Struggling Under the “Prohibition on Learning” of Jiajing’s Reign
摘要
Yangming returned to Shaoxing in late August of 1521 (the sixteenth year of Zhengde's reign). He regarded this move as a form of retirement and was prepared to withdraw from public service, no longer seeking an official post. At this time, the intellectual level of scholars in Zhejiang was somewhat behind that of their counterparts in Jiangxi. They generally had a poor understanding of Yangming's philosophy of the heartmind, but were eagerly anticipating the enlightenment from the master.