The life and thought of Dai Zhen, a preeminent eighteenth-century Chinese scholar who integrated evidential learning with profound philosophical inquiry. Unlike many of his contemporaries who focused solely on philology, Dai utilized meticulous textual analysis to challenge the abstract dualism of earlier Song and Ming dynasty thinkers. He argued that the Way (dao) is found within concrete daily activities and that human wants and feelings are essential guides to morality rather than obstacles to be suppressed. By redefining pattern (li) as the orderly fulfillment of shared human needs, he established a moral psychology grounded in sympathetic consideration for others. Ultimately, the text presents Dai as a revolutionary thinker who sought to anchor Confucian ethics in empirical reality and the universal physical experience of humanity.