生平

在先秦各家的著述如《孟子》、《荀子》、《庄子》、《韩非子》、《吕氏春秋》等，他的名字曾多次出现。他的行踪多在鲁、宋、梁一带。据《庄子》记载，他曾经见过老子。其活动的年代，比墨子稍后，而又早于孟子。杨朱学说在当时相当著名，但早已散佚不存，散见于《孟子》、《列子》、《庄子》、《吕氏春秋》、《韩非子》、《淮南子》等书中。如《列子·杨朱》篇云：杨朱曰：「伯成子高不以一毫利物，舍国而隐耕。大禹不以一身自利，一体偏枯。古之人损一毫利天下不与也，悉天下奉一身不取也。人人不损一毫，人人不利天下，天下治矣。」

杨朱学派属道家的激进派，《孟子·滕文公》篇云：「杨朱、墨翟之言盈天下，天下之言，不归杨，即归墨。」可知春秋之世，杨朱之学与墨家齐驱，并属先秦流行天下的学说。孟子说墨翟、杨朱「无父无君，是禽兽也」，是愤怒之词，感性的攻讦大过于理性分析。但孟子也说，「逃墨必归于杨，逃杨必归于儒」，简称「逃墨归杨，逃杨归儒」，所以许多后人诠释，孟子认为「杨近墨远」，杨朱思想较接近于儒家思想。

《吕氏春秋》中的《重己》、《贵生》、《本性》、《情欲》、《尽数》等篇都受到了杨朱学派的影响，探讨了爱己、利己中的智慧与包含的「道」就是道理也就是意义。

思想内容

许多人认为杨朱曾和老子会面，曾受到老子思想的影响。后来，有感于动乱的环境，困恼于越来越大的社会压力，于是弃老子学说中的部份内容，朝著「养生」、「存性」的方向不断深化，发展成以「为我」为中心的思想体系。杨朱的思想在战国初年一度风行，与儒、墨两家形成鼎足而三的形势。

• 首先，从其中心要旨而论，杨朱学说实际是以「我」作为自然的中心。他认为人的生命，往往由于外界的蒙蔽、组织所拘束，因而无法明察生命的真象，使个人失去主体性。于是杨朱主张探求内在自我安身立命的境界，以摆脱社会的束缚，偏向于个人人性的追求。他认为只有重视人类本有的自然性，人才会快乐，才能「全生（性）保真」。

• 其次，在政治方面，杨朱既然反对社会的束缚，所以在政治上也反对强权独占的霸道，主张「天下为公」，要「公天下之身，公天下之物。」，就是强调公平公正，也就是强调追求公共利益然后人人身份地位相对比较平等还有每个人的权利都有得到保障，他认为一切外在的道德伦理法律法令刑法，皆不可妨害一个人的自由。政府只是象徵式的，不可对个人过份约束。由此可见杨朱的政治观是自由的，与现代自由主义有共同之处。

• 第三，在人与人的关系上，杨朱极力主张个人的「为我」主义。他说：「古之人损一毫利天下，不与也；悉天下奉一身，不取也。人人不损一毫，人人不利天下，天下治矣。」他的意思是说社会是由各个「我」所组成，如果人我不相损、不相侵、不相给，那么天下便无窃位夺权之人，便无化公为私之辈，这样社会便能太平。

• 第四，在对生命的态度上，杨朱既重说「全性保真」，因而重视「贵生」、「乐生」。他认为人生短促，故在生时必须享尽人生之乐，所以要充份纵欲也就是要充份发泄欲望。在《列子》的杨朱篇中，他要求「丰屋、美服、厚味、姣色。有此四者，何求于外？」此种重生、贵生的激进思想，被认为是反对儒家克制欲望的礼法道德，又放弃了墨家的禁欲及道家老子的寡欲，倾向自我中心主义。

道教

道教尊南华微妙真人庄周、冲虚真人列圄寇、通玄真人辛文子、洞灵真人康桑楚，称为「四大真人」，加上文始真人尹喜、质初真人徐甲、贵生真人杨朱，则称「老君门下七真」。

Views

Menciuss view of Yang Zhu

According to Mencius, 「Yang』s principle is, 『Each for himself』—which does not acknowledge the claims of the sovereign. Mo's principle is, 『To love all equally』—which does not acknowledge the peculiar affection due to a father. To acknowledge neither king nor father is to be in the state of the beast. If their principles are not stopped, and the principles of Confucius set forth, their perverse speaking will delude the people, and stop up the path of benevolence and righteousness」.

Mencius criticized Yang Zhu as one 「who would not pluck a hair from his body to benefit the world.」 However, Yang Zhu emphasized that self-impairment, symbolized by the plucking of one's hair, would in no way lead to others』 benefit. Although he would not toil for others, he would not harm them for personal gain or advantage, which should be avoided as external to one's nature.

Yang Zhu taught, 「If everyone does not harm a single hair, and if everyone does not benefit the world, the world will be well governed of itself.」 In other words, everyone should mind their own business, neither giving nor taking from others, and be content with what he has, and in that way one will be happy and also contribute to the welfare of the world. When personal interests conflict with collective interests or national interests, more respect and protection of personal interests should be taken. On the surface, this seems to be unfavorable to society and the collective, and it is also the most vulnerable to questioning and criticism. In fact, on the contrary, this has safeguarded both personal interests and social interests. Because the foundation of society exists for people, not people to exist for society.

Philosophy of nature

Although his detractors present him as a hedonist, Epicurean, and egoist, Yang Zhu was, according to contemporary sources, an early Daoist teacher identified with a new philosophical trend toward naturalism as the best means of preserving life in a decadent and turbulent world.

All beings, thought Yang Zhu, have the survival instinct, but man, the highest of creatures, lacking the strength of animals, must rely on intelligence to survive rather than strength. He felt that strength was despicable when used against others.

Philosophy of life

Yang Zhu directed his thought to attainment of the spiritual self through self-expression and finding contentment.

Henri Maspero described Yang's philosophy as "a mixture of pessimism and fatalism". The Yang Zhu chapter of Liezi says:

One hundred years is the limit of a long life. Not one in a thousand ever attains it. Suppose there is one such person. Infancy and feeble old age take almost half of his time. Rest during sleep at night and what is wasted during the waking hours in the daytime take almost half of that. Pain and sickness, sorrow and suffering, death (of relatives) and worry and fear take almost half of the rest. In the ten and some years that is left, I reckon, there is not one moment in which we can be happy, at ease without worry. This being the case, what is life for? What pleasure is there? For beauty and abundance, that is all. For music and sex, that is all. But the desire for beauty and abundance cannot always be satisfied, and music and sex cannot always be enjoyed. Besides, we are prohibited by punishment and exhorted by rewards, pushed by fame and checked by law. We busily strive for the empty praise which is only temporary, and seek extra glory that would come after death. Being alone ourselves, we pay great care to what our ears hear and what our eyes see, and are much concerned with what is right or wrong for our bodies and minds. Thus we lose the great happiness of the present and cannot give ourselves free rein for a single moment. What is the difference between that and many chains and double prisons?

Philosophy of death

Yang Zhu agreed with the search for happiness, but he felt one should not strive for life beyond one's allotted span, nor should one unnecessarily shorten one's life. Death is as natural as life, Yang Zhu felt, and therefore should be viewed with neither fear nor awe. Funeral ceremonies are of no worth to the deceased. 「Dead people are not concerned whether their bodies are buried in coffins, cremated, dumped in water or in a ditch; nor whether the body is dressed in fine clothes. What matters most is that before death strikes one lives life to the fullest」.