The essence of Wang Yangming's thought is the study of mind, and his thought actually comes from the thought of Confucian sage Mencius. Mencius believes that everyone has a good knowledge and ability, which exists in our hearts just like our limbs. Under the influence of Lu Jiuyuan's theory that "my heart is the universe and the universe is my heart", after experiencing numerous difficulties and obstacles in the world, Wang Yangming realized Tao in the vast wilderness of Guizhou and founded the theory of mind.
Wang Yangming's mind system includes three aspects. First, the mind is rational; The second is the unity of knowledge and action, and the third is conscience. This constitutes the three pillars of Wang Yangming's theory of mind, but the core is his thought of conscience.
Wang Yangming's theory of mind is different from other Confucianism, which emphasizes the role of mind. Wang Yangming believes that everything is not in our hearts, but in our hearts. Everything depends on human understanding. Wang Yangming said, "The sage's way is self-sufficient and realistic." Wang Yangming gave an example to tell students, "When I didn't see this flower, it died with my heart." When I came to see this flower, I understood its color for a while. I know this flower is not outside your heart. "Some people say that this is idealism, but it is not. Wang Yangming means that people know this thing, and this thing is valuable to me. Otherwise, this thing is worthless to me, because it is not perceived by me.
Mental learning is mind is reason. Wang Yangming's theory of mind is a rectification of Zhu and others' neo-Confucianism. Wang Yangming believes that justice exists in people's hearts. So, you should learn from things. You shouldn't ride a donkey to look elsewhere. You just need to find it in your heart. Because reason is in your heart. In other words, we always know everything about the outside world through our hearts. Therefore, the so-called mind is reason, which is actually the values you agree with. A value that is not recognized by your heart is not a reason. Therefore, the mind is reason, and reason is actually the human heart, which is what Mencius called conscience.