王守仁의 경세사상- ‘治道’의 새로운 발견과 그 이론화를 중심으로 -

Abstract

What kind of innovation is made by Wang shou-ren in the political arena, especially in terms of ‘governing the whole nation’? This article examines Wang’s new awakening of the governing method and its theorization. Wang Yang-ming has not only the desire to become a sage since childhood, but also the will to rule the whole nation. The most important thing for the scholar-officials who have the ideals of ruling the world under the monarchy was to get the king’s trust and materialized their ideals. However, this method can be realized only by assuming a political culture in which the communication between the king and his servants can be properly done. However, while the power of the kingship in Ming imperial is strengthened, the strength of royal servants weakens. Thus, Ming dynasty had a political culture that is hard for the scholar-official to realize the ideal of the rule of right politics. This political culture became the direct motive for Yang-ming to look into alternative routes other than the ‘get the king’s trust and materialized their ideals’. ‘Enlightenment in Long Chang(龍場)’ of Wang yang-ming has brought revolutionary changes not only in the way of becoming a sage but also the method of ‘governing the whole nation’. The road for ‘loving the people and implement the rule of right’ and ‘enlighten the people and implement the rule of right’ has been introduced. The real content that Wang yang-ming enlightened from Long Chang is ‘benevolence’. Actualizing such mind to the people is ‘loving the people and implement the rule of right’. And the method of ‘enlighten the people and implement the rule of right’ that actualize morality by enlightening the innate knowledge of people was found for the first time by Wang yang-ming. After that, in Yang ming studies, the three method of ‘loving the people’, ‘enlighten the people’ and ‘get monarch’s trust’ has become popular together. All the theoretical and practical activities of Wang yang-ming that was presented after enlightenment in Long Chang derived from the worry and anxiety to save the world. The main theory of Wang yang-ming such as ‘the mind is principle’ ‘the unity of knowledge and action’ ‘the Heaven, Earth and all things are one body’ ‘the extension of innate knowledge’ and ‘training and polishing in the actual affairs of life‘ has become the theoretical basis of the governing thought. The theory of ‘the mind is principle’ is the theoretical basis of the rule of right. The theory of ‘the unity of knowledge and action’ is oriented toward the realization of the politics of the rule of right under the criticism of the mismatch phenomenon of knowledge and action. And the theory of ‘the Heaven, Earth and all things are one body’ is the theoretical basis of the politics of loving the people. Lastly, the theory of ‘the extension of innate knowledge’ is the unified way of practicing ‘self-cultivation and governing people (修己治人)’, and the theory of ‘training and polishing in the actual affairs of life’ is the basis of political acts to devote all of its power to civil affairs.