唐代儒學衰微的三個面相,包括:儒者對經籍章句注疏之學的反動、官學衰廢和佛道興盛。儒者對經籍章句注疏之學的反動,乃為改善唐代儒學僵化、忽略經世致用的缺失。因為入仕不易、學館荒廢、生徒和學官不足、學風敗壞,導致唐代官學衰廢,官學以儒家經籍教育為重心,官學衰廢,則儒學、經學不振亦可知矣。唐代佛教和道教蓬勃發展,皇帝或藉宗教影響力來鞏固皇權,或喜好服食僧人、道士所製造的丹藥,僧、道所獲重賞厚賜更耗費了龐大的國家資源。長久以來,唐代儒士觝排佛道的成效不彰,卻因與二教不斷地調和、交流,許多儒士在理論或實務上對佛法和道術皆有一定程度的信任,終至「儒門淡薄,收拾不住」。
Three phenomenons of the decline of Confucianism in the Tang Dynasty included: Confucian reaction to the scholarship of the annotations, the decline of official schools, and the prosperity of Buddhism and Taoism. The reaction of Confucian reaction to the scholarship of the annotations was to improve the rigidity of Confucianism in the Tang Dynasty and ignored the practical application of the classics. Because of the difficulty of entering official positions, schools were desolated, the lack of students and officials, and the deteriorating style of study, the official school of the Tang Dynasty declined. The official schools focused on the education of Confucian classics. The official schools were decayed and Confucianism were weakened. In the Tang Dynasty, Buddhism and Taoism flourished. The emperor used religious influence to consolidate the imperial power, they liked to eat the medicines made by monks and Taoists. Monks and Taoism willed be rewarded a huge amount of national resources. For a long time, Confucian scholars in the Tang Dynasty did not achieve success in rejecting Buddhism and Taoism. However, due to their continuous reconciliation and exchanges with Buddhism and Taoism, many Confucian scholars had a certain degree of trust in Buddhism and Taoism in theory or practice. Ultimately, Confucianism declined and incontrollable.