Wu Hongbin: Three Dimensions of the Methodology of Xi Jinping’s Thinking on Culture
Xi Jinping Thought on Culture is the cultural dimension of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era. It represents a significant theoretical interpretation of the Sinicization and modernization of Marxist cultural perspectives, an essential theoretical summation of the Party's experience in leading cultural construction in the New Era, and a firm cultural choice for the path of Chinese-path modernization. It emphasizes the prominent status and role of Socialist culture with Chinese characteristics—incorporating fine traditional Chinese culture, revolutionary culture, and advanced socialist culture—within the overall framework of building Chinese-path modernization. Whether from the dimensions of history, reality, or development, it holds profound methodological significance for building a leading socialist cultural power.
The Historical Dimension: Do Not Forget the Origin; Strengthen Cultural Confidence
Strengthening cultural confidence is a fundamental issue concerning the rise and fall of national fortunes, cultural security, and the independence of the national spirit. It is the source of confidence for our Party’s governance and our original aspiration and founding mission. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized:
"When we speak of strengthening confidence in the path, theory, and system of socialism with Chinese characteristics, we are, in final analysis, speaking of strengthening cultural confidence. Cultural confidence is a more basic, deeper, and more lasting force." Not forgetting the origin and strengthening cultural confidence concerns the future and destiny of the Party, the long-term stability of the country, and the cohesion and centripetal force of the nation; it is a task of extreme importance. The research results of major projects, such as the Project to Trace the Origins of Chinese Civilization [1], have substantiated a million years of human history in our country, ten thousand years of cultural history, and over 5,000 years of civilization history. This forcefully proves that the continuous, unbroken Chinese civilization contains a detailed and sufficient source, foundation, and answer for cultural confidence.
Exploring the foundations of cultural confidence from ten thousand years of cultural history. Approximately ten thousand years ago was the initial stage of the origin of agricultural civilization. Archaeology has discovered numerous cultural sites, such as the Lijiagou site, Peiligang culture, Hemudu culture, Yangshao culture, Dawenkou culture, Hongshan culture, and Liangzhu culture. The artifacts unearthed from these sites, including pottery and jade with distinct cultural characteristics, fully attest to our country’s ten thousand years of cultural history. Around ten thousand years ago, our ancestors entered the Neolithic Age, and agricultural civilization began to sprout, laying the foundation for Chinese agrarian civilization. Currently identified early Neolithic cultural remains can be roughly divided into two major regions, North and South. Both show traces of ancient human survival, habitation, and cultivation, proving that crop domestication and the origins of agriculture in our country can be traced back at least ten thousand years. In particular, the prototypes of the "Rice in the South and Millet in the North" [2] agricultural systems, formed by unique climates, achieved collision and integration in the Central Plains during the Peiligang period. This led to the emergence of a composite agricultural culture and an agrarian economic base, laying the cultural foundations of population, language, and art for the early Huaxia groups [3] and forming an interaction sphere of early Chinese culture with widely linked regional traditions. This ten thousand-year cultural history is the foundation upon which we strengthen our cultural confidence.
Finding the answer for cultural confidence in over 5,000 years of civilization history. During this history, the profound and extensive fine traditional Chinese culture was accumulated. To carry out its creative transformation and innovative development is our mission and responsibility in building a modern Chinese civilization. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out in the report to the 20th Party Congress: "Fine traditional Chinese culture is long-standing and profound; it is the crystallization of the wisdom of Chinese civilization. It contains concepts such as 'the world belongs to the public' (tianxia wei gong), 'the people are the foundation of the state' (min wei bang ben), 'governing with virtue' (wei zheng yi de), 'discarding the old to bring in the new' (ge gu ding xin), 'appointing the worthy and capable' (ren ren wei xian), 'harmony between humanity and nature' (tian ren he yi), 'ceaseless self-improvement' (zi qiang bu xi), 'holding the world with great virtue' (hou de zai wu), 'acting in good faith and living in harmony' (jiang xin xiu mu), and 'being kind to neighbors' (qin ren shan lin). These are the important embodiments of the views on the universe, the world, society, and morality accumulated by the Chinese people in their long-term production and life, and they are highly compatible with the values and propositions of scientific socialism." These expositions are vital components of Xi Jinping Thought on Culture and are the fundamental guidelines for strengthening our cultural confidence.
The Developmental Dimension: Rooted in Reality; Uphold the Fundamentals and Break New Ground
Facing the future, upholding the fundamentals and breaking new ground (shouzheng chuangxin) is both the methodology emphasized by General Secretary Xi Jinping in the report to the 20th Party Congress that the Party must grasp to promote theoretical innovation, and his requirement for cultural workers on the new journey to shoulder new cultural missions. In building contemporary Chinese culture, we must neither lose our direction and commit subversive errors, nor fail to grasp and lead the era. Upholding the fundamentals and breaking new ground are complementary, reflecting the dialectical unity of "change" and "constancy," inheritance and development, and principle and creativity.
Maintain a correct stance. Persisting in and strengthening the Party’s comprehensive leadership over cultural work is the fundamental political guarantee for promoting cultural prosperity and building a cultural power in the New Era. We must adhere to and strengthen a people-centered humanistic cultural ideology. Being people-centered is the fundamental principle, basic requirement, and ultimate goal of cultural construction for socialism with Chinese characteristics in the New Era. The Communist Party of China has always attached great importance to people-centered humanistic cultural thought. Culture originates from the masses; the masses are the subjects of cultural generation and development. The people need culture, and culture needs the people even more. To nurture the people with the material and spiritual wealth created and accumulated by the people themselves in the process of creating history and promoting social progress is the fundamental path for the prosperity of the cause of socialist culture with Chinese characteristics. Xi Jinping Thought on Culture is the choice of the people and the choice of history, as well as an inevitable choice for building a cultural power. This thought consistently safeguards the interests of the common people and insists on a people-centered approach. In the process of guiding the prosperity of cultural undertakings and building a socialist cultural power, it serves the people, realizes, maintains, and develops the cultural interests of the people, satisfies their cultural needs, molds them through culture, and educates them. Aiming for the free and comprehensive development of every individual, it will surely be recognized by the people and internalized as conscious action.
Perform the work of integration. The "Second Integration" [4] emphasizes persisting in the integration of the basic tenets of Marxism with fine traditional Chinese culture. Building socialist culture with Chinese characteristics requires integrating fine traditional Chinese culture, revolutionary culture, and advanced socialist culture. We must integrate the view of the universe based on "the world belongs to the public," the social view of civilization, the international view of peace, the people-oriented view of the masses, and the moral view of "faith and harmony" nurtured in fine traditional Chinese culture. We must integrate the firm Marxist faith, the ideal pursuit of national independence, people’s liberation, national strength, and common prosperity, the revolutionary character of fearing no hardship and struggling arduously, the people-centered collectivist sentiment, and the scientific and democratic values found in revolutionary culture. We must integrate the methods and techniques of using Marxism to solve practical problems in the Chinese revolution, construction, and reform, elevating theoretical results from historical and practical experience. Doing this work of integration provides a powerful ideological guidance, value orientation, cultural cohesion, and spiritual impetus for creating the Chinese spirit, Chinese culture, Chinese wisdom, and Chinese values, building a socialist cultural power, and realizing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.
Highlight the characteristics of the era. The song must not stop; the torch must be passed [5]. In the New Era, to tell the China story well—especially the story of the inheritance and development of fine traditional Chinese culture—and to spread China’s voice well, showing the charm of Chinese culture amidst the collision and fusion of diverse global civilizations, we must supplement, expand, and refine the connotations of fine traditional Chinese culture according to the characteristics and requirements of the era. This enhances its influence and appeal, thereby achieving the creative transformation and innovative development of fine traditional Chinese culture. We must strive to highlight the new era characteristics of Chinese culture, making it a grasp for shaping the era image of the Chinese nation and a focal point for building our country's international discourse power.
The Dimension of Openness: Absorb the External; Uphold Openness and Inclusivity
General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: "Openness and inclusivity have always been the source of vitality for the development of civilization and a significant hallmark of cultural confidence. The grand atmosphere of Chinese civilization benefits from the open posture and inclusive heart of Chinese culture since ancient times. Upholding openness and inclusivity means more actively and proactively learning from and drawing on all outstanding achievements of human civilization." This indicates that we should follow the scientific methods of Marxism, inherit and carry forward fine traditional Chinese culture, learn from and draw on advanced foreign cultures based on actual national conditions, uphold an attitude of respecting diversity, persist in the principle of critical absorption, and build a socialist cultural power.
Uphold an attitude of respecting diversity. Currently, there are more than 230 countries and regions in the world, forming a diverse world culture with various forms and distinct characteristics. Diverse world cultures are not ranked by superiority or inferiority; they have become the common wealth of all humanity, together constituting a colorful, vibrant, and dynamic world. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: "Chinese civilization possesses outstanding inclusivity. Chinese civilization never replaces diverse cultures with a single culture, but rather allows diverse cultures to converge into a common culture, resolving conflicts and building consensus. Chinese cultural identity transcends regional hometowns, bloodlines, and religious beliefs, integrating a vast population with huge internal differences into a pluralistic, integrated Chinese nation (duoyuan yiti de Zhonghua minzu). The more inclusive it is, the more it is recognized and maintained, and the more it will endure. The inclusivity of Chinese civilization fundamentally determines the historical orientation of the Chinese nation’s interaction, exchange, and integration; it determines the harmonious pattern of coexistence for various religious beliefs in China; and it determines the open mind of Chinese culture toward the selective absorption of world civilizations." It is evident that upholding an attitude of respecting diversity is the necessary path for promoting the prosperity and development of Chinese cultural undertakings in the New Era.
Adopt the method of exchange and mutual learning. In the process of establishing their own theoretical systems, Marx and Engels extensively absorbed and drew upon the achievements created by their predecessors. In today’s world, no country or region can exist in isolation. Any culture is more or less influenced by foreign cultures. The era of the great collision and fusion of various cultures and civilizations, where they interact, merge, and confront each other, has arrived. We must let civilizational exchange and mutual learning become a bridge for enhancing friendship among the people of all nations and a driver for the progress of human society.
Persist in the principle of critical absorption. To critically absorb foreign culture, we should apply Marxism to conduct scientific criticism, discarding the dross and drawing the essence, taking advanced foreign culture as nutrients to promote the development of Chinese culture in the New Era. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: "The history of world civilization reveals a law: any civilization must keep pace with the times and constantly absorb the essence of the era. We should use innovation to increase the momentum of civilizational development and activate the source of civilizational progress, constantly creating civilizational achievements that transcend time and space and possess eternal charm." We must persist in the principle of critical absorption, using advanced foreign culture as nutrients to promote the development of Chinese culture in the New Era. We must "use culture as a medium" to promote the building of a community with a shared future for humanity. Through exchange and mutual learning, we should encourage various cultures and civilizations to coexist harmoniously and achieve win-win cooperation, jointly upholding and promoting the common values of all humanity, increasing the forces for world peace, and working together to solve the various problems and challenges humanity faces together.