between Wang Yangming’s School of Mind and Daoist traditions, focusing on specific instances of contact, adaptation, and reinterpretation. Drawing on both historically attested events and later hagiographical narratives—treated here as cultural representations rather than literal biographies—the study traces how Wang encountered Daoist religious sites, imagery, and technical vocabulary over the course of his life. Particular attention is given to parallels between Wang’s use of concepts such as liangzhi (innate moral knowledge) and Daoist terms from inner alchemy, as well as his adaptation of practices like stillness-sitting (jingzuo) and the metaphor of “forming the sacred embryo” (jie shengtai). The analysis shows that these elements were selectively reframed within his own intellectual framework, often shifting their emphasis from physical cultivation or longevity to moral and practical self-cultivation. Such a reorientation may have something to do with the Jingming Sect 淨明道. By situating Wang’s reinterpretations within the broader religious and philosophical environment of early sixteenth-century China, the article contributes to a more nuanced understanding of cross-tradition engagement and the circulation of ideas between Confucianism and Daoism.

1. Introduction

Plurality (duo 多) and Unity (yi 一) constitute a crucial pair of categories for understanding the development and evolution of Chinese traditions. The Qiwulun (齊物論) chapter of the Zhuangzi proposes a widely influential notion that “Dao permeates all things as unity” (dao tong wei yi 道通為一). This signifies that the operation of the Dao is omnipresent; its transformations and manifestations are embodied in diverse substances, forms, and methods. Yet, in essence, they are consistent, all being expressions of the Dao.1 Consequently, the universal presence of the Dao possesses a natural and profound capacity for further generalization: the possibility of a unifying Dao (dadao 大道) (Chen 2020, p. 31). For Wang Yangming, the idea of “Dao as the unity” (daoyi 道一) was, first and foremost, an ontological concept signifying a metaphysical innovation (Zhu 2017, p. 55). Wang Yangming’s life was marked by dramatic rises and falls, and he endured numerous hardships and challenges. He assimilated and synthesized the teachings of the various schools of thought (zhuzi baijia 諸子百家), Buddhism, and Daoism, ultimately inventing a new school of philosophical doctrine—Yangming’s School of Mind (yangming xinxue 陽明心學).

In what sense can this doctrine be termed new? It lies in the fact that the expressive form of Yangming’s School of Mind transcended the discursive boundaries established by Zhu Xi (朱熹) and Lu Jiuyuan (陸九淵). In fact, the entire development of Neo-Confucianism has always been representative of the intellectual current of integrating the Three Teachings (Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism). Wang Yangming, as the founder of the School of Mind, naturally also received immeasurable Daoist influences (Qian 2009, p. 52). Existing literature on the relationship between Yangming’s School of Mind and Daoism tends to focus either on collating historical materials concerning his life and interactions, or on comparative conceptual analysis (Jiao 2021; Zheng 2023). These approaches have yet to fully illuminate the distinctive intellectual characteristics of pluralistic integration inherent in his thought. In fact, Wang Yangming’s method of integration is never purely a conceptual mapping but derives from his deep respect and faithful implementation of pragmatism and practicality. For him, moral cultivation must be enshrined in daily activities; simultaneously, daily activities should equally be concrete steps toward moral perfection. Moral cultivation, for Wang Yangming, never occurs in a vacuum of its own, but must operate in the specificity of dealing with mundane affairs. Hence, his method is a true example of shixue (實學): it is rooted in moral cultivation but actively engages with reality and attaches great importance to worldly accomplishments.2

Inspired by the Yangming’s principle of pragmatism and practicality, this paper argues that Wang Yangming does not simply reject Daoism altogether but actively approach Daoism as a meaningful intellectual resource to further his attempts of bridging moral cultivation and worldly commitments and engagements. In the following sections, we will first offer a review of Wang Yangming’s biography and show that his childhood and adolescence are already immersed in a Daoist environment, which may explain his intimacy with and later employments of some Daoist themes.3 For Wang Yangming, cosmology and Daoist bodily practices are not simply descriptions of the organization of the natural world and the biological human body, but insightful metaphors that further justify and foster moral cultivation. However, the employment of such a terminology by no means implies that Wang Yangming concurs with the underlying agenda of immortality. In fact, as we will show in the fourth section, Wang Yangming questions the overall validity of Daoist immortality programs. For him, such promises of longevity are not only futile, but also delusional. In this sense, Wang Yangming’s view on afterlife is indeed informed by Daoism, specifically its quest for avoiding or delaying the moment of death, but by shifting the focus to moral cultivation and accomplishments away from longevity, Wang actually offers a feasible solution or practical pathway toward the Daoist ideal of resisting and defeating death.

2. Wang Yangming’s Biography Re-Examined: A View from Daoism

Wang Yangming’s connection with Daoism can arguably be traced back to the narratives surrounding his birth, as preserved in later accounts. These records contain prominent Daoist mythological elements: for example, it is reported that he was born in the Mo Family Tower (later renamed Ruiyun Tower 瑞雲樓, “Tower of Auspicious Cloud”). According to this account, during the labor his grandmother (Chen taifuren 陳太夫人) dreamed that an immortal, riding on five-colored auspicious clouds, presented her with a divine infant (chizi 赤子, literally “red child,” signifying a pure, heaven-sent child) as her grandson. Upon awakening, she immediately heard the cry of the newborn. Whether this episode records an actual event or represents a later embellishment intended to align Wang’s life with auspicious Daoist imagery, it nonetheless signals the cultural linkage between Wang and the Daoist sphere from the very beginning of his biographical tradition.

His acquaintance with Daoist and Buddhist environments began in youth. Because his father, Wang Hua (1446–1522), achieved the highest rank (zhuangyuan 狀元) in the imperial examinations and served as an official in the capital, the young Wang grew up on Chang’an Street—the most culturally vibrant area of Beijing at the time. His residence was adjacent to Daxinglong Temple (大興隆寺), known as the “First Monastic Center” (diyi conglin 第一叢林). Such proximity, while not in itself proof of direct doctrinal influence, created a setting in which Wang’s leisure and curiosity brought him into repeated contact with Buddhist and Daoist institutions. Alongside Daxinglong Temple, the neighborhood included the Wenchang Pavilion, Earth God Temple, Guan Yu Temple, Fire God Temple, City God Temple, Lingji Palace, and the grand Daoist Chaotian Gong (朝天宮, “Palace for Worshiping Heaven”), the largest imperial Daoist temple in Beijing at the time. These encounters, whether casual or more sustained, suggest an early familiarity with the diversity of religious life that later underpinned his openness toward non-Confucian traditions.

This early attraction to Daoist ritual and cultivation anticipates themes that would later find resonance with the Jingming Sect’s emphasis on balancing ritual practice with moral self-cultivation. One recorded anecdote—preserved in Zou Shouyi’s 鄒守益 Pictorial Record of Master Wang Yangming (王陽明先生圖譜)—relates how a physiognomist on Chang’an Street predicted Wang’s future using Daoist inner alchemy metaphor. In this story, the physiognomist (xiangshi 相士) examined Wang Yangming’s face and made a prediction: “When his beard reaches the collar (xu fuling 須拂領), truly you will enter the sage’s realm (qishi ru shengjing 其實入聖境); when the beard reaches the Upper Cinnabar Platform (xu zhi shang dantai 須至上丹臺), at that time the Sagely Embryo will take forms (qishi jie shengtai 其時結聖胎); when the beard reaches the Lower Cinnabar Field (xu zhi xia dantian 須至下丹田), at that time the Sagely Fruit will ripen (qishi sheng guo yuan 其時聖果圓).” (Wang 2015, pp. 1387–88) While the story’s historicity cannot be verified, its vocabulary demonstrates the degree to which Wang’s image was retrospectively framed with Daoist technical language, anticipating his later intellectual engagement with such concepts.

A similar dynamic appears in an often-cited wedding-day episode. According to Qian Dehong’s 錢德洪 record, the seventeen-year-old Wang, newly married in Nanchang, wandered into the Tiezhu Palace (Iron Pillar Temple) and engaged in an all-night discussion on tending life (yangsheng 養生) with a Daoist priest—neglecting to return to the bridal chamber until morning. Whether or not this happened exactly as described, the story is illustrative of how biographical tradition situates Wang as passionately curious about Daoist longevity practices, an interest plausibly linked to his long-standing health concerns.4 This interest stemmed not only from intellectual curiosity but was also deeply intertwined with his health conditions. Having been frail and sickly since childhood, Wang confessed: “Having long suffered from illness, I resolved to devote myself to nourishing life—indeed, in years past, I exhausted my efforts in this pursuit” (Wang 2015, p. 226). The dual pressures of physical ailment and spiritual turmoil led him to view Daoist yangsheng techniques as a practical path to a healthy body and mental tranquility.

These symbolic and anecdotal elements are complemented by more securely historical episodes. In 1498, after his failed attempts at investigating bamboo (ge zhu 格竹), Wang recuperated in Yuecheng, visiting temples such as Nanping and Hupao, and expressing admiration for Daoist immortals in verse. As Li (2004, p. 54) notes, during this period Wang turned from Zhu Xi’s theory of gewu to the Daoist–Buddhist study of “body-destiny” (shenming 身命) and “mind-nature” (xinxing 心性)—a shift with enduring consequences for his later philosophy.

In the early sixteenth century, Wang lived for a period at the Yangming Grotto-Heaven (陽明洞天) on Kuaiji Mountain—a site also described in the Daoist Canon as the entry of Longrui guan yuxue yangming tongdian tujing 龍瑞觀禹穴陽明洞天圖經 (DZ 604). Contemporary records and later reminiscences describe him practicing daoyin techniques there, with one story claiming that he demonstrated uncanny foresight in anticipating visitors’ arrival routes (Wang 2015, p. 1392). His Chronological Biography records a miraculous incident: “One day, while sitting in the cave, his friends Wang Siyu and three others came to visit. Just as they passed Wuyun Gate, Wang instructed his servant to greet them, precisely describing their route. The servant met them on the path, and the details matched perfectly. All were astonished, believing he had attained the Dao.” (Wang 2015, p. 1392). This acquisition of foresight indicated Wang Yangming’s cultivation had reached an advanced level. He also discovered a stone grotto nearby, naming it Wanyi Wo (玩易窩, Grotto of Exploring the Changes). There, he integrated inner alchemy with Confucian Yijing studies, entering a state where he was able to “encompass the macrocosm, penetrate the subtle, drift without direction, stand solitary like a tree stump” (Wang 2015, pp. 1028–29). Ultimately, he entered the cultivated realm of “unifying the refined and coarse, harmonizing the external and internal” (Wang 2015, p. 1029). While miraculous elements in this story are characteristics of the hagiographical mode, they also attest to the ways Daoist cultivation and imagery were woven into narratives of his life. From Wang Yangming’s perspective at that time, there was no fundamental distinction between the Confucian path of inner sageliness” (neisheng 內聖) and the Daoist pursuit of transcendence (qiuxian 求仙), The effort to become a sage did not lie in external investigation of things to extend knowledge (gewu zhizhi 格物致知) or exhaustive study of principles through reading (dushu qiongli 讀書窮理), but rather in the internal learning of body-mind (shenxin zhi xue 身心之學). It was necessary to undertake concrete efforts on oneself; therefore, Daoist somatic practices could be absorbed as resources (Zhu 2009, p. 128).

Wang Yangming, when persecuted by the eunuch Liu Jin and others, may have endured corporal punishment (e.g., beating with sticks). While an ordinary person could not withstand such torture, Wang Yangming survived—perhaps related to his long-term practice of silent sitting (chengmo jingzuo 澄默靜坐) and daoyin techniques. It was precisely Daoist somatic-mortal studies (shenming xue 身命學) that propelled Wang Yangming’s transition from investigating things (gewu 格物) to examining the mind (jiuxin 究心), that is also, from the objective to the subjective. Thus, it can be said that in his early years, Wang Yangming held a fundamentally affirmative and admiring attitude toward Daoism (Zhu 2015, p. 30). However, he did not become a Daoist priest. The Chronological Biography records that after prolonged stillness, he contemplated leaving the world far behind. Yet thoughts of his grandmother Chen and Longshan Gong [his father] preoccupied him, leaving him indecisive. After some time, he suddenly realized that this commitment arises from childhood. To discard this commitment would extinguish the seed-nature (zhongxing 種性). The following year, he retired due to illness to West Lake in Qiantang (Wang 2015, p. 1393). Commitment to family and adherence to Confucian ethics ultimately led him to abandon a purely monastic Daoist cultivation.

Approximately in 1505–1515, Daoist thought inevitably becomes both an intellectual resource (Liu 2009, p. 324) and a practical longevity technique for his nascent philosophy.5 Simultaneously, after the Zhengde (正德) period, Wang Yangming’s process of absorbing Daoist thought to construct his School of Mind system coincided with his gradual turn toward Buddhism. Originally interpreting Confucianism through Daoist perspectives, Wang Yangming began utilizing Buddhist intellectual resources to reinterpret Confucianism, imprinting his later thought deeply with Buddhist influences. Concurrently, Wang Yangming’s attitude toward Daoism exhibited a duality: critique but also integrate. He explicitly rejected Daoist claims of physical immortality, stating “Indeed, I became fond of its theories at eight years old. Now, over thirty years later, my teeth loosen gradually, one or two hairs have turned white, my sight extends barely a foot, my voice reaches beyond the lecture mat, and I often lie ill for months, unable to go out, while medicine doses increase abruptly—this is likely its effects” (Wang 2015, p. 955). Citing his own physical state, he questioned Daoist the efficacy of longevity techniques.

On the other hand, his intellectual dialogue with Daoist practitioners continued. In 1511, he engaged deeply in the capital with Xu Changguo 徐昌國, who was immersed in Daoist cultivation. When Xu enthusiastically described secrets of the Five Metals and Eight Minerals and claimed that ingestion of such would enable ascension, Wang Yangming only smiled without responding (Wang 2015, pp. 1069–70). Yet at Mount Jiuhua, he conversed congenially with an eccentric who “slept on pine needles and ate no cooked food” (Wang 2015, p. 1392), particularly praising the eccentric’s transcendence of sectarian biases and affirming his view that Zhou Lianxi 周濂溪 and Cheng Mingdao 程明道 are two fine scholars of Confucianism (Wang 2015, p. 1392). This openness to Confucian-Daoist synthesis reflects the character of critical integration in his later thought. In his final years, when Wang Yangming returned to Yue to lecture, Daoist traces persisted in his residence’s nomenclature. The clear pond before his dwelling was named Bixia Pond (碧霞池), evoking Mount Tai’s Daoist goddess Bixia Yuanjun (碧霞元君); an earthen platform was built as the Star-Gazing Terrace (觀星臺), inheriting the Daoist tradition of ‘observing celestial phenomena at night’. These details demonstrate that Daoist elements had permeated his lived world and mental structure, becoming inseparable components of his School of Mind system.

Overall, such accounts—some legendary, some more plainly factual—consistently portray Wang as engaging with Daoist bodily cultivation and cosmology, even as his later career moved toward a critical integration of these practices within a Confucian ethical framework. By qualifying and contextualizing these materials, our reading treats them not as literal biography but as part of the symbolic repertoire through which Wang’s identity was formed, transmitted, and philosophically reframed.

3. Liangzhi 良知 and Jieshengtai 結聖胎: A Moral Recodification of Daoist Cosmology and Inner Alchemy

Key elements of Yangming’s School of Mind can, in part, be understood as re-renderings of Daoist cosmology and inner alchemy from the perspective of moral cultivation. While no direct textual borrowing from Daoist scriptures can be conclusively demonstrated, the thematic and terminological parallels are striking.

In fact, Wang Yangming’s conceptualization of innate moral knowledge (liangzhi 良知) is, in many ways, structurally similar to the Dao in the Daoist tradition.6 Both Yangming’s liangzhi and the Dao are the creative origin of all things. In the cosmogony described by Laozi, Dao generates one and one generates two, two generates three, and three generates the myriad of all things. In essence, Dao is the ultimate creative force that paves the way for the world we inhabit. Similarly, Wang Yangming describes the liangzhi as the “the divine essence of creation” (Wang 2015, p. 129). The Jingming Sect would later articulate a similar discourse, aligning loyalty and filial piety with a cosmological and bodily framework of cultivation. Although Wang’s purpose differed, the parallel use of moralized cosmology highlights a shared cultural vocabulary of Confucian–Daoist integration. “This spiritual force gives birth to heaven and earth, shapes spirits and gods—all things arise from it, standing beyond any worldly comparison. When a person fully recovers this liangzhi, whole and undiminished, they cannot help but dance for joy, knowing no greater happiness exists under heaven” (ibid.). The adoption of such cosmological language does not imply a doctrinal merger with Daoism; rather, it illustrates Wang’s readiness to employ shared cultural metaphors in articulating his own moral ontology. For Yangming, liangzhi, just like the Dao, is the source of creation. It generates entities in all the realms. Here, Yangming is explicitly connecting liangzhi to the realm of humanities. This source of creation does not simply dissipate into thin air after the moment of birth but becomes something dispersed into every individual. Though this liangzhi may often be shadowed, for Yangming, it is always possible to restore and recover liangzhi into its full prominence.

Apart from the sense that both liangzhi and the Dao are both forces of origin, Yangming’s differentiation of liangzhi into the unmanifested (weifa 未發) and the manifested (yifa 已發) also corresponds to the ‘non-being’ (wu 無) and ‘being’ (you 有) of Laozi’s Dao. This correspondence manifests concretely in two aspects: firstly, Laozi emphasizes “the Dao is eternally nameless” (dao chang wuming 道常無名), while Wang Yangming describes liangzhi as “void, spiritual, luminous, and aware” (xu ling ming jue 虛靈明覺). Secondly, both possess the characteristic of substance and function as one (ji ti ji yong 即體即用). Laozi states that “the Dao models itself on nature” (dao fa ziran 道法自然), while Wang Yangming declares “innate moral knowledge is heavenly principle” (liangzhi ji shi tianli 良知即是天理) (Wang 2015, p. 89). The Dao and liangzhi are both expressions closely linked with a higher authority. In Daoism, the Dao models from the nature; for Yangming, liangzhi is the heavenly principle itself and thus strongly colored with morality and ethics. They both operate in the moment of creation, and also sustain the unfolding of all beings from that originary moment.

Precisely due to the innate similarity between liangzhi and the Dao, cosmology, for Yangming, not only embodies the knowledge of how to categorize heaven and earth, but also calls concrete strategies of practice. Just as there are techniques that ensure the obtainment of Dao (dedao 得道), there should equally be practices that enable the restoration of liangzhi. The first step is, arguably, the introduction of physiological elements to Yangming’s formulations of liangzhi. In fact, Yangming’s cosmology can be largely categorized into three stages. In the early stage (pre-1508, before the Awakening at Longchang), he held a dualistic view of heaven (tian 天) and humanity. In the middle stage (1508–1521), he shifted to the position that emphasizes the unity of mind (xin 心) and things (wu 物). At the late stage (post-1521), he equipped the cosmological liangzhi with terms in Daoist physiological practices. During this evolution, terminologies of inner alchemy starts to be adopted to describe liangzhi. In particular, we find notions of essence (jing 精), pneuma (qi 氣), and spirit (shen 神) in his liangzhi system.7 For Wang Yangming, “innate moral knowledge (liangzhi) is one. In terms of its subtle function, it is called spirit (shen); in terms of its circulation, it is called pneuma (qi); in terms of its condensation, it is called essence (jing). How can it be sought through form, image, direction, or place?” (Wang 2015, p. 77). Thus, while the vocabulary is shared, the telos differs: Daoist cultivation may aim toward transcendence or immortality, whereas Wang directs these concepts toward the unity of substance and function (ti–yong) in ethical self-perfection. He further highlights this unifiedness drawing Yijing’s concept of change (bianyi 變易): “Liangzhi is the Yi (Change). As the Dao (in the Yijing sense), it shifts constantly, moving without rest.” (Wang 2015, p. 155). Thus, this self-transforming liangzhi becomes the permanent substance within the cosmic flux. As Kenji Shimada (1986, p. 8) notes, “the sentiment seeking resonance with cosmic principles was most intensely inherited among Daoist priests and hermits and is now carried forward by the scholar-official class.”

This kind of moralized physiology recalls the Jingming Sect’s effort to reinterpret Daoist cultivation in ethical terms, showing that Wang’s synthesis was not an isolated endeavor but part of a broader cultural movement in late imperial China. If terms such as jing, qi, and shen only attest to conceptual influence of Daoist inner alchemy, Yangming’s cultivation method (gongfu lun 工夫論) truly reveals how he actively re-rendered and transformed Daoist practices. When answering his student Lu Cheng’s question on how to “set one’s will” (lizhi 立志), he replied that “Simply through unceasing remembrance to preserve heavenly principle (tianli 天理)—this is setting one’s will. Never forgetting this, over time the mind naturally concentrates and consolidates, akin to what Daoism calls ‘forming the sacred embryo’ (jie shengtai 結聖胎)” (Wang 2015, p. 14). The wording of jie shengtai is clearly of Daoist origin. Canonical Daoist scriptures such as Zhouyi cantong qi 周易參同契 (DZ 1007), Shangqing lingbao dafa 上清靈寶大法 (DZ 1223), and Ziyang zhenren Wuzhen pian 紫陽真人悟真篇 (DZ 142) all give accounts on how to achieve this result. If we follow the description provided by Shangqing lingbao dafa (DZ 1223, 8.5a4–5b4), jieshengtai refers to the refinement of one’s qi and the formation of an embryo inside one’s body. Kristofer Schipper (1993, p. 129), a prominent scholar in the field of Daoist studies, famously interpreted the entire process of forming the embryo as expressions of the openness of the body. In many ways, Yangming’s usage of jieshengtai here also touches upon the imagery of opening up the body to ensure the flow of one’s will. Whether or not Wang directly studied those Daoist sources, the deliberate repurposing of their imagery indicates familiarity with the practice’s symbolic resonance in the cultural lexicon. The adoption of such wordings clearly attests to the fact that methods of inner alchemy have been fully incorporated into the cultivation of innate moral knowledge (zhi liangzhi 致良知) (Qing and Zhan 2009, pp. 509–10).

Additionally, Wang Yangming also incorporates the practice of meditation into his cultivation toolbox. The Zhuangzi Jishi (莊子集釋) states that “Guide the qi to achieve harmony, direct the body to attain suppleness” (Guo 1961, p. 537). This is also an evidence of Daoism’s systematic mind-body cultivation techniques. After his awakening at Longchang, Wang borrowed this technique into a cultivation method for his School of Mind. He instructed disciples that “teaching people to learn, one must not adhere to one extreme: beginners have minds like monkeys and thoughts like galloping horses—restless and unsettled; their reflections mostly incline toward human desires. Thus, initially teach them stillness-sitting (jingzuo 靜坐) to cease discursive thinking”* (Wang 2015, p. 20). Here, although the stillness-sitting method originated from Daoism, it was endowed with a new function: restraining selfish desires and clarifying the original mind (benxin 本心).8 Differing from Daoism’s pursuit of jie shengtai, the School of Mind’s stillness-sitting aimed at eliminating human desires, preserving heavenly principle (qu renyu, cun tianli 去人欲，存天理), becoming an introductory practice for zhi liangzhi. In many ways, Wang transformed practices of inner alchemy into a new tradition of refining the mind (lianxin 煉心). Daoism pursues a golden elixir (jindan 金丹), while Wang emphasized the manifestation of liangzhi (良知).

In brief, it seems clear that Yangming’s liangzhi and his recommended practice of jieshengtai and jingzuo are of very strong Daoist characteristics. In many ways, Yangming’s formulations around liangzhi mirrors conceptualizations and associated practices in Daoism. However, this does not mean that Wang Yangming copies Daoist insights, rather these Daoist references attest to Yangming’s ability to absorb different intellectual resources and make them in service of his Confucian agenda. In fact, allusions to jing, qi, and shen, as well as jieshengtai, all attest to the dimension of ethical and moral cultivation now placed at the center. By framing these parallels as conceptual and metaphorical—rather than as evidence of unaltered transmission—we hope to underscore that Wang’s engagement with Daoist cosmology and inner alchemy was a selective and critical rearticulation, aimed at integrating useful cultural resources into a Confucian moral program. With the benefit of hindsight, it is indeed such a pity that Wang Yangming did not absorb much of Daoism’s political wisdom—such as its naturalistic political ideals, governance through non-action (wuwei), and profound social critique. Yet, evidence presented in this section is still able to firmly attest the Daoist influence Wang Yangming once received for formulating his own theories.

4. Toward Afterlife: Longevity, Death, and Moral Cultivation

The preceding section examined Wang’s recoding of Daoist cosmology and bodily practices into a Confucian moral idiom. The present section addresses his engagement with another major Daoist theme—longevity—and its transformation in his later philosophy. It is clear that the entire theorization of liangzhi and the associated practice of reaching liangzhi (zhi liangzhi 致良知)are substantially inspired by Daoism. However, the similarity in terminology (i.e., adopting inner alchemy terms to describe liangzhi and associated practice) does not entail that Wang Yangming agreed with the Daoist quest for longevity. Then, when longevity pursuits are no longer capable of delaying the arrival of death, how does Wang Yangming conceptualize death? And more importantly, how did he confront death? This is the central question we attempt to explore in this section. We argue that within Wang’s philosophical vision, the Daoist pursuit of “immortality” (changsheng 長生) appears relatively attenuated when compared to the Confucian ideal of a morally committed and pragmatic engagement with the world. In fact, Yangming’s approach to death can be best summarized as “living toward death” (xiangsi ersheng 向死而生) which culminates in the spiritual ideal of “the unity of all things with Heaven and Earth” (tiandi wanwu yiti zhi ren 天地萬物一體之仁). The (re-)staging of Confucian ren (仁) marks the completion of Wang Yangming’s unique approach to death and the afterlife.

Admittedly, longevity, for quite amount of Wang Yangming’s lifetime, is an irresistible theme. Accounts from Wang’s own writings and from his disciples record that he pursued Daoist nourishing-life (yangsheng) techniques in his youth, partly in response to poor health. These early practices, whether drawn directly from Daoist masters or through the broader cultural diffusion of longevity arts, reveal that he once considered them a serious means of bodily and mental restoration. He revisited his earlier life and noted that “in my early years, I pursued the civil examination curriculum and was immersed in the conventions of literary composition. Later, I began to take an interest in the orthodox teachings, but was wearied and entangled by the conflicting interpretations, finding no entry point. I thus turned to the teachings of the Daoists and Buddhists, and was delighted to find resonance within my heart. I believed then that the Way of the sages resided therein” (Wang 2015, p. 157). After experiencing setbacks in his official career and a serious health crisis, Daoist techniques of nourishing life (yangsheng 養生) became an important means through which he sought to restore bodily and mental equilibrium.

The existential ordeal he endured at Longchang marked a turning point, as the question of life and death emerged as a profound spiritual challenge. Upon arriving at Longchang, he observed: “I have already become indifferent to gain and loss, honor and disgrace—but the single thought of life and death remains untransformed” (Wang 2015, p. 1395). In order to overcome his fear of death, he fashioned a stone coffin and sat upright within it day and night, maintaining a state of meditative stillness (chengmo jingyi 澄默靜一) in pursuit of detachment. In this extreme circumstance, Wang eventually attained an insight into life and death: “Only then did I realize that the Way of the sage is fully contained within my own nature. My former attempt to seek principle in external things was mistaken.” (Wang 2015, p. 1396) This liminal moment enabled Wang Yangming to transform the Daoist focus on longevity into a Confucian emphasis on the quality of one’s moral life. Thus, Wang Yangming no longer sought physical immortality, but instead realized the eternal nature of the moral ontology embodied in liangzhi.

When his disciple Zhou Ji 周積 asked whether he had any final words, Wang Yangming calmly responded: this new understanding is best captured in his conversations with his disciples regarding his afterlife. “This mind is luminous—what more need be said?” (ci xin guangming, yi fu he yan 此心光明，亦復何言). These eight characters encapsulate his ultimate enlightenment regarding life and death. In the Instructions for Practical Living (Chuanxilu 傳習錄), Wang further employs the metaphor of “day and night” to explain the nature of life and death: “To understand day and night is to understand life and death… This is the virtue of Heaven; it is to comprehend the way of day and night and thus know—what distinction remains between life and death?” (Wang 2015, p. 46). Such a view reflects a synthesis of Daoist cosmological naturalism and Confucian moral cultivation. On one hand, life and death are understood as natural and continuous transitions—like the alternation between day and night—thereby dispelling fear of mortality. On the other, it emphasizes the role of moral self-cultivation in making a meaningful life, thus transcending the limits of individual corporeal existence.

In this sense, Wang Yangming transformed the Daoist aspiration for changsheng jiushi 長生久視 (longevity and enduring vision) into a Confucian pursuit of the eternal moral substance expressed in the phrase wuxing zizu 吾性自足 (“my nature is self-sufficient”). He further wrote: “True longevity lies in the pursuit of ren (humaneness); the Golden Elixir [jindan] need not be sought externally. For thirty years I have been in error—only now do I repent” (Wang 2015, p. 812). This verse explicitly rejects the external alchemical techniques of waidan 外丹 in favor of internal moral cultivation. In doing so, Wang affirms the Confucian view that the quest for ren (仁) is the true path of life. Such a transformation does not constitute a wholesale rejection of the Daoist ideal of longevity, but rather reinterprets and internalizes it in light of the existential concerns surrounding human mortality. It marks a spiritual transcendence—from the Daoist pursuit of bodily immortality to the Confucian realization of moral eternality.

This highlight of ren (仁) marks Wang Yangming’s complete shift from pursuit of physical longevity to practices that lead to moral perfection. This reframing does not signal the erasure of Daoist influence, but rather its incorporation into a pluralistic synthesis. Wang himself affirmed that the teachings of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism “differ from those of the sages by only a hair’s breadth” and could be drawn upon to form “the Great Way.” In this light, his reinterpretation of longevity represents not a simple rejection but a philosophical transformation—preserving the Daoist concern with transcending death, while grounding it in a moral ontology compatible with his vision of the unity of all things with Heaven and Earth. Wang Yangming upheld a broad-minded and inclusive religious consciousness. He stated: “The subtleties of the two [non-Confucian] teachings differ from those of the sages by only a hair’s breadth” (Wang 2015, p. 46). In his view, the three teachings share a fundamental wisdom, and their differences lie primarily in their specific modes of practice. He further asserted: “The sage forms one body with Heaven, Earth, the people, and all things. Confucianism, Buddhism, Laozi, and Zhuangzi are all resources I draw upon—this is what is called the Great Way” (Wang 2015, p. 1468). This approach to the three teachings should be best termed as integrative. Liangzhi as a concept may indeed have very strong Confucian origin, but Wang’s theorization does not give Confucianism the monopoly over methods of reading liangzhi. In this way, all three teaching can all contribute to the formation and manifestation of liangzhi in harmony.

It should also be noted that three teachings “originally come from the same source” was not Wang Yangming’s unique invention; it had already appeared frequently in the Quanzhen 全真 Daoist tradition of the Yuan dynasty. However, in the Confucian camp, it is Wang Yangming who first unequivocally affirmed that three teachings could exist in synthesis. In Wang Yangming’s later years, during a gathering with disciples by Bixia Pool in Shaoxing, he composed the verse: “Do not say that the heavenly mechanism (tianji 天機) is unrelated to human desires; one must know that all things are my own bod.” (Wang 2015, pp. 933–34). This poetic expression demonstrates the culmination of his vision of integrating the Three Teachings via his heart-mind philosophy, and his aspiration to extend ren (humaneness) as a moral sentiment that encompasses Heaven, Earth, and all beings. Wang Yangming here articulated a subject-centered consciousness that sought to transcend sectarian boundaries (Peng 2015, p. 448). Throughout Wang Yangming’s writings, he always advocated for the use of liangzhi and the principle of “the unity of all things” (wanwu yiti zhi ren 萬物一體之仁) as the spiritual foundation of both the moral cultivation and the political life of the shi dafu (Confucian scholar-officials) (Chen 2021, p. 37). The moral cultivation Wang proposed was neither innate nor detached from worldly existence, but something to be refined gradually through engagement with the human condition.

This (re-)prioritization of ren, as argued above, represents Wang Yangming’s response to the issue of death and afterlife. He increasingly realized that life was not measured in the pure length, but in terms of concrete progress in moral cultivation and deeds. At the core of Wang Yangming’s thought lies the realization of the authentic self through the unity of knowledge and action (zhixing heyi 知行合一), as well as the sustained efforts to bridge “inner sageliness and outer kingliness” (neisheng waiwang 內聖外王). His engagement with traditional Confucianism centered on the cultivation of the self and the pacification of others (xiuji anren 修己安人), revealing a deep concern with both personal morality and social responsibility. In stressing practice, Wang sought to dismantle the scholastic rigidity and utilitarian tendencies that had become entrenched in Neo-Confucian orthodoxy—particularly as represented by the Zhu Xi school, which had become aligned with the state educational and examination system. He urged a return to the sages as the true source of the Way (dao 道), advocating that the heart-mind (xin 心)—specifically as liangzhi—be taken as the ultimate standard of discernment.9 In doing so, he expanded upon Lu Xiangshan’s emphasis on the “great doubt and great awakening” (大疑大進) and rejected the pedantic approach of vulgar Confucians who relied solely on textual knowledge. Instead, Wang promoted the acquisition of true understanding through lived moral practice. For him, sagehood is not monopolized by some exceptional figures in history but can be obtained or reached precisely with the accumulation of concrete moral practices.

To fully contextualize Wang’s reinterpretation of Daoist longevity, it is important to recognize a broader religious milieu in which Confucian and Daoist categories were systematically combined—most notably in the Jingming Sect. It should also be highlighted that the moral dimension may have something to do with the movement of Jingming Sect 淨明道.10 Guo (2005, p. 87) has examined the influence of the Song dynasty Neo-Confucian thinker Lu Jiuyuan 陸九淵 on Liu Yu 劉玉 of Jiangxi and his Jingming movement. The respect that Jingming Sect accorded to Lu Jiuyuan largely derived from a shared intellectual orientation—namely, the consonance between Confucianism and Daoism on the question of establishing loyalty and filial piety as fundamental principles. To a considerable extent, the worldly concern of Jingming Dao lay in its renewed affirmation of the human person and its heightened emphasis on the mind. On the one hand, Liu Yu, the representative figure of Jingming Dao, affirmed the noble status of human beings situated between “Heaven” and “Earth,” thereby underscoring the Dao of learning as a way of becoming fully human—summed up in the dictum: “If one wishes to cultivate the Way of immortality, one must first cultivate the Way of humanity” (Zhang Gui, Preface to the Complete Book of Jingming Loyalty and Filial Piety, DZ 1110). On the other hand, Liu Yu simplified Daoist ritual practices, in a manner comparable to Zhu Xi’s reform and simplification of the Family Rituals. This development reflected both the broader historical context of cultural dissemination and popularization during the Song dynasty and the demands of adaptive transformation in response to changing times. Liu Yu’s adoption of a Daoist discipline characterized by “ease and simplicity” was, to a large degree, inspired by Lu Jiuyuan’s doctrine of “illuminating the original mind” and “first establishing what is fundamental.” This influence extended into the Yuan dynasty, shaping both Neo-Confucian and Daoist thinkers, and persisted into the Ming dynasty, where it facilitated the mutual absorption between Wang Yangming’s thought and Daoist philosophy.

From this perspective, the Jingming understanding of “loyalty and filial piety” converges with Wang Yangming’s conception of filial piety (xiaodao) in important respects. Both traditions emphasized that the practice of filial devotion constitutes the realization of the Dao of humanity, that is, the concrete enactment of human life in the world. Yet crucial differences also emerge. For Jingming Sect, loyalty and filial piety retained the character of a supra-worldly religious discipline, one oriented toward communion with the divine (Guo 2005, p. 252). Wang Yangming, by contrast, interpreted filial piety as the root from which all other virtues—as branches, flowers, and fruits—grow, a position consistent with the Analects: “Filial piety and fraternal respect—are they not the root of humaneness” (孝悌也者，其為人之本與)? What distinguished Wang’s interpretation, however, was his attribution of transcendent significance to filial devotion. He asserted: “To serve one’s parents with the utmost sincerity and compassion arising from innate moral knowledge (liangzhi)—this is filial piety,” and he further described liangzhi as “the spiritual essence of creation.” In this framework, liangzhi carries an inherently religious dimension, for its natural manifestation lies in the spontaneous alignment with Heavenly principle through filial practice. Thus, within Wang’s xinxue (philosophy of the mind), filial devotion is not a mere secular obligation but rather a transcendent expression of human nature understood as “the mandate of Heaven realized as nature.”

In this sense, the transcendent orientation of Wang’s filial ethics resonates deeply with the religious cultivation of filial piety in the Jingming Dao. Both traditions reject a sharp separation between the human Dao and the Heavenly Dao, instead insisting on their interpenetration. This affinity is clearly expressed in the Complete Book of Jingming Loyalty and Filial Piety: “Loyalty and filial piety are nothing other than the innate knowledge and capacity of ministers and sons; every person possesses this Heavenly principle, and it is not something external.” Such a formulation corresponds closely with Wang Yangming’s thought. Nevertheless, the ultimate aspirations of the two traditions diverged: Daoism oriented itself toward the immortal realm, while Confucianism aimed at the ideal of sagehood. Despite this difference in ultimate telos, the reflective paths of practice concerning loyalty and filial piety remain structurally analogous and thus capable of generating profound resonance.11

To some extent, Wang Yangming’s repeated emphasis on moral cultivation offers a meaningful and arguably more realistic solution to the problem of death, which Daoist longevity techniques also wish to resolve. Death may be delayed, but still will eventually occur to every individual. What matters is not the number of years one may live, but how well one is versed in liangzhi. In other words, Wang proposes a value system to reinterpret life and death. In this new system, liangzhi is the key parameter. Therefore, his rejection of longevity techniques actually solves the issue of confronting death for Daoism. The emphasis on moral cultivation and accomplishments are Wang Yangming’s innovative approach to the haunted problem of death.

5. Conclusions

In this paper, we systematically examine Wang Yangming’s reception and mobilization of Daoist intellectual resources. In Yangming’s case, the relation between Confucianism and Daoism is never a one-sided event. Any neglect of Daoism’s contribution to this school, or any claim that Yangming simply borrowed from Daoism, is deeply inappropriate. Tracing the intellectual origins, we find that Wang Yangming’s early childhood and adolescence were immersed in religious surroundings in which Daoism played an important part. This familiarity enabled Wang Yangming in his later years to approach Daoism as a reservoir of intellectual inspiration. In many ways, Wang’s theorization mirrored some Daoist proposals, but also critically and creatively transformed them. Yangming’s liangzhi in many ways echoes the Daoist Dao: it is the source of creation, and also the sustaining force behind the myriad of things. Later in his theorization, Wang Yangming incorporated terminologies in inner alchemy such as essence, pneuma, spirit (jing, qi, shen) into his liangzhi theory, thus emphasizing a unified substance–function cosmology (ti–yong bu’er 體用不二). These inner alchemy terminologies, in effect, marked his active conversion of Daoist longevity techniques into zhi liangzhi practice, introducing moral and ethical dimensions alongside mind–body cultivation. Despite terminological similarity, Wang Yangming did not share the Daoist mission for bodily immortality; instead, moral cultivation became the axis of his definition of life. In this sense, he sublimated the desire for physical immortality into the spiritual eternality of the luminous mind (ci xin guangming 此心光明).

Moreover, Wang’s sustained dialogue with Daoism was not limited to general inner alchemical metaphors, but also intersected with the concrete religious program of the Jingming Sect. As the writings of Liu Yu and later Jingming exponents reveal, their emphasis on loyalty and filial piety as both moral practice and religious discipline resonated with Wang’s own insistence that filial devotion manifests liangzhi and embodies the Heavenly principle. The Jingming example illustrates how, even outside Wang’s direct circle, his thought participated in and contributed to the wider Confucian–Daoist synthesis in the Ming period.

Thus, the Yangming school offers a genuine potential for transcending sectarian boundaries. This paradigm of pluralistic integration (duoyuan rongtong 多元融通) not only illuminates Ming intellectual history but also provides a critical reference point for intercultural dialogue within human civilization. Seen in this light, Wang Yangming and the Jingming Sect emerge as complementary expressions of the same Ming-era momentum: the moralization of Daoist religiosity and the sacralization of Confucian ethics within a shared framework of Confucian–Daoist synthesis.