Liu Xiangjun and Yan Yongxu: The Core Elements and Value Implications of Xi Jinping's Important Expositions on Common Prosperity in Spiritual Life
Entering the New Era, Xi Jinping has consistently upheld the people-centered philosophy of development, taking the fundamental interests of the people as the starting point and ultimate goal of Chinese-path modernization. He is committed to meeting the people's all-around and deep-seated needs for a better life. While advancing common prosperity in the people's material lives, he has also focused on promoting common prosperity in the people's spiritual lives, putting forward a series of new ideas and judgments that possess significant theoretical and practical importance.
I. The Generative Logic of Materializing Important Discourses on Common Prosperity in Spiritual Life
Xi Jinping’s important discourses on common prosperity in spiritual life are by no means abstract propositions; they possess a distinct theoretical, historical, and practical logic.
(1) Inheritance and Innovation of Marxist Theory on the Relationship Between Material and Spiritual Life Although Marx and Engels did not explicitly propose the concept of "common prosperity in spiritual life," they conducted a dialectical analysis of the relationship between material and spiritual life. On the one hand, material life is the premise and foundation of spiritual life. Engels pointed out that "mankind must first of all eat, drink, have shelter and clothing, before it can pursue politics, science, art, religion, etc."; conversely, "people cannot be liberated as long as they are unable to obtain food and drink, housing and clothing in adequate quality and quantity." The production of material life is the first historical act of humanity and the prerequisite for all human activities; without it, no human activity could be realized, and humanity itself would be unable to survive. On the other hand, spiritual life possesses relative independence and exerts a counter-reaction upon material life. "While the material mode of existence is the primary cause (causa remota), this does not preclude the ideological sphere from reacting upon the material mode of existence." Marxism opposes treating economic factors as the sole determinant of social development; while recognizing the foundational role of material life, it also acknowledges the counter-reaction of spiritual life. Spiritual life originates from material life but transcends it. It is not a simple extension of material life, but an active reflection upon the objective world by people exercising their subjective initiative, providing the ideological impetus and spiritual support for the further development of material life.
Entering the New Era, basing himself on China’s basic national conditions and developmental reality, Xi Jinping proposed the concept of "common prosperity in spiritual life" for the first time, emphasizing that "common prosperity is the common prosperity of all the people; it is a prosperity in which the people are rich in both material and spiritual life." Realizing common prosperity for all the people has been the long-standing pursuit of the Chinese people and the Chinese nation. From the height of common prosperity, Xi Jinping profoundly elucidated the dialectical relationship between the two. Common prosperity in material life is the premise and foundation for common prosperity in spiritual life; without the former, the latter would lose its foundation and soil, becoming an unattainable utopia. Therefore, to realize common prosperity in material life, one must place common prosperity in spiritual life in an equally important position; without common prosperity in spiritual life, common prosperity in material life cannot be truly realized. From the height of well-rounded human development, Xi Jinping profoundly revealed the high degree of unity between common prosperity and well-rounded human development. Common prosperity is not merely an abundance in material life, but must also satisfy the people’s diverse, multi-level, and multi-faceted spiritual and cultural needs. Only when both material and spiritual lives are prosperous can well-rounded human development finally become a reality. Xi Jinping’s important discourses on common prosperity in spiritual life adhere to Marxist stances, viewpoints, and methods, inheriting and innovating upon Marxist theory regarding the relationship between material and spiritual life. They further enrich Marxist thought on common prosperity and constitute an important theoretical achievement of the Sinicization and modernization of Marxism.
(2) The Shift in the Principal Contradiction of Our Society Has Placed Common Prosperity in Spiritual Life on the Agenda The method of contradiction analysis is the fundamental Marxist method for understanding and transforming the world. In the process of China’s socialist construction, the Communist Party of China (CPC) has persisted in using this method to analyze and solve problems. After the basic completion of the socialist transformation [1], the 8th Party Congress pointed out that the principal contradiction in our country was "already the contradiction between the people’s need for rapid economic and cultural development and the current situation where economy and culture cannot meet the people’s needs." During the new period of reform, opening up, and socialist modernization, the Sixth Plenary Session of the 11th CPC Central Committee clearly stated that the principal contradiction of our society had transformed into "the contradiction between the ever-growing material and cultural needs of the people and backward social production." It can be seen that as socialist construction deepened, profound changes occurred in China's economy and society, and the principal contradiction shifted accordingly. While developing the productive forces and meeting the people’s material needs, China also emphasized spiritual and cultural construction. However, constrained by the level of development of productive forces and the status of material satisfaction, the construction of the people’s spiritual life at that time focused more on quantitative accumulation while neglecting qualitative improvement.
Entering the New Era, following decades of rapid development of socialism with Chinese characteristics, China's productive forces have significantly increased and material living conditions have greatly improved. Simultaneously, this has placed new and higher demands on development. Based on a profound understanding of national conditions and the laws of social development, the 19th Party Congress clearly pointed out that the principal contradiction of our society has transformed into "the contradiction between unbalanced and inadequate development and the people’s ever-growing need for a better life." The people’s need for a better life includes both material and spiritual needs; it requires both quantitative abundance and, more importantly, qualitative improvement. Compared to the past, while the people focus on material needs, they place even greater emphasis on the need for a better spiritual life. The need for a better spiritual life is the external manifestation of common prosperity in spiritual life, while common prosperity in spiritual life is the inherent meaning of the need for a better spiritual life. Thus, the shift in the principal contradiction has placed common prosperity in spiritual life on the agenda.
(3) The Urgent Need to Realize the Great Rejuvenation of the Chinese Nation Through Chinese-path Modernization The 20th Party Congress proposed that the current central task of the CPC is "to advance the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation on all fronts through Chinese-path modernization." On the New Journey, our goal is the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, and our central task is to advance this through Chinese-path modernization. Common prosperity in spiritual life refers to the common prosperity of all people in their spiritual and cultural lives; it runs through the entire process of the path of Chinese-path modernization and is an inherent part of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.
On the one hand, enriching the people’s spiritual world is an essential requirement of Chinese-path modernization. Chinese-path modernization pays more attention to human development; in essence, it is the modernization of the person, a modernization that realizes well-rounded human development. This includes the modernization of both material and spiritual life. In the practice of building Chinese-path modernization, the modernization of the human spiritual life and common prosperity in spiritual life are highly consistent. Currently, China has finished building a moderately prosperous society in all respects [2], historically solving the problem of absolute poverty. The people’s material conditions have been greatly improved, and their need for spiritual development has become increasingly intense. If the development of spiritual life lags seriously behind material life, it will lead to an imbalanced state of "one long leg and one short leg" [3]; such modernization would be unstable and unhealthy. On the other hand, national rejuvenation requires a powerful spiritual force. Xi Jinping pointed out: "Without the active guidance of advanced culture, without the great enrichment of the people's spiritual world, and without the continuous strengthening of the nation's spiritual strength, it is impossible for a country or a nation to stand tall among the nations of the world." Realizing the great dream of national rejuvenation requires not only a solid material foundation but also the support of spiritual strength, in which the guidance of scientific theory plays a key role.
II. The Core Essence of Important Discourses on Common Prosperity in Spiritual Life
Common prosperity in spiritual life is both a theoretical concept and a practical task. To promote it, we must accurately grasp its scientific connotation, follow its basic principles, and adopt targeted practical strategies to promote the enrichment of the people's spiritual world and the strengthening of the nation's spiritual power.
(1) The Scientific Connotation of Common Prosperity in Spiritual Life First, common prosperity in spiritual life is an inherent part of common prosperity itself. Xi Jinping pointed out: "The greatest difference between human society and the animal kingdom is that humans have spiritual needs; the people's demand for spiritual and cultural life exists at all times." This important judgment profoundly reveals that spiritual and cultural needs are an essential attribute of being human—a "rigid demand" (刚性需求) that runs through human existence and development. Spiritual life is indispensable. Xi Jinping further emphasized: "The common prosperity we speak of is the common prosperity of all the people; it is a prosperity in which the people are rich in both material and spiritual life." This judgment clearly elevates "spiritual prosperity" to a strategic height equal to "material prosperity," elucidating that common prosperity is not a one-sided prosperity limited to material wealth, but inherently requires the coordinated co-prosperity of both material and spiritual lives.
Second, common prosperity in spiritual life is a concrete manifestation of the "shared development" (共享发展) concept. The concept of shared development focuses on solving issues of social fairness and justice; its essence is being people-centered and ensuring that the fruits of development benefit all the people. Common prosperity in spiritual life is also directed at all the people—it is the "common" spiritual wealth of the entire population. Xi Jinping pointed out: "The development we pursue is development that benefits the people; the prosperity we pursue is common prosperity for all." This "commonality" is universal; it is a prosperity enjoyed by everyone, not just a minority or specific groups. Whether urban residents or rural folk, whether intellectuals or manual laborers, all should share in a rich and colorful spiritual and cultural life. This "commonality" is comprehensive; no region or ethnic group should be left behind. Whether in the eastern, central, or western regions, or whether they belong to the majority or ethnic minorities, all must be prosperous in their spiritual life. Common prosperity in spiritual life is the manifestation of the shared development concept in the cultural and social spheres; in other words, the degree to which these results are shared directly affects the "quality and color" (成色) of shared development.
Finally, common prosperity in spiritual life is a vital dimension of well-rounded human development. Well-rounded human development is the value destination and ultimate goal of communism. Realizing it means returning to the comprehensive essence of the human being, allowing the person to become a "complete person" in the true sense. Humans are conscious "species-beings" (类存在物). As beings who simultaneously possess material, spiritual, and social needs, their development naturally includes the dimension of spiritual life. Realizing well-rounded human development is inseparable from both the abundance of material needs and the fulfillment of spiritual needs; a person cannot develop comprehensively if either is missing. Xi Jinping emphasized that "promoting common prosperity is highly unified with promoting well-rounded human development," and "common prosperity is the prosperity of both the people's material and spiritual lives." Common prosperity in spiritual life targets the people’s spiritual existence; its core lies in the enrichment of the people’s spiritual world, manifested as the full satisfaction of spiritual needs and the great elevation of one's spiritual realm. It is an active response to the people’s need for a better spiritual life, which is consistent with the requirements of well-rounded human development. Therefore, it is an essential component of such development.
(2) Basic Principles for Common Prosperity in Spiritual Life Regarding common prosperity in spiritual life, the practical subject is the masses [4], the content is spiritual life, and the scope is "commonality." On the New Journey, promoting common prosperity in spiritual life must follow the principles of people's subjectivity, diversity, and gradualism, so that we can more accurately grasp the direction of implementation and apply policies with greater precision.
First, adhering to the principle of the people's subjectivity. To promote common prosperity in spiritual life, we must persist in its "people-oriented" nature and remain people-centered. Xi Jinping pointed out:
"Consolidating the Party's mass base and governing foundation cannot be predicated on the notion that it is enough for the masses to have a good material life"; "if the mass base is lost in the spiritual realm, problems will eventually arise." To promote common prosperity in spiritual life, we must act for the people and rely on the people; it must be created by the people and tested by the people. On the one hand, the masses are the subjects of practice. While creating the material wealth necessary for their own survival and development, the masses also create precious spiritual wealth. Promoting common prosperity in spiritual life must rely closely on the powerful subjective force of the masses, giving full play to their initiative, enthusiasm, and creativity, and encouraging them to involve themselves more consciously in the practice of building common prosperity in spiritual life. On the other hand, the masses are the evaluators of the quality of spiritual life. Xi Jinping has emphasized: "In testing the effectiveness of all our work, we must ultimately look at whether the people have truly received tangible benefits, whether their lives have truly been improved, and whether their rights and interests have been truly guaranteed." Promoting common prosperity in spiritual life must take the satisfaction of the people’s spiritual and cultural needs as its starting point, always place the fundamental interests of the masses first, and test effectiveness based on whether the masses recognize and are satisfied with the results, regarding public opinion as the "best yardstick."
Second, we must adhere to the principle of diversity. Promoting common prosperity in people's spiritual life must be grounded in the diverse, multi-level, and multifaceted needs of the masses for a better spiritual and cultural life. Our country has a vast territory and a large population; the spiritual and cultural needs of the masses in different regions and groups will inevitably exhibit differences. Xi Jinping emphasized: "It is necessary to correctly grasp the relationship between commonality and difference, enhancing commonality while respecting and tolerating differences." Respecting the differences in people's spiritual and cultural needs means satisfying the diversity of those needs—there must be both "Spring Snow" [5] and the "Song of the Rustic Poor" [6]; there must be works that "reach the heavens and stand on the earth" [7] as well as those that "cover the ground" [8]. Only by adhering to the principle of diversity can various cultural elements—traditional and modern, national and global—interact, collide, and learn from one another. This will catalyze the creation of more excellent spiritual and cultural products worthy of the times and the people, continuously enriching people's spiritual lives and ensuring that the "common prosperity" of their spiritual lives becomes "water with a source and a tree with roots" [9]. If we provide for the people's spiritual life with single, rigid cultural products, it would be akin to "cutting the feet to fit the shoes" [10], inevitably leading to the neglect of the real needs of certain groups and failing to achieve common prosperity for "all."
Finally, we must adhere to the principle of gradualism. Common prosperity is a long-term goal that must undergo a protracted developmental process; it cannot be achieved overnight and requires a down-to-earth approach and persisting over the long term. Xi Jinping pointed out: "We must deeply study the goals for different stages and promote common prosperity in phases." Common prosperity in spiritual life must follow objective laws of development, gradually promoting a step-by-step advancement of the people's spiritual life from low-level common prosperity to high-level common prosperity. Looking at our basic national conditions, China is currently in and will remain in the primary stage of socialism [11] for a long time; promoting common prosperity in spiritual life must proceed from this greatest reality. To a certain extent, the abundance of material life restricts the satisfaction of spiritual life. Therefore, we must fully estimate the long-term nature of common prosperity in spiritual life; we cannot afford to wait, yet we must not act with undue haste. From the perspective of supply and demand, the people's needs for a better spiritual and cultural life exhibit diverse, multi-level, and multifaceted characteristics, which contradicts the current reality of unbalanced and inadequate development in people's spiritual lives. This objectively existing reality and contradiction seriously restrict the realization of common prosperity in spiritual life. It is undeniable that at the current stage, the construction and development of spiritual life in China are relatively lagging; the supply of spiritual and cultural products, the improvement of spiritual creativity, and the elevation of the people's spiritual realm still have a long way to go. Achieving common prosperity in spiritual life in a country of over 1.4 billion people involves a scope that is truly unprecedented and a level of difficulty that is likewise unparalleled.
(3) Practical Strategies for Common Prosperity in Spiritual Life
Common prosperity in spiritual life is not only a major theoretical issue but also a major practical issue concerning China’s socialist modernization.
First, we must maintain the guiding position of Marxism in the ideological sphere and strengthen the leading role of the Core Socialist Values [12] to clarify the political direction for common prosperity in spiritual life. Ideology concerns the "banner" and the direction; it is the spiritual bond that unites the power of the whole Party and the people of the country. As the fundamental guiding ideology of our Party and state, Marxism is the theoretical foundation and source of strength for the survival and development of the Party and the country. "On the fundamental issue of upholding Marxism as our guide, we must be unwavering; we cannot falter at any time or under any circumstances." To promote common prosperity in spiritual life, we must be guided by the Marxist standpoint, viewpoint, and method, and by Xi Jinping Thought on Culture. We must vigorously develop advanced socialist culture, revolutionary culture, and fine traditional Chinese culture, strengthen cultural confidence, and stimulate the positive energy of the whole society and all people toward goodness. "Core values are the spiritual bond on which a nation depends for its survival and the common ideological and moral foundation of a country." To promote common prosperity in spiritual life, we must attach great importance to the bonding role of core values, actively taking the Core Socialist Values as a guide to nourish the worldviews, outlooks on life, and values of the masses. These must be internalized in the mind and externalized in action to ensure the correct direction of common prosperity in spiritual life.
Second, we must vigorously develop public cultural undertakings and improve the system of public cultural services to provide high-quality, healthy, and rich spiritual and cultural products for common prosperity in spiritual life. Xi Jinping pointed out: "To meet the people's new expectations for a better life, we must provide rich spiritual food." In the practice of Chinese-path modernization, culture is a more fundamental, deeper, and more lasting force. To promote common prosperity in spiritual life, we must prioritize social benefits, maintain the unity of economic and social benefits, and vigorously develop public cultural undertakings that satisfy the masses. Human spiritual life has three modes: psychological life, cultural life, and life of faith. Promoting common prosperity in spiritual life should start from these modes, strengthening the social psychological service system, the socialist cultural system, and the socialist faith system. We must improve the people-centered public cultural service system and write a new chapter of common prosperity in spiritual life through the high-quality development of public cultural services. Spiritual and cultural products are indispensable to the people's spiritual lives. To promote common prosperity in spiritual life, we must not only expand the quantity of spiritual and cultural products—the "cake"—but also improve their quality, solving the problem of whether they are "good" or "exquisite," and launch a large number of spiritual and cultural products with "warmth, thickness, and depth."
Third, we must always place education in a strategic position of priority development and establish a learning society to provide lasting momentum for common prosperity in spiritual life. Education is a project of vital importance to the state and the Party. Xi Jinping emphasized that building a strong educational power "is an effective way to promote common prosperity for all people." To promote common prosperity in spiritual life, we must always prioritize education, conduct education to the satisfaction of the people, develop universal and lifelong education, and promote the equalization and modernization of education, giving full play to its fundamental, overall, and strategic role. Xi Jinping pointed out: "We must build a learning society and a learning power where everyone learns, learning is available everywhere, and learning happens at all times, continuously improving the education level of the citizens and comprehensively enhancing the level of human resource development to promote the well-rounded development of the person." To promote common prosperity in spiritual life, we must establish a learning society, continuously improve the universal education mechanism covering all people, all regions, and all ages, and optimize the lifelong education system—including preschool, basic, higher, continuing, vocational, and elderly education—making the reality of "everyone learning, everywhere learning, and always learning" possible.
Finally, we must strengthen public opinion guidance and purify cyberspace to create a favorable environment for common prosperity in spiritual life. Social consciousness possesses relative independence. As a form of social ideology, public opinion has a profound impact on social development and transformation. Correct public opinion promotes social development, while the opposite hinders it. Xi Jinping emphasized: "We must strengthen the guidance of public opinion on promoting common prosperity, clarify various blurred understandings, prevent eagerness for quick success and fear of difficulties, and provide a good public opinion environment for promoting common prosperity." To promote common prosperity in spiritual life, we must dare to speak out, amplify the voice of correct opinion, and clearly explain for whom "common prosperity in spiritual life" is intended, on whom it relies, and by whom its fruits are shared. We must explain the dialectical relationship between the "whole and the parts" and "getting rich first and getting rich later." We must eliminate various blurred understandings and clarify that common prosperity in spiritual life is neither prosperity for a few nor egalitarianism. Currently, with the rapid development of information technology, the Internet has become the main arena for people to express their demands. At the same time, various social trends of thought interweave in cyberspace, making it easy for people to fall into "information cocoons." These cocoons have become an increasingly serious problem in the digital age. To promote common prosperity in spiritual life, we must strengthen Internet legislation, strictly enforce online laws, regulate the dissemination of online information, have the courage to "draw the sword" [13] against various erroneous trends of thought, and continuously rectify cyberspace to "break out of the cocoon," creating a positive and healthy network ecosystem.
III. The Value Significance of the Important Discourses on Common Prosperity in Spiritual Life
Xi Jinping’s important discourses on common prosperity in spiritual life possess profound value significance. In the New Era and on the new journey, we must fully recognize the significant theoretical and practical importance of these discourses.
(1) Deepening the Understanding of the Essence of Socialism
During the period of reform and opening up and socialist modernization, Deng Xiaoping proposed from the perspective of material prosperity that poverty is not socialism: "The essence of socialism is to liberate and develop the productive forces, eliminate exploitation, eradicate polarization, and ultimately achieve common prosperity." In the New Era, Xi Jinping, inheriting the Marxist theory on the relationship between material and spiritual life and the CPC’s understanding of the essence of socialism, and based on the specific reality of China's current stage, creatively proposed the judgment that both material and spiritual life should be prosperous. This realized the shift from focusing on material prosperity to focusing on the prosperity of both material and spiritual life, elevating the status and role of spiritual life to a new historical height. This enriches the framework of common prosperity and represents a deeper interpretation of the theory of the essence of socialism. History and practice show that the relative independence of the superstructure affects the development of the economic base; the relationship between the two is not a simple chronological succession but a process of co-development. Material poverty is not socialism, nor is spiritual vacuity. Only when material wealth is matched by spiritual abundance is it truly socialism. Only when the people are prosperous in both can the institutional advantages of socialism with Chinese characteristics be fully displayed. As Xi Jinping pointed out: "Only when both material and spiritual civilizations are well-developed, when both national material and spiritual strengths are enhanced, and when the material and spiritual lives of the people of all ethnic groups are improved, can the cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics move smoothly forward."
(2) Highlighting the Unique Spiritual Identity of Chinese-path Modernization
Although modernization first began in Western countries, the Western model is not the only development path. Mankind's pursuit of modernization remains an unfinished adventure. Objectively, every country and nation should explore a modernization model suitable for its own specific realities. Xi Jinping pointed out:
"Chinese-path modernization is the modernization of common prosperity for all people." On one hand, Chinese-path modernization is the modernization of prosperity for the entire people; it is not the modernization of prosperity for a minority, nor for certain regions or segments of the population, but rather a modernization in which all regions and all people achieve prosperity. On the other hand, Chinese-path modernization is the modernization of common prosperity. Chinese-path modernization seeks not only common prosperity in the material lives of the masses, but even more so common prosperity in their spiritual lives, paying closer attention to the needs of the masses for a beautiful spiritual life and to well-rounded human development. In contrast, Western-style modernization is the modernization of prosperity for a small elite group; it is a reified [14] and alienated modernization under the logic of capital, which one-sidedly pursues material prosperity while neglecting spiritual prosperity. Xi Jinping’s important expositions on common prosperity in spiritual life highlight the people-centered and comprehensive nature of Chinese-path modernization. They complete the historical transcendence of modernization from the logic of capital to the logic of humanism, reveal the inherent defects of Western-style modernization, and demonstrate that the superiority of socialism lies not only in its ability to create a material life more affluent than that of capitalism, but also in its ability to create a spiritual life beyond the reach of capitalism, forming a distinct contrast with Western-style modernization.
(III) Providing the Spiritual Strength for the Comprehensive Building of a Modern Socialist Country
National rejuvenation requires powerful material strength, and even more so, powerful spiritual strength. Throughout the great course of revolution, construction, and reform, Chinese communists have always attached great importance to spiritual and cultural development, providing powerful spiritual strength for these endeavors. During the period of the New Democratic Revolution [15], Mao Zedong pointed out the need to build a New Democratic culture, namely, a "democratic, scientific, and mass-based culture." During the period of socialist revolution and construction, Mao Zedong proposed adhering to the principle of "letting a hundred flowers bloom and a hundred schools of thought contend" [16]. During the period of reform, opening up, and socialist modernization, Deng Xiaoping pointed out the need to "grasp with both hands" and that "both hands must be firm" [17]. Jiang Zemin emphasized the need to "develop a national, scientific, and mass-based socialist culture oriented toward modernization, the world, and the future." Hu Jintao further emphasized: "We must combine the development of social productive forces with the improvement of the civilized quality of the entire nation, promote the coordinated development of material and spiritual civilization, and promote the great development and prosperity of culture more consciously and actively."
Entering the New Era, Xi Jinping—building upon the inheritance and development of the Chinese communists' precious experience in spiritual and cultural construction—has attached great importance to the role of the modernization of the people’s spiritual life within socialist modernization, providing a more proactive spiritual strength for the comprehensive building of a modern socialist country. Xi Jinping pointed out: "The great modern socialist country we seek to build must be strong not only materially, but also spiritually." Comprehensively building a modern socialist country requires both powerful material strength and, even more so, powerful spiritual strength. The world today is undergoing profound changes unseen in a century [18], and the new journey ahead faces many risks, difficulties, challenges, and contradictions. In this context, only by deeply studying and practicing Xi Jinping’s important expositions on common prosperity in spiritual life can we effectively resolve risks, difficulties, challenges, and contradictions. This will consolidate value consensus, pool cultural depth, and accumulate spiritual momentum for the comprehensive building of a modern socialist country, thereby providing a more proactive spiritual strength.
About the Authors: Liu Xiangjun is the Dean and Professor of the School of Marxism at Liaoning Normal University. Yan Yongxu is a doctoral student at the School of Marxism, Liaoning Normal University.
Source: Theoretical Vision (理论视野), Issue 11, 2025. Editor: Huihui.