Great Synthesis

In the mid-to-late Qing, metaphysics reached unprecedented heights in textual compilation and theoretical synthesis. During this period, multiple monumental works appeared that attempted to integrate the various schools and gather the comprehensive achievements of all previous eras. Metaphysicians were no longer satisfied with the narrow views of a single school, but devoted themselves to building a unified theoretical framework capable of accommodating pattern, strength, climate-harmonizing, spirit-noble, and multiple other dimensions. The influence of evidential scholarship made Qing-dynasty metaphysical works more rigorous in textual citation and more precise in conceptual analysis. At the same time, metaphysics became more closely integrated with social life, with in-depth metaphysical applications in marriage matching, date selection, naming, and fengshui.

Key Figures

Chen Su'an — Qing-dynasty metaphysician, author of Mingli Yueyan, attempting to capture the essentials of metaphysics in concise language, reflecting the Qing scholarly pursuit of synthesizing the various schools; Yuan Shushan — late Qing and early Republican master metaphysician, author of multiple metaphysical works, opening the path for the transition of traditional metaphysics toward modernity

Important Works

Mingli Yueyan — by Chen Su'an, in four volumes, covering stems and branches, patterns, useful gods, spirit-nobles, and other contents, with concise yet complete text, an important representative of the Qing synthesis school; Ziping Cuiyan — a late Qing metaphysical compilation, extensively collecting fortune-telling methods from various schools, reflecting the scholarly orientation of comprehensive synthesis

Historical Significance

The comprehensive-synthesis stage of metaphysics accomplished the systematic organization of knowledge, enabling the scattered techniques of the various schools to be understood and applied within a unified theoretical framework. This synthesis was not a simple patchwork but a conceptual reorganization and logical integration at a higher level, storing abundant scholarly resources for the modern transformation of metaphysics.