本篇文章的思路，係受到古典字義學、尤其是理學字義學傳統的啟發，兼借鑑雷蒙．威廉斯（Raymond Williams，1921-1988）的「關鍵詞」（keywords） 研究法，嘗試針對心學，特別是陽明學者論「身」字，進行大方向的考釋。心學是宋明理學發展的一支，其依據主要經典為《孟子》，強調心即天理，即本性，故說心則謂之「本心」，言心知則謂之「良知」。本文指出，與前代理學家相較，陽明學者使用「身」字，主要集中在「肉身」、「心身」和「道身」三義上。而相較於程朱理學，心學系列的思想家，尤其是陽明學者， 在「身」的問題上，不僅投注了相當的目光，也作了較深入的思考。心學身體觀的內容，以及相應實踐的工夫論，以至關涉此間理想風貌的 境界論，是筆者近年關注的議題。就此，這篇文章所進行的工作，就內容言，固然是陽明學的關鍵詞研究，但就筆者持續關心的議題而言，它可被定位為思索如何建構「身體」－「思想史」的基礎。

This thesis is inspired by the Chinese classical semantics, especially by the tradition of semantics in the Neo-Confucianism. In addition, it adopts Raymond William’s “keywords” approach as the research method. The main purpose of this study is to examine and explain the keyword “body” in the traditional study of “mind”, in particular, in the notion used by the Yang-Ming School scholars. The study of “mind” is one of the main branches in the development of the Neo-Confucianism thoughts and the fundamental text of its canon is Mencius, which emphasizes that “mind” is a course of nature and is one of human’s natural characters. Hence, when the scholars of Yang-Ming School mention the word “mind”, they mean “natural mind”, and when they mention the word ”mind understanding”, they mean “innate knowledge”. In this thesis, we points out that when the word “body” is mentioned by the scholars of Yang-Ming School, it refers to a three-fold meaning -- “physical body”, “mental body”, and “Tao body”, which is different from the way that the word is used by the former Neo-Confucianists’. In the study of “mind”, the Neo-Confucianists, especially the scholars of Yang-Ming School, always concern more on the problem of “body” while the Neo-Confucianists of Cheng Zou School, which is another main scholar group of the Yang-Ming School, concern less on the “body” aspect.The “body” concept in the study of ”mind”, the Gongfu theory associated with body concept and the “realm theory” of the ideal scenery of these concepts are the three main focuses of our recent researches. Thus, this study can also be considered as the basis in constructing a linkage between the “body concept” and the “Chinese history of thought”.