What is the difference between Wang Fuzhi's and Gu's thoughts?

Apart from the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, China should be said to be an era when thinkers came forth in large numbers at the end of Ming Dynasty. Besides the theory of mind and nature and Wang Gen's theory of seclusion, there are three great thinkers: Gu, Wang Fuzhi and Huang Zongxi. These three ideas have something in common. They all opposed the theory of mind and nature and Neo-Confucianism, and advocated returning to the origin of Confucius and Mencius. However, Gu and Wang Fuzhi's thoughts still have their own emphases.

Gu pays attention to practical application. This stems from Gu's aversion to the empty talk of literati at that time. In his view, both the Neo-Confucianism of Song and Ming Dynasties and the popular Neo-Confucianism of Lu Wang at that time seriously deviated from the true colors of Confucianism of Confucius and Mencius. He thinks that both Neo-Confucianism and Neo-Confucianism have over-interpreted Confucius and Mencius' theory, and many contents have not been talked about by Confucius and Mencius, while some contents emphasized by Confucius and Mencius are related to reality, but both Neo-Confucianism and Neo-Confucianism avoid talking about it. Therefore, he came to the conclusion that he thought that the theory of mind and nature and Neo-Confucianism were empty talk, and the real Confucian and Mencius doctrine emphasized practical application.

Gu believes that the real thoughts of Confucius and Mencius should explore more knowledge of self-cultivation, keeping the family in order, governing the country and leveling the world, rather than blindly pursuing whether the origin of the world is reason or qi. Although Confucianism lost its ideological dominance for thousands of years due to the lack of exploration of the origin of the world, by the end of the Ming Dynasty, he Neo-Confucianism overemphasized the exploration of the origin of the world, which is why Gu opposed them. There is a flaw in Gu's learning. He doesn't know the origin of the world. He believes that the origin of the world lies in the Thirteen Classics. His explanation is far-fetched and even contradictory.

Another thinker, Wang Fuzhi, explained the origin of the world very clearly. In Wang Fuzhi's view, Neo-Confucianism belongs to objective idealism, while Mind belongs to subjective idealism. The cornerstone of both theories is idealism, and both believe that reason precedes qi and consciousness precedes material existence. The difference between the two is that Neo-Confucianism believes that consciousness that precedes material existence exists outside things, while Neo-Confucianism believes that consciousness that precedes material existence exists inside things and in people's hearts. Wang Fuzhi clearly pointed out that matter should exist before consciousness. He belongs to a thorough materialist and is more targeted than Gu in The Origin of the World. Wang Fuzhi also criticized Zhu He's view of knowing and doing. Zhu believes that knowledge is before the line, and the prophet is before the line, while criticizing Zhu and separating knowledge from line, the two should be integrated. But in essence, I agree with Zhu's point of view, that is, the prophet will act later. On the other hand, Wang Fuzhi sharply criticized that action should precede knowledge. There can be no knowledge without action, that is, there can be no truth without practice. He pointed out that everything can only be understood through practice, and practice is the source of everything.