Zhou Dunyi, born in Yingdao county in Daozhou prefecture in southern Hunan in 1017, was originally named Zhou Dunshi.
Raised by a scholar-official family, he had been forced to change his name in 1063 to avoid a character in the personal name of the new Emperor Yingzong.
His father died when he was fourteen and he had been taken in by his uncle Zheng Xiang, through whom he had received his first posting in government.
Although very active in his civil service career, he has never achieve a high position or attain the "Presented Scholar" degree (jinshi).
Some of the positions that he had held were district record keeper (1040), magistrate in various districts (1046–1054), prefectural staff supervisor, and professor of the directorate of education and assistant prefect (1061–1064).
In the Taiji Tushuo (Explanations of the Diagram of the Supreme Ultimate or Diagram Explaining the Supreme Ultimate), Zhou fuses Confucian ethics and concepts from the Book of Changes (I Ching) with Taoist naturalism.
He develops a metaphysics based on the idea that "the many are ultimately one and the one is ultimate."
This is the first eleventh-century Chinese text to argue for the inseparability of metaphysics or cosmology and ethics, as well as the first major Chinese text to explore the concept of the taijitu or "yin-yang symbol".
The Tong Shu (The All-Embracing Book or Penetrating the 'Book of Changes') is a reinterpretation of the Confucian doctrines.
The basis for ethics in neo-Confucianism, it states that the sage is a superior man who acts in accordance with the principles of propriety, humanity, righteousness, wisdom, faithfulness, tranquility and sincerity.
Sincerity being the basis for moral nature, it can be used to distinguish between good and evil and to perfect oneself.
Zhou Dunyi has only two students who make any major contribution to Confucianism: his nephews Cheng Yi and Cheng Hao.
The Cheng brothers had studied under Zhou Dunyi only for a short time when they were younger.
The brothers had moved on to establish the Cheng-Zhu School, which will dominate Chinese philosophy for over 700 years.
Zhou Dunyi is considered the founding father of this school although there are no references in the Cheng brothers' writings to his contributions.
Zhou had resigned from his last post 1072 and dies near Mount Lu in Jiangxi province in 1073.
After his death, Zhou will commonly be called Zhou Lianxi for a name he adopted in his retirement that honored the Lian stream near his home.
Zhou Dunyi will be a major influence on the twelfth-century philosopher Zhu Xi, who is considered one of the greatest Confucian thinkers since Confucius himself.
Zhu Xi is known to have said that Zhou Dunyi was the first great sage and first of the Song Dynasty.
Zhu Xi will defend Zhou Dunyi on the importance of his concept of Wuji.
