-1112 – -1050
King Wen of Zhou (周文王, c. 1112–1050 BCE) was the founder of the Zhou dynasty and a canonical sage-king in Chinese philosophical tradition. He is traditionally credited with expanding the I Ching's trigrams into 64 hexagrams and composing their judgment texts (guaci), making him a foundational figure in Chinese cosmological and ethical thought. Later Confucian thinkers, including Confucius himself, held King Wen as an exemplar of virtuous rulership and moral cultivation.
Traditionally credited with arranging the 64 hexagrams of the I Ching and composing their judgment texts
Established the political and moral foundations of the Zhou dynasty under the concept of the Mandate of Heaven (Tianming)
Venerated as a paradigmatic sage-king in Confucian literature, cited by Confucius as a model of virtue
His reign and writings provided source material for debates in classical Chinese ethics, including discussions of human nature by Mencius and Xunzi
Influenced the Confucian ideal that political legitimacy derives from moral character rather than force