In 1864, Yoshinobu TOKUGAWA invited him to Kyoto where he taught Yoshinobu Kobugatai-ron (theory of reconciliation between the Imperial court and the shogunate) and Kaikoku-ron (theory of opening of a country to the world).
元治元年（1864年）、象山は徳川慶喜に招かれて入洛し、慶喜に公武合体論と開国論を説いた。