中國傳統思想普遍具有「有機主義」的特質，但是在「有機主義」內部，幾種思想流派之間又存在著「毫釐之辯」。程朱理學對各種思想之間細微的差異的強調與分辨，使得理學「生機主義」宇宙觀的特質呈現出來。道家強調宇宙萬物生成、變易的自然性，因而否認宇宙內在目的性和道德性；宋明儒家則因天地萬物生生不息，強調宇宙內含之生機，並因此內含之生機進而推衍出仁愛之德；漢代儒家則認為宇宙本身內含道德性，並進而認為宇宙具有內在之目的。三者之中，道家的自然主義一變可至機械主義，目的論則一變可為有神論，生機主義則有意識地規避兩者可能走向的極端，自居於兩者之間，一方面強調天地具有生物不息之德，另一方面又否認宇宙有內在之目的與主宰之上帝。

Organicism is a general property of Chinese traditional thoughts, however, there are also many internal diversities within it. Neo-Confucian philosophers, especially two Cheng Masters and Chu Hsi, finally picked out a vitalism cosmology, which distinguished Neo-Confucian cosmology from Taoism’s naturalism and Tung Chung-shu’s teleology. Taoism took the dialectical movements of dualities as natural progresses, and denied inner purpose and moral implication of the universe, while Neo-Confucianism took them as vital progresses and embodied the virtue of benevolence. Confucians in Han dynasty thought the universe has inner moral implication, and further more has inner purpose. In three kinds of cosmology, naturalism likely turns to machanism, however teleology likely turns to theism. Vitalism, between naturalism and teleology, considers the whole universe have inner vitality on the one hand, and deny it have inner purposes or God of master on the other hand.