Zhu Xi's Monarchy Theory Study

The guidance of governing the country by civilians in Song Dynasty promoted the rise of the scholar-officials and the shaping of the Jingyan system.The Monarchy theory came into being,which became the new trend of the development of Confucianism in the Song Dynasty.Scholar-officials in Song Dynasty took the Jingyan as a platform which has committed to the writing and construction of academic thought system.Through the priority to the classic interpretation,it affected the emperor and its political practice.Since Fan Zuyu advocated the Monarchy theory that was known as The Great Learning,the role of The Great Learning in the construction of the Monarchy theory has become increasingly prominent,and has gradually formed a Confucianism was the right way to guide the emperor,to regulate the governing system and to be Yao and Shun.It was characterized by the Sageliness based on moral principles,being distinguished with the utilitarian trick and driving the common people of the Monarchy strategy before the Song Dynasty.To some extent,the emperors were personally involved in the Monarchy theory mainly shaped by the scholar-officials in order to enhance the monarchs' virtues and the abilities to govern the country,and the knowledge and theoretical system for cultivating the perfect emperors in the Song Dynasty.The essence of Monarchy theory developing and enriching gradually was the process of the "ideal" emperors "shaped" and "expected "by the scholar-officials.Adapted to the development of Monarchy theory,Jingyan Lecture which was a kind of Neo-Confucianism advocating the righteousness and principle has gradually produced,which became the learning materials and textbooks for Confucian scholar-officials to interpret the righteousness and principle,and educate the emperors.It was the result of the ftransformation of the academy from the traditional exegesis to the learning of righteousness and principle in Song Dynasty.It was also the product of the development and the improvement of the Jingyan system,and the important carrier of the construction of the Monarchy theory by scholar-officials.It implied the reconstruction of the political and social order,and the Monarchy ideal of Yao and Shun.It was an important part of the development of Neo-Confucianism and the formation of the Monarchy theory.Zhu Xi as a master of Neo-Confucianism in Song dynasty devoted himself to The Great Learning in his life.He not only built the Neo-Confucianism system by Interpretation of the Great Learning as the top of The Four Books,but also wrote Jingyan Lecture trying to build the Monarchy theory by The Great Learning.In terms of Zhu Xi's Interpretation of the Great Learning,the academic community paid more attention to Interpretation of the Great Learning and the relationship between The Four Books and Neo-Confucianism,which achieved fruitful results.However,Zhu Xi's Jingyan Lecture was rarely involved.Moreover,it wasn't put in the rise and the development of the Monarchy theory to examine the role of Zhu Xi in the construction of the Monarchy theory in Song dynasty.Through analyzing the life experience and works of Zhu Xi,we found that from Accept the Emperor's Order in Renwu,he was the first time to define The Great Learning as the Monarchy theory which must be sprout out.In first five years of Zhaoxi,he came into the pilgrimage.After submitting Jingyan Lecture to the emperor,his favorable theme was to learn The Great Learning with "sincere heart" during 32 years in order to restrain the emperor from the power source of the monarchy and regulate the rule by Neo-Confucianism to save the crisis of the Southern Song Dynasty.Through the comparison of Confucianism and other theories,Zhu Xi established the status of Confucianism as a structure of The Great Learning.Its essence was to construct the Monarchy theory with Neo-Confucianism.He answered series of questions including what the emperors learn,why they learn and how to learn by using heavenly principles theory,the mind and nature theory,one principle with many manifestations and other philosophical ideas and the propositions.It provided a theoretical basis and logical proof for the establishment of imperial dream and its realization,and thus completed the Neo-Confucianism as the connotation and the construction of the Monarchy theory,which promoted the Monarchy theory of the Song Dynasty to a new stage.Through the comparison of Zhu Xi 's Jingyan Lecture and Interpretation of the Great Learning,it can be found that because of its different objects,it leads to the differences in the interpretation of the purpose,the system,the way and language expression style between them.It reflected the influence of the rise of Monarchy theory on the academic transformation in Song Dynasty.This was why Zhu Xi,when coming into the pilgrimage did not use Interpretation of the Great Learning as a lecture,but re-wrote Jingyan Lect.ure.As the Jingyan Lecture for the emperor,it had a strong imperial subject consciousness,which was not only related to the emperor's special identity and Zhu Xi's interpretation purpose,but also associated with the individual moral awareness and practical characteristics.Jingyan Lecture,as the imperial learning materials,carried Zhu Xi's ideal and political pursuit to build Monarchy theory by Neo-Confucianism.It was not only a response to the reproduction of the political and social order in the Song Dynasty,but also a theoretical and systematic study of the Monarchy theory since Zuyu Fan,which embodied the ideological characteristics of the Inner Sageliness and Outer Kingliness of Zhu Xi,and made The Great Learning the real "Sageliness and Kingliness" learning.From Fan Zuyu to Zhu Xi,and then to Zhen Dexiu,it embodied the rise,the development and the evolution of Monarchy theory in Song Dynasty,which further promoted the development and dissemination of Neo-Confucianism.