Zuo Yuhe: "Where" and "How": New Reflections on the Creative Transformation of Fine Traditional Chinese Culture
The report to the 20th National Congress of the CPC provided a classic expression regarding the issue of "combining Marxism with fine traditional Chinese culture," elucidating the theoretical basis and practical necessity for this integration: "Only by taking root in the rich soil of the country and the nation’s history and culture can the tree of Marxist truth flourish and remain evergreen. Fine traditional Chinese culture is extensive and profound; it is the crystallization of the wisdom of Chinese civilization. It contains concepts such as throughout the world, all is at the service of the public [1]; the people are the foundation of the state [2]; governing by virtue; discarding the old to establish the new; appointing the worthy and the capable; harmony between humanity and nature; self-improvement through constant struggle; social commitment through great virtue; upholding good faith and cultivating harmony; and being kind to one’s neighbors. These concepts are important manifestations of the worldview, outlook on the world (Tianxia), social outlook, and moral outlook accumulated by the Chinese people through long-term production and daily life, and they possess a high degree of compatibility with the values and propositions of scientific socialism." This discourse inherits the spirit of General Secretary Xi Jinping’s series of important speeches on fine traditional Chinese culture and concentrates the CPC’s fundamental ideas on inheriting and innovating upon China’s fine traditional culture. What "excellent" resources are available in traditional Chinese culture for us to draw upon? How can we achieve the creative transformation of fine traditional Chinese culture? These are major questions that contemporary Chinese cultural researchers must seriously consider.
I. Excavating and Inheriting the Ideological Core and Cultural Genes of Chinese Civilization
The Chinese nation has a long history of over five thousand years of self-improvement and passing the torch from generation to generation; it has an excellent tradition of three thousand years of managing, studying, and utilizing history. In the process of leading the revolution, construction, and reform, the CPC has focused on summarizing experience and drawing wisdom from history, opening the path to success by consciously grasping historical trends. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasizes that history is the best textbook and the best teacher, providing wisdom to the people and enlightenment to future generations. He stated: "History records the various scientific and cultural knowledge accumulated by our predecessors, their thoughts and wisdom in governing the state and society, and the experiences and lessons of their successes and failures"; "Within China’s historical records and forests of books lies a wealth of historical experience in governing the country." Therefore, Chinese history contains rich historical wisdom and excellent ideas that need to be excavated and promoted.
Fine traditional Chinese ideological culture is the foundation of the Chinese nation's existence and development; thus, a scientific attitude of respect and reverence must be adopted toward traditional Chinese culture. Respect is the prerequisite for inheritance, but respect alone is not enough. We must conduct a scientific analysis of it, carrying out critical inheritance and innovative development. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "We must conduct a scientific analysis of traditional culture, inheriting and promoting the beneficial and good elements, while resisting and overcoming the negative and bad elements—taking the essence and discarding the dregs—rather than adopting an absolutist attitude of total acceptance or total rejection." Chinese culture has a long history, depositing the deepest spiritual pursuits of the Chinese nation and representing its unique spiritual identification.
General Secretary Xi Jinping has laid out principled provisions for the tasks of researching fine traditional Chinese culture: First, it is necessary to clearly explain the historical origins, developmental trajectory, and basic trends of fine traditional Chinese culture, as well as the unique creations, value concepts, and distinctive characteristics of Chinese culture, so as to bolster cultural confidence and confidence in our values. Second, we must seriously absorb the ideological and moral essence of fine traditional Chinese culture, vigorously promoting the national spirit centered on patriotism and the spirit of the era centered on reform and innovation. We must deeply excavate and elucidate the contemporary value of fine traditional Chinese culture’s emphasis on benevolence, the people as the foundation, integrity, justice, harmony, and the Great Unity [3], making fine traditional Chinese culture an important source for nurturing Socialist Core Values. This both poses major questions for Chinese cultural researchers to explore and preliminarily reveals the ideological essence within traditional Chinese culture that remains applicable today.
Those parts of traditional Chinese ideological culture that possess modern significance through reinterpretation belong to the core of the essence of Chinese culture. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "The Chinese nation has always been a peace-loving nation. Chinese culture prizes harmony. China's 'harmony' (He) culture has a long history, embodying a worldview of harmony between humanity and nature, an international outlook of harmony among all nations, a social outlook of harmony without uniformity [4], and a moral outlook of kindness in the human heart. Throughout over five thousand years of civilizational development, the Chinese nation has always pursued and inherited the firm concepts of peace, amity, and harmony. Concepts such as 'harmony is to be prized,' 'being kind to others,' and 'do not do unto others what you would not have them do unto you' have been passed down through generations in China and are deeply rooted in the spirit of the Chinese people." General Secretary Xi Jinping also noted: "The blood of the Chinese nation does not contain the gene for invading others or seeking hegemony. The Chinese people do not accept the logic that 'a strong country must seek hegemony'; they are willing to live in amity and develop in harmony with the people of all countries, jointly seeking, protecting, and sharing peace." This is to say that the "peace" ideology, "harmony" concepts, the worldview of harmony between humanity and nature, the international outlook of harmony among all nations, the social outlook of harmony without uniformity, and the moral outlook of kindness in the human heart within traditional Chinese ideological culture all belong to the traditional Chinese ideological essence that should be promoted.
Chinese civilization has continued for thousands of years and possesses its own internal, most fundamental cultural genes. These cultural genes are embedded in the worldview, outlook on life, values, and aesthetics formed and passed down by the Chinese nation through generations of production and daily life. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "During the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, various schools of thought such as Confucianism, Legalism, Taoism, Mohism, the School of Agrarians, and the School of the Military consulted and contended with each other, forming the cultural spectacle of a Hundred Schools of Thought, which enriched the spiritual world of the Chinese people of that time. Although Confucianism later gained a dominant position in the field of Chinese ideological culture for a long period, Chinese ideological culture nonetheless developed in a multi-directional and pluralistic manner. These ideologies and cultures embody the worldview, outlook on life, values, and aesthetics formed and passed down by the Chinese nation over generations of production and daily life, the most core contents of which have become the most fundamental cultural genes of the Chinese nation. These fundamental cultural genes are the unique markers of the Chinese nation and the Chinese people—distinct from other nations—formed gradually through the processes of self-cultivation, family regulation, state governance, and bringing peace to the world (Xiu-Qi-Zhi-Ping) [5]; respecting the times and maintaining one’s position; knowing the constant while adapting to change; and initiating things to achieve success." This means that the fundamental cultural genes of the Chinese nation are the "worldview, outlook on life, values, and aesthetics formed and passed down through generations." Identifying, systematizing, and promoting these genes requires focusing on core conceptual frameworks. The worldview and values contained in Chinese cultural traditions have become ingrained in the depths of the Chinese psyche, subtly influencing the way Chinese people act and think.
II. Excavating and Inheriting Excellent Political Resources for "Governing the Country and Bringing Peace to the People"
In traditional Chinese political thought, there is a rich spirit of reform and enterprise. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: Chinese social and political thought possesses a distinct and strong spirit of enterprise, such as Confucius’s concept of "rule by rites" (Lizhi), Mencius’s theory of "benevolent government" (Renzheng), Mozi’s "universal love and non-aggression," Han Fei’s "ruling the state by law," the political essays of Jia Yi and Chao Cuo, Tao Yuanming’s The Peach Blossom Spring, Huang Zongxi’s Waiting for the Dawn (Mingyi Daifang Lu), Tang Zhen’s Subversive Book (Qian Shu), Hong Xiuquan’s The Land System of the Heavenly Dynasty, Hong Rengan’s New Edition of a Treatise on Aids to Administration, and Kang Youwei’s The Book of Great Unity (Datong Shu). These social and political thoughts continuously criticized and attacked old systems and ideas, expressing a fervent yearning for and pursuit of new things and a new world. "Self-improvement through constant struggle, social commitment through great virtue" and "If you can renovate yourself one day, do so from day to day; yea, let there be daily renovation" [6] are representative maxims.
The idea of the people as the foundation (Minben) occupies an important position in the history of Chinese thought and is a political-ideological resource still available for use in contemporary China. The phrase "the people are the foundation of the state; when the foundation is solid, the state is at peace" from the "Song of the Five Sons" in the Old Script Book of Documents (Shangshu) is the earliest source of ancient Chinese Minben thought. The basic meaning of "the people are the foundation" is recognizing "the people" as the root, source, and subject of the state. Minben thought is a significant component of the ancient Chinese intellectual tradition represented by Confucianism. Confucius’s "the benevolent man loves others" is the basis of ancient Minben thought, while Mencius provided a classic interpretation of the "people-as-foundation" idea during the pre-Qin period. The Mencius (Jin Xin I) says: "The people are the most important; the altars of the soil and grain come next; the ruler is the least important." Since the people are the foundation of the state, a ruler can only ensure political stability by gaining the support of the people. Therefore, he emphasized that the will of the people is the will of Heaven, advocating that the opinion of the "people of the country" (Guoren) serve as the basis for judging state affairs. Mencius’s Minben thought contains elements of ancient democratic ideas regarding equality between ruler and people and the limitation of "monarchical power," elements which were inherited and developed by later Confucians. Throughout history, Confucian scholar-officials concerned with the suffering of the masses often utilized Minben thought to resist monarchical autocracy and dilute the poison of despotic politics to maintain the normal operation of social politics. During the transition from the late Ming to early Qing dynasties, scholars like Li Zhi, Tang Xianzu, Huang Zongxi, Gu Yanwu, Wang Fuzhi, and Fang Yizhi transcended the Confucian "Minben" tradition to propose concepts of people’s rights with modern significance, containing the seeds of certain modern democratic ideas.
After the Opium War, Confucian Minben thought again received attention from Chinese scholars and was reinterpreted, becoming an important medium for accepting Western modern concepts of "civil rights." Under the stimulation and honing of modern Western democratic thought, Minben thought gradually transformed into modern civil rights thought. Traditional Chinese Minben thought could be transformed into sympathy for the masses and a recognition of the revolutionary role of the peasantry, thus becoming an important ideological resource for modern Chinese democracy. Focusing on the rights of the people, solving the problem of people's livelihood, valuing the role of the masses, and affirming the status of the people concentratedly embody the positive factors and modern value of traditional Minben thought.
The Confucian ideal of "Great Unity" (Datong) is an ideological resource available for use in the history of Chinese thought. The Book of Rites (Liji · Liyun) describes the Confucian conception of a future ideal society in the name of Confucius, reflecting ancient Chinese "public ownership" thought: "When the Great Way [7] prevails, throughout the world, all is at the service of the public. They choose men of talent and virtue; they treat each other with good faith and cultivate harmony. Thus men do not love only their own parents, nor do they treat as children only their own sons. Provision is made for the aged till their death, employment for the able-bodied, and the means of growing up for the young. For helpless widows and widowers, orphans, and the lonely, as well as the sick and the disabled, there is care. Men have their proper work and women have their homes. They hate for goods to be abandoned on the ground, but they do not necessarily keep them for themselves. They hate for their labor not to be utilized, but they do not necessarily exert it for their own benefit. Thus, selfish schemings are repressed and find no development. Robbers, filchers, and rebellious traitors do not exist, and hence the outer doors are not shut. This is called the Great Unity (Datong)." The Liyun section of the Book of Rites is the basic program of ancient Chinese utopian socialism, reflecting ancient "public ownership" thought. The Great Unity society envisioned by Confucians was an ideal society with an agricultural public ownership system as its economic base; "the world belongs to the public" was the general principle of the Great Unity society. Through the Book of Rites, Confucians depicted the wonderful vision of a "Great Unity" society—an ancient utopia where social members shared common prosperity and universal harmony prevailed. The utopian ideal of "World Unity" inspired generations of Chinese Confucians for over two thousand years.
In modern times, the Datong ideal described in the Book of Rites became a spiritual driving force for Chinese people of vision to resist foreign aggression and an ideological medium for transcending the capitalist stage toward socialism. Kang Youwei, Tan Sitong, Liang Qichao, Sun Yat-sen, Liu Shifu, and Li Shizeng all proposed modern ideals of a "Great Unity" society by reinterpreting the Book of Rites. Kang Youwei’s The Book of Great Unity expressed the beautiful ideals of advanced Chinese elements for future society, though it was an unachievable utopia. Mao Zedong said: "Kang Youwei wrote The Book of Great Unity, but he did not and could not find a way to reach Great Unity." The fact that modern Chinese progressives came into contact with and accepted socialist ideology was largely due to the guidance of the Confucian "Great Unity" ideal. Sun Yat-sen’s view was representative: "The Principle of People's Livelihood (Minsheng Zhuyi) is socialism, also called communism; that is, the Great Unity-ism." The combination of China's thousand-year-old ideal of a Great Unity society with modern European and American socialist thought formed the intellectual source of modern Chinese socialism.
Furthermore, traditional Chinese culture’s ideas regarding the world as public property and the Great Unity; regarding self-improvement and social commitment through virtue; regarding the people as the foundation and its goal of pacifying, enriching, and bringing joy to the people; regarding governing by virtue and the notion that "to govern is to be upright"; regarding being down-to-earth and seeking truth from facts; regarding statecraft, the unity of knowledge and action, and practice; regarding clean governance and diligence in public service; regarding frugality and the avoidance of luxury; regarding harmony without uniformity and peaceful coexistence; and regarding being prepared for danger in times of peace—all of these are excellent ideological resources in Chinese political culture for governing the state and benefiting the world. These excellent resources "can provide beneficial inspiration for people to understand and transform the world, for governing the state, and for moral construction."
III. Excavating and Inheriting Rich Moral Thought and Positive Outlooks on Life
A prominent characteristic of traditional Chinese thought is the seamless integration of philosophy, political thought, and ethics, with moral and ethical doctrines constituting a vital component of the Chinese intellectual system. Initially, ancient Chinese political concepts intertwined monarchical power, deities, and ethics. The people of the Yin [8] conflated the authority of ancestral spirits with that of celestial gods; the people of the Zhou perceived the relationship between humans and gods as a patriarchal ethical relationship, while the patriarchal system and its accompanying concepts served as the bedrock of Western Zhou political institutions and culture. During the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, Chinese thought gradually transitioned from a focus on the divine to a focus on the human. This shift brought a heightened emphasis on interpersonal relations and morality, driving a sublimation of ethical concepts. As ethics and morality evolved into secularized, universal socio-political norms, the status of "virtue" (德, dé) became increasingly prominent. Discussions arose regarding the utilitarian functions of morality, and ethics were adopted as one of the fundamental principles guiding socio-political life. Confucianism offered a thorough justification for the cognitive and operational value of moral norms, imbuing each norm with specific political functions and advocating for the organization of society and the restraint of political behavior through moral principles. Thus, "the world belongs to the public," "matching Heaven with virtue," "governing through virtue," and "cultivating the self, regulating the family, governing the state, and bringing peace to the world" [9] became ideal political standards. Virtues such as benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and trustworthiness were exalted as the norms regulating human conduct.
After the Qin and Han dynasties, Confucianism—a blend of ethics, philosophy, and political science—occupied the mainstream ideological position, profoundly influencing the trajectory of Chinese thought. Subsequent generations of scholars centered their inquiries on ethics, developing a rich body of moral thought. Confucianism emphasized benevolence and virtue, advocating for filial piety, fraternal duty, loyalty, and trustworthiness, as well as being temperate, kind, courteous, restrained, and magnanimous. The Doctrine of the Mean promoted wisdom, benevolence, and courage; The Great Learning discussed the investigation of things, the extension of knowledge, sincerity of intent, rectification of the mind, cultivation of the person, regulation of the family, governance of the state, and the bringing of peace to the world—all rooted in illustrating illustrious virtue, renouvatizing the people, and resting in the highest good. Mencius spoke of the "five relationships" and the "four sprouts" [10]; Xunzi exalted propriety, honored teachers, and emphasized postnatal cultivation; Han dynasty Confucians advocated the "Three Bonds and Five Constant Virtues" [11]—all of which warrant our attention. Sunlighting the rich ethical doctrines within traditional Chinese thought and drawing lessons from traditional concepts of "governance by virtue" and "governance by propriety" in the contemporary social environment clearly holds significant practical importance.
Since the pre-Qin period, Chinese sages have focused on lived reality, proposing rich philosophies of life and worldviews. Confucius advocated that "if a man hears the Way in the morning, he may die in the evening without regret," practiced the spirit of "acting even when knowing it is impossible," and was "so happy he forgets his sorrows, unaware that old age is coming." To realize his ideals, he struggled unceasingly throughout his life. Mencius said, "In the world today, who is there but me?"—showing a courage to shoulder heavy responsibilities and advocating the "great man" spirit: "to be uncorrupted by wealth and honors, undeterred by poverty and low status, and unbending before threats and force." Mozi advocated "wearing oneself out from head to heel for the benefit of the world"; Han Fei advocated "benefiting the common people" even at the risk of "the harm of destruction." Qu Yuan wrote, "Long and arduous is the road ahead, I will seek high and low," and "though I die nine deaths, I shall have no regrets." Xunzi advocated that "even a poor horse can go a distance of ten days' journey" through "unremitting effort" and perseverance. Fan Zhongyan advocated being "the first to worry about the world's worries and the last to enjoy the world's joys." Zhang Zai advocated "to establish the heart of Heaven and Earth, to secure the life and lot of the people, to continue the lost teachings of past sages, and to establish peace for all future generations." Wang Anshi advocated reform and innovation, stating that "omens from heaven are not to be feared, ancestors are not to be blindly followed, and the talk of others is not to be fretted over." All of these are positive, upward-looking philosophies of life worthy of inheritance.
The rich intellectual resources regarding morality and life contained in traditional Chinese culture are the moral fountainhead for nourishing Socialist Core Values. Concepts such as "the people as the foundation of the state," "harmony without uniformity," "as Heaven's movement is ever vigorous, so must the gentleman strive unceasingly," "when the Great Way prevails, the world belongs to the public," "every man shares responsibility for the fate of his country," "being true in word and resolute in deed," "the man of benevolence loves others," "being kind to others," "do not do unto others what you would not have them do unto you," and "assisting the poor and helping those in difficulty" are all valuable ideas that continue to play a positive role today. As General Secretary Xi Jinping has emphasized: "Ideas and concepts such as these, whether in the past or today, possess distinct National characteristics and timeless value for our era."
Traditional Chinese thought focuses on lived reality but is not confined to it; rather, it pursues "inner transcendence" and a sublime spiritual realm to elevate worldly life. Many insights from Chinese sages regarding methods of moral cultivation and epistemology are worthy of emulation. Examples include Confucius’s optimistic spirit of "forgetting to eat in his zeal and forgetting his sorrows in his joy" and his proactive attitude of "never tiring of learning nor wearying of teaching"; Mozi’s spirit of salvation in "wearing himself out from head to heel for the benefit of the world"; Song Xing’s objective method of "engaging with all things by first setting aside prejudices"; Mencius’s "great man" style; Xunzi’s method of "dispelling obsession" through "emptiness, unity, and stillness"; and the cultivation efforts of Song and Ming Neo-Confucians regarding "cultivating the self, regulating the family, governing the state, and bringing peace to the world." All of these encapsulate the profound wisdom and tireless life pursuits of Chinese philosophers.
IV. Achieving the Creative Transformation of Fine Traditional Chinese Culture
Regarding the rich intellectual resources contained in traditional Chinese culture, we must adhere to the principles of "extracting the essence and discarding the dross," "critical transformation," "weeding through the old to bring forth the new," and "making the past serve the present." General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "We must strengthen the excavation and interpretation of fine traditional Chinese culture, strive to achieve the creative transformation and innovative development of traditional Chinese virtues, promote cultural spirits that transcend time and space, cross national borders, possess eternal charm, and hold contemporary value, and disseminate the innovative achievements of contemporary Chinese culture that both inherit fine traditions and promote the spirit of the times—rooted in our own country while facing the world." In practice, truly achieving the critical transformation and renewal of traditional Chinese thought to reach the goals of creative transformation and innovative development is no easy task. To this end, we must conduct deep analysis and earnest discernment of traditional Chinese culture.
Any elements in traditional Chinese thought that remain vital and possess practical significance—those progressive ideas characterized by democratic and popular qualities—should be inherited and carried forward. For instance, Confucius’s active advocacy of a spirit of hard work and plain living and persistent study—"A scholar who sets his heart on the Way, but is ashamed of poor clothes and poor food, is not worth talking to"; the spirit of seeking continuous innovation—"If you can renovate yourself one day, do so from day to day, and let there be daily renovation"; and the sublime spirit of sacrificing one's life for truth (benevolence) rather than seeking life at the expense of truth—"A determined scholar and a man of benevolence will not seek to live at the expense of injuring their benevolence; they will even sacrifice their lives to preserve their benevolence." These can all be regarded as the essence of Confucian thought and need to be advocated and promoted. Conversely, elements in traditional Chinese thought that directly served the special interests of the ruling class must be criticized and purged. For example, Confucius’s ideas of "loyalty to the monarch and honoring the king" and the concept of "blind filial piety" (e.g., "not changing the father's way for three years") were rhetorically crafted to maintain the status of rulers and constitute the dross of Confucianism. The complexity, however, lies in the fact that even these concepts, which appear to be dross, may contain usable elements. Terms like "propriety," "loyalty," and "filial piety," if stripped of the patriarchal hierarchical connotations assigned by Confucius and subjected to modern interpretation, can potentially be transformed into "propriety," "loyalty," and "filial piety" in the sense of equality and mutual affection. By criticized the patriarchal definitions while retaining the virtues of being polite, loyal, and filial, we can "turn the decayed into the miraculous." Naturally, this requires an arduous process of modern transformation for traditional thought.
In traditional Chinese thought, there are not many elements that are easily distinguishable as pure essence or pure dross; more often, positive and negative factors are intermingled. This portion constitutes a large proportion of the traditional Chinese intellectual system and is the most difficult to differentiate. While the basic principle is to clean up and sublate [12] these elements in the spirit of critical inheritance, implementation is difficult.
The main characteristic of this body of thought is the coexistence of feudal and autocratic elements alongside democratic and popular elements. This is certainly true of "benevolence" (rén), the core of Confucius's thought. From Confucius’s statement, "If a man be without benevolence, what has he to do with the rites (propriety)?" we see that benevolence is constrained by "propriety." Here, benevolence is entangled with the codes and norms of the ritual system, becoming an official ideology that maintains the hierarchical social order and suits the needs of the ruling class, thereby playing a negative role. On the other hand, from Confucius’s statement "overflow in love to all, and cultivate the friendship of the good," we see that rén implies an extensive love for others, containing a humanitarian spirit and reflecting precious democratic and popular active factors. The former aspect, possessing feudal and autocratic qualities, was favored by the ruling class; the latter, containing democratic and popular qualities, partially reflected the aspirations of the masses. Thus, Confucian "benevolence" simultaneously contains both feudalism and democracy. Therefore, when evaluating the concept of "benevolence," we must seriously criticize its negative factors (dross) while fully promoting its active democratic and popular factors (essence). We should neither simply discard it nor simply inherit it; rather, through careful criticism and selection, we inherit and promote its rational elements.
Concepts in traditional Chinese thought such as the "Great Harmony" (dàtóng) and "benevolent government and governance by virtue" are all mixtures of essence and dross, requiring diligent and careful discernment. Therefore, cultural researchers must employ the Marxist standpoint, viewpoint, and method to clarify which essences should be absorbed and which dross must be eliminated. At the same time, based on new practices, they must provide logically consistent Marxist reinterpretations of traditional Chinese culture to facilitate its creative transformation and innovative development, injecting new contemporary connotations into traditional Chinese thought.
V. Cultural Nihilism and Cultural Atavism: Guarding Against Two Erroneous Cultural Tendencies
In the process of promoting fine traditional Chinese culture and advancing the integration of Marxism with it, two erroneous tendencies exist that warrant high vigilance.
First, there is insufficient recognition of the harm of cultural nihilism and a lack of necessary depth in its critique. Cultural nihilism is an attitude of contempt, doubt, or even negation toward the cultural value of one's own nation; it is a concentrated reflection of a psychological state of cultural inferiority. Since the beginning of the modern era, following repeated failures in the confrontation with Western powers, some Chinese people's disappointment with their own culture deepened, leading to an ever-strengthening sense of cultural inferiority. Cultural inferiority inevitably leads to Westernization or even "total Westernization," ultimately resulting in cultural nihilism. While "nullifying" their own national culture, proponents of this view necessarily identify with and worship Western political systems, Western development paths, and Western core values. Currently, this wave of cultural nihilism primarily manifests as historical nihilism, fundamentally denying the value of Chinese history and civilization, the history of anti-imperialist and anti-feudal revolution in modern China, and the history of revolution and reform and opening up led by the Communist Party of China. Ultimately, it denies the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and socialist core values, dissipating public morale and objectively serving the needs of Western anti-China forces.
To establish national historical and cultural confidence, we must—in addition to positively promoting fine traditional Chinese culture—resolutely criticize cultural and historical nihilism. As General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "We are not historical nihilists, nor are we cultural nihilists; we cannot forget our ancestors or underestimate ourselves." [13] Currently, the critique of cultural and historical nihilism lacks depth and strength. Analysis of how it uses the guise of cultural and historical research to negate the essence of the value system of socialism with Chinese characteristics is not profound enough and often falls into generalizations. Research into and the unmasking of its new forms remain insufficient.
Second, there is a lack of due vigilance against cultural atavism (revivalism), leading to a bias toward an over-affirmation of traditional culture. Cultural conservative atavism is an attitude of complacency and arrogance toward one's own national culture, a concentrated reflection of cultural conceit. This bias often manifests as "failing to digest what is old" and refusing to accept advanced world thought and culture. Currently, a tendency has emerged in society to revive Confucian culture in the name of promoting traditional Chinese culture; there have even been claims attempting to "Confucianize" Marxism or create a "Confucianized Marxism." This rising cultural conservatism and atavism similarly doubt and negate the system, theory, path, and values of socialism with Chinese characteristics. Inheriting and promoting traditional Chinese culture is not synonymous with sticking to old conventions or failing to adapt, nor is it about replacing Marxism with Confucian culture. The guiding ideology of the Communist Party of China is Marxism-Leninism, Mao Zedong Thought, and the theoretical system of socialism with Chinese characteristics—not traditional Chinese culture centered on Confucianism. Modern Chinese history has already proven: Confucian culture was insufficient to save China from peril, and even less capable of leading China toward independence, prosperity, and strength.
What the Communist Party of China seeks to inherit and carry forward is fine traditional Chinese culture; the objective lies in achieving the creative transformation and innovative development of fine traditional Chinese culture, extracting its essence to serve the construction of a new socialist culture with Chinese characteristics. This is not a simple return to traditional culture, and even less is it cultural archaism. Traditional Chinese culture contains an excellent democratic essence, but it likewise contains dross. [14] This requires that people correctly clear away, interpret, and choose between its various elements. General Secretary Xi Jinping has emphasized: "We must persist in making the past serve the present and using the past as a mirror for today; persist in a treatment based on discernment and an inheritance based on sublation [15], rather than favoring the ancient over the modern or using the past to negate the present. We must strive to realize the creative transformation and innovative development of traditional culture, allowing it to integrate with contemporary culture so that they may jointly serve the era's task of cultivating people through culture." Exactly which components of traditional Chinese culture are "fine"? Which are "dross"? Currently, there are significant divergences in the understanding of the academic community, and a tendency toward blurring these distinctions exists across various sectors of society. This necessitates that Chinese academia must apply the Marxist standpoint, viewpoint, and method to clarify which essences should be assimilated and which dross must be eliminated. At the same time, we must ground ourselves in the great practice of reform and opening up and national rejuvenation, injecting new connotations of the era into these elements and producing logically consistent, new Marxist interpretations of traditional Chinese thought and culture, so as to facilitate the realization of their creative transformation and innovative development.
(The author is the Deputy Director and Research Fellow of the Institute of Historical Theory at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences) Online Editor: Tongxin Source: Journal of Liaoning University (Philosophy and Social Sciences Edition), Issue 1, 2023.