Yangming's Former Residence

Wang Shouren was born in the Wang family residence in Yuyao and buried in Lanting, Shaoxing. In the Ming Dynasty, Yuyao and Lanting both belonged to Shaoxing. I visited Yangming’s Tomb on the first day of the Lunar New Year in 2021. This time when I went to Yuyao, I took the time to visit Wang Yangming’s former residence.

Wang Yangming’s former residence is located at the northern foot of Longquan Mountain in Yuyao. The existing buildings were renovated on the old site in 2007. The entire building is a typical courtyard of a typical ancient large family. The central axis is the Main Hall and Ruiyun Tower, with east and west wings on the left and right. The Wang clan was a famous family in Yuyao. Wang Shouren’s grandfather, Wang Lun, was a locally famous private school teacher, and his father, Wang Hua, was the top scholar (Zhuangyuan) and served as the Minister of Personnel. Wang Shouren surpassed his teacher, with both civil and military achievements, becoming a perfect man of ancient and modern times who “established a heart for heaven and earth, established a life for the people, continued the lost learning for past sages, and opened up peace for all generations,” achieving the “three true immortalities” of establishing virtue, establishing merit, and establishing words. After visiting his former residence, I found that his family had a great influence on his success.

Yuyao has been a famous city in the southeast since ancient times, advocating farming and reading, with a strong local cultural atmosphere. Besides Wang Yangming, there are other cultural celebrities. Wang Shouren was born into a family of scholars and officials in Yuyao. His father, Wang Hua, was the top scholar in the 17th year of Chenghua in the Ming Dynasty (1481) and served in important positions such as the Vice Minister of Rites. His grandfather taught locally as a profession. Before the age of 11, Wang Shouren was always trained and educated by his grandfather in Yuyao, receiving Confucian traditional culture education. After the age of 15, he followed his father and received official secular education in Nanjing. In his youth, he had the opportunity to travel around with his father and appreciate the mountains, rivers, and geography, which had an important impact on the broadening of his thoughts and horizons. The substantial family background and good family foundation allowed young Wang Shouren to obtain educational resources that his peers could not reach. It can be said that the efforts of generations of the Wang family were the basic guarantee for Wang Shouren’s success.

Published at: Nov 24, 2024 · Modified at: Dec 12, 2025