The World Conference on Yangmingism, or Conference on Wang Yangming Mind Philosophy, is held in Shaoxing, Zhejiang province on Nov 23. [Photo/WeChat account: sxfabu]

The World Conference on Yangmingism, or Conference on Wang Yangming Mind Philosophy, opened in Shaoxing, Zhejiang province on Nov 23.

The conference has attracted over 400 scholars and experts to the city, which is the hometown of philosopher Wang Yangming (1472-1529).

The conference is themed "Yangmingism and Common Prosperity" and includes the "Yangmingism and rural vitalization" roundtable, a seminar about the value of Yangmingism in the new era, and other sub-forums related to Yangmingism.

According to Yangmingism, which is derived from Confucianism, every person should maintain close relationships with others and be aware of their actions.

One Yangmingism principle states that knowledge and action should be combined, and that one can only acquire knowledge through action.

Shaoxing is announced as the permanent host city of the World Conference on Yangmingism. [Photo/WeChat account: sxfabu]

Local authorities said that Shaoxing is the birthplace of Wang, as well as the place where his doctrines were first developed and became widely circulated.

The former residence of Wang, which cost 8 billion yuan ($1.12 billion) to reconstruct, was opened to the public on Oct 31, which marked the 550th anniversary of the philosopher's birth.