Yan Yuan (1635— 1704) was born in Boye County, Zhili (now Hebei Province). He is the founder of Yan Li School.
Yan Yuan studied Lu and Wang first, then transferred to Cheng and Zhu, and studied hard. He "stood tall and supported himself by Tao" (on the volume of Xizhai Chronicle), aged 34, was lost by his adoptive mother. At that time, it was "Zhu Chuanyi, Zhu Jiali dared not speak" ("Zhu Yizun Jie Shu Ting Ji, Taoist Biography Preface"). Yan Yuan followed Zhu's "family ceremony" in mourning, ate less and drank less, and died of grief several times. Therefore, I have doubts about Neo-Confucianism. The following year, he changed the thought of ancient Zhai to the thought of learning Zhai, and then embarked on the road of anti-Neo-Confucianism. But before the age of 57, Yan Yuan still had the meaning of "making a living with Cheng and Zhu". At the age of 57, when he conquered Zhongzhou (now Henan) in the south, he deeply understood the social reality and heard and witnessed the phenomenon that "everyone is a Zen master and every family is empty", so he made up his mind to "break" Cheng and Zhu. Good friend Wang said to Yan Yuan, "How did He Zhu defect? See who is in charge of fate today. " It is no problem for family members to read their books, learn from scholars and teach the people. "("Chronicle of Xizhai ") In order to correct the current situation and save the disadvantages, Yan Yuan found a new way and was fearless, and openly unveiled the banner of anti-Neo-Confucianism.