Zhu Xi is a comprehensive synthesizer of Neo - Confucianism that developed during early Song Dynasty. Follow ing the meticulous spiritual direction of Cheng Yi,he has expanded the moral rationalism in the Song dynasty to the utmost. His strong group orientation leads him to attaching priority to normative rules and operative convenience,but his individual orientation leads him to seeking for the unrestrained poetic w ay of life. His pursuits of both the moral ideal of rationalism and the poetic life of romanticism result in his dual personality. He devoted all his life to the efforts to solve the conflict and tension betw een his dual pursuits,w hich provide an important clue for the profound understanding of the complexity of his philosophy.
