Wang Ji (1498–1583) was a Ming-dynasty Chinese philosopher and writer associated with the Yangming school.
His courtesy name was Ruzhong; he was known as Longxi and Longxi Xiansheng, was the fourteenth by birth order, and came from Shanyin in Shaoxing Prefecture.
Life
He was a shengyuan and ranked eighteenth among the provincial recommended candidates. In 1526, the fifth year of the Jiajing era, he attended the metropolitan examination with Qian Dehong, passed it, but did not proceed to the palace examination and returned home. After Wang Shouren died, Wang Ji observed mourning for him for three years; in 1532, the eleventh year of Jiajing, he took the palace examination, passed the jinshi examination on the same list as Qian Dehong, and was placed 227th in the third class.
His official career included service in the Ministry of Personnel as 吏部觀政, followed by appointment as a secretary in the Nanjing Ministry of War and promotion to Wuxuan langzhong. When Xia Yan denounced his learning as false, Wang Ji returned home on grounds of illness and devoted himself increasingly to lecturing.
Family and associations
His father was 王經, his mother 陸氏, his grandfather 王理, and his great-grandfather 王可旺.
His six elder brothers were 王朝, 王廷, 王國, 王臣, 王輔, and 王邦, and his wife was 張氏.
His sons were 王應吉, 王應楨, and 王應斌; his grandsons through a daughter were 陶履卓, 陶履羣, and 陶履章; and his grandsons were 王繼晃, 王繼樸, 王繼炳, and 王繼耀. His son 王應吉 was born in 1554.
Thought and teaching
After studying under Wang Shouren, Wang Ji made sudden enlightenment central to learning. He held that entering through the mind or heart could lead to complete understanding, that great awakening could break through the doubts of the ages, and he strongly advocated the doctrine known as 現成良知.
Wang Ji was a representative figure of Yangming learning. He further developed Yangming learning, drew on Daoist and Buddhist methods and achievements, and profoundly influenced the formation and development of Japanese Yangming learning.
After returning home, he lectured for more than forty years, traveling through the southeastern provinces and establishing lecture halls in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui, and Fujian. His eloquence drew crowds wherever he spoke; his lectures incorporated Chan elements, and scholars called him Master Longxi. Later, many scholar-officials claimed to be disciples of Longxi.
Works
His writings include 《龍溪王先生全集》 in twenty-two volumes, 《龍溪王先生會語》 in six volumes, 《大象義述》, 《致知議略》, 《麗澤錄》, and 《中鑑錄》 in seven volumes. They also appear under such titles as 《龍溪全集》, 《龍溪集》, and 《語錄》.
References
- CBDB Wang Ji (126814)
- 搜韵 王畿 (50930)
- 法鼓佛教人名规范数据库 王畿 (A008588)
- Wikidata Wang Ji (Q11573179)