明初諸儒認為本體論的建構在宋儒那裏已經相當完備，學者的當下任務主要是道德踐履。以存理去欲為中心的道德修養論便成為當時學者生活、教學、從政與學術的核心議題。十五世紀中國思想史界，尤以吳與弼（康齋）開創的崇仁學派蔚為大觀。吳康齋繼承並真誠的實踐程朱一系心性工夫論，恢復了宋學的生機。存理去欲以實現聖賢人格為目標，以敬、靜為入手工夫。由於對敬－靜在工夫論中所處地位、看法的不同，引發主靜派與主敬派的論爭和分歧，分以陳獻章（白沙）和胡居仁（敬齋）為代表。分析崇仁學派道德修養論，可以清晰地看出十五世紀到十六世紀初期中國學術界道德修養論的分歧所在。而王守仁（陽明）提出的致良知教與「有無之境」有效地化解程朱一系道德修養論的內在張力，終結敬－靜話語體系爭論，從而在明代學術史上具有特殊的意義。

For the Confucians in the early Ming Dynasty, ontology had been almost fully constructed by the Confucians of the Song Dynasty, and their current task concerned the moral practice. Revolving around the maintenance of principles and removal of desires, the theory of moral cultivation became a central issue in the current scholars' lives as well as their teachings, political and academic careers. In the philosophical circle of China in the 15th century, Chongren School, founded by Wu Yubi, was preeminent. Wu inherited and practiced sincerely Cheng-Zhu School's theory on the cultivation of mind and nature, reviving the vitality of the Confucianism of the Song Dynasty. The ”maintenance of principles and removal of desires” began with diligence and tranquility and aimed at the fulfillment of the sagely personality. Due to the differences in their views about the statuses of diligence and tranquility in the theory of cultivation, the pro-tranquility sect and the pro-diligence sect were caught up in debate and divergence. Analyzing Chongren School's theory on moral cultivation, it is clear that where the theories of moral cultivation of China in the 15th and early 16th centuries departed from one another, while Wang Yang-ming's philosophy resolved the tension within Cheng-Zhu School and ended the argument between the pro-diligence and pro-tranquility sects, which means a great deal to the academic history of the Ming Dynasty.