Itō Jinsai

Itō Jinsai was a Japanese Confucian philosopher of the Edo period, from a Kyoto merchant family, who taught for decades at his private academy, the Kogidō. After years as a follower of Zhu Xi's Neo-Confucianism he rejected it, arguing that its metaphysics of principle distorted the original teaching. He called for a return to the 'ancient meanings' of the Analects and Mencius, read closely for themselves. The Meaning of Terms in the Analects and Mencius (Gomō jigi) defines key words such as the Way, humaneness and human nature in this spirit, stressing everyday relationships and love.

Key ideas

• The true meaning of Confucian teaching is found by reading the Analects and Mencius directly, not through Song-dynasty commentary.
• The Way is found in ordinary human relations and daily conduct, not in an abstract principle behind things.
• Humaneness (jin) is essentially love, and it is the centre of all the virtues.
• Human nature holds beginnings of goodness that must be developed through practice; it is not already perfect.
• The world is a living process of vital force (ki), not the expression of a fixed principle (ri).

Major works

• The Meaning of Terms in the Analects and Mencius (Gomō jigi) (1683)
• Boys' Questions (Dōjimon) (1707)

In the Book corner

• The Meaning of Terms in the Analects and Mencius (Gomō jigi) c. 1683; published 1705 · Advanced
  A philosophical lexicon by the Kyoto Confucian teacher Itō Jinsai, drafted around 1683 and published after his death in 1705. It defines…

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