Wang Yangming (1472–1529) was a distinguished Chinese philosopher, general, and statesman during the Ming dynasty. He is best known for developing the Neo-Confucian school of thought known as the “School of Mind” (Xin Xue), which challenged the orthodox “School of Principle” (Li Xue) established by Zhu Xi. Wang Yangming emphasized the unity of knowledge and action, asserting that true knowledge arises from sincere, intuitive moral insight rather than external investigation. His doctrine of “innate knowing” (liangzhi) suggested that moral principles are inherent within the human mind. Wang’s ideas significantly influenced later Chinese thought and contributed to debates on ethics and epistemology.