Shen Buhai - Philosophy

Philosophy

Shen was chiefly concerned with government administration through the use of bureaucracy. His system required a strong ruler at the center. Shen Buhai believed that the ideal ruler should remain distant from his officials, keeping his innermost thoughts secret and maintaining an independence of thought. According to Shen, the ruler needed to be the loneliest person in the world.

To Shen Buhai, the greatest threat to a ruler's power came from within. He believed that threats from powerful, independent ministers to usurp power were more dangerous than threats from external forces. Shen championed the concept of Shu (術 administrative methods/techniques). Shen advocated for maintaining checks against the power of officials, and in equality among the officials.

He touted the primacy of finding the right person for the job (xingming 刑名). He evaluated officials based on skill, achievement and seniority. He also encouraged routine assessments of officials.

Shen Buhai promulgated his own concept of wu wei, which caused some scholars to link him with Taoism. In Shen's case, he believed that rulers maximized power by exercising power as little as possible. He also encouraged rulers to limit their scope, leaving the details of administration to capable ministers. Some modern scholars argued that Shen's legalism was more a blend of Taoism and Legalism than just purely the conceptual Shu school of Legalism.