Said to be a teacher of early "Legalist" Li Kui, Bu Shang is cited for the principle of favoring talents over favoritism.

[6] The most frequently mentioned characteristic of Bu Shang is his love of book learning, and he was well versed in the Classics.

He recommended broad, committed learning, and more than a millennium after his lifetime, his phrase, "Reflect on things near at hand" (jinsi) was used as the title of one of the most important works of Neo-Confucianism, by Zhu Xi.

[1] The Analects and the Book of Rites record a number of Bu Shang's sayings, one of the best known being, "Life and death are a matter of Destiny; wealth and honor depend on Heaven".

[5] During the Tang dynasty, Emperor Xuanzong posthumously awarded Bu Shang the nobility title of Marquess of Wei (魏侯).