Expand Research into the History of Chinese Civilization and Build a Stronger Sense of History and Cultural Confidence

Expand Research into the History of Chinese Civilization and Build a Stronger Sense of History and Cultural Confidence*

May 27, 2022

Today, we gather here for the 39th group study session of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee. The theme is the Chinese Civilization Origins Project. The goals of the session are as follows: first, to gain an in-depth knowledge of the history of Chinese civilization, which spans more than 5,000 years; second, to promote deeper research into the history of Chinese civilization; and third, to motivate the whole Party and all of society to develop a stronger sense of history and cultural confidence, keep to the path of Chinese socialism, and strive in unity to build China into a modern socialist country in all respects and realize the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.

“History can reveal the way of governance.” Since the 18th CPC National Congress in 2012, I have spoken about this multiple times — that we should respect history, research it, form a history-based approach to thinking, and carry forward the best of traditional Chinese culture. The Political Bureau has previously arranged group study sessions on Chinese history and culture. For example, a session on China’s latest archeological findings and their significance was arranged in September 2020. Today’s session is about furthering the Chinese Civilization Origins Project.

China’s long, extensive and profound civilization is one of the distinctive qualities of the Chinese nation. It underpins contemporary Chinese culture and creates a spiritual bond among all people of Chinese descent across the globe. It provides valuable resources and inspiration for China’s cultural innovation. Karl Marx once said, “What the nations have done as nations, they have done for human society.” In its long history, the Chinese nation has maintained a strong spirit of enterprise and perseverance in overcoming numerous hardships, and undergone a development process that differs from other civilizations.

“From facts of the past rise laws eternal. Only through in-depth study of history can one comprehend the laws that govern its course.” Our Party has always applied the stance, viewpoint and methodology of historical materialism in studying the history of the Chinese nation and promoting the best of traditional Chinese culture. As early as 1938, Mao Zedong said, “Our national history goes back several thousand years and has its own characteristics and innumerable treasures. But in these matters we are mere schoolboys. Contemporary China has grown out of the China of the past; we are Marxist in our historical approach and must not lop off our history. We should sum up our history from Confucius to Sun Yat-sen and take over this valuable legacy. This is important for guiding the great movement of today.”

The origins of Chinese civilization are not only a major focus of Chinese scholars, but also a research topic that draws extensive interest from the international academic community. The research findings of the Chinese Civilization Origins Project and other major projects, which result from the sustained efforts of several generations of scholars, constitute solid evidence of China’s million years of human habitation, 10,000 years of culture, and 5,000 years and more of civilization.

The Project has resulted in remarkable achievements, but there is still a long and arduous journey ahead. Therefore, we must continue to advance. To this end, solid efforts should be made in the following areas:

First, multidisciplinary joint research should be strengthened to secure more findings from the Chinese Civilization Origins Project. Through the Project, we have developed a relatively clear understanding of the origins, formation and evolution of Chinese civilization, the formation and evolution of its unity in diversity, and its characteristics and their sources. Despite the preliminary findings, many mysteries remain unsolved. Further research should be done to reach consensus on many major questions. In particular, much work is needed to reveal the complete history of the Xia Dynasty (c. 2070-1600 BCE).

We are now applying the latest technologies in frontier disciplines such as biology, molecular biology, chemistry, geoscience, and physics to analyze ancient remains in China. This provides solid scientific and technological foundations for exploring the origins of Chinese civilization, and expands our knowledge of its five millennia of history. Research on the origins and formation of a civilization is a long-term, complex and systematic project. It requires us to combine archeological exploration, study of documentation, and the technical methods of natural sciences, to take into full consideration material conditions, psychological and spiritual factors, and social relationships, and to gradually reveal the development process of civilizations from tiny streams to great rivers. We should boost coordinated planning and a rational distribution of resources, adhere to a multidisciplinary, multiperspective, multitiered and comprehensive approach, and strengthen joint research between archeology and history and between humanities and natural sciences. Our aim is to expand the space-time scope of the research and fields covered, and find better answers to major questions, including the general profile and intrinsic mechanisms of the origins, formation and evolution of Chinese civilization, as well as the evolutionary course of regional civilizations in China.

Over a long period, the West has established a set of theories of civilization that we can learn from, but should avoid applying mechanically. The Chinese Civilization Origins Project has advanced its own definition of civilization and devised Chinese criteria for evaluating whether a human community has become a civilized society. These are original contributions to global research on the origins of civilizations. To increase the profile and influence of Chinese culture, we should also work hard on the promotion and application of China’s theory on ancient civilizations and the findings of the Project, and make greater efforts to research, interpret, display and promote unearthed cultural relics and ruins.

Second, in-depth research into the characteristics and forms of Chinese civilization should be carried out to provide theoretical support for developing a new model for human progress. In the course of our long history, the Chinese people have created a brilliant civilization and made an enormous contribution to human progress. Many in the West tend to view China as a modern nation-state within the framework of Western modernization theories. They fail to view it from the perspective of its full 5,000 years of history. It is therefore difficult for them to truly understand China’s past, present and future. We should explore the origins of Chinese civilization in parallel with research on other major topics, including its characteristics and forms. We should conduct profound research, and develop in-depth interpretations of the evolution of the Chinese nation as one community, and the shared identity of its diverse ethnic groups, both of which derive from the origins of Chinese civilization. We should research and expound on the ethos of Chinese civilization manifested in benevolence, a people-centered philosophy, good faith, justice, harmony, and universal peace, and on its evolving forms. We should thereby elucidate the cultural depths of the Chinese path. Concerning traditional Chinese culture, we should under no circumstances repudiate it in its entirety. Rather, we should make the past serve the present, develop the new from the old, and carry forward the best of its offerings. Mao Zedong once said, “Confucius became a sage because he was a revolutionist and participated in rebellions everywhere. While Mencius claimed that Confucius’ compilation of the Spring and Autumn Annals deterred rebellions, the truth is that during his travels around the vassal states, Confucius chose to visit those in the midst of rebellion or where a revolution was brewing. Therefore, we should not deny that he had some merits, nor should we simply negate all Confucian teachings.” We should establish systems of academic disciplines, research and discourse with Chinese characteristics, style and ethos, to provide solid theoretical support for developing a new model for human progress.

Third, we should promote the creative transformation and innovative development of the best of traditional Chinese culture to provide support for national rejuvenation. “Scholars can verify the rights and wrongs in the world by studying the principles in Confucian classics, and can understand successes or failures by citing facts from historical documentation.” I have emphasized on many occasions that China’s great traditional culture is the crystallization and essence of the wisdom of Chinese civilization, the root and soul of the Chinese nation, and the foundation on which we may stand firm in the mingling and clashing of global cultures. We are committed to integrating the basic tenets of Marxism with China’s realities and the best of its traditional culture, and to continuously adapting Marxism to the Chinese context and the needs of our times. This is what has enabled us to promote the creative transformation and innovative development of the best of China’s traditional culture. To better foster China’s spirit, values and strengths, we should break new ground while preserving our traditions, adapt traditional Chinese culture to socialist society, and demonstrate the distinctive qualities of the Chinese nation.

In promoting the creative transformation and innovative development of traditional Chinese culture, we should uphold the fundamental guiding thoughts of Marxism, carry forward our revolutionary culture, foster an advanced socialist culture, and seek endless inspiration from the best of traditional culture. We should make full use of the findings of the Chinese Civilization Origins Project and other projects to provide a more complete and accurate history of ancient China and make better use of history as a tool of education.

Fourth, we should encourage exchanges and mutual learning among civilizations, and promote the building of a community with a shared future for humanity. Since ancient times, Chinese civilization has been known for its openness and inclusiveness. In exchanges and mutual learning with other civilizations, it has continuously gained new vitality. Species and technologies, or resources and communities, or even thoughts and cultures, develop and advance in an ongoing process of spreading, exchanges and interaction. This is clearly evidenced by the history of Chinese civilization over the course of the past 5,000 years. We must invalidate the theory of the “clash of civilizations” through exchanges and interactions among civilizations.

As I said at the opening ceremony of the Conference on Dialogue of Asian Civilizations, “Civilizations vary from each other only as human beings differ in terms of skin color and the language used. No civilization is superior to others.” We should champion equality, mutual learning, dialogue, and inclusiveness between civilizations, foster broad-minded understanding of the values of other civilizations, and respect the choice of every nation on its pathway to development. We should let cultural exchanges prevail over estrangement, mutual learning over clash, and inclusiveness over superiority, and we should promote the common values of humanity embodied in Chinese civilization.

We should remain grounded in China’s realities to tell the stories of Chinese civilization, and present China as a country worthy of friendship, trust and respect. We should elucidate the nature of China as a country, clarify the nature of its civilization, and explain clearly how the Chinese people view the universe, the world, society, and morality. We should display the long history and rich culture of Chinese civilization, and help the world better understand the Chinese nation, the Chinese people, and the CPC.

Fifth, we should bring back to life cultural relics and heritage, and foster a strong social environment that encourages the active continuation of the Chinese civilization. Cultural relics and heritage are carriers of the roots and traditions of the Chinese nation. They are nonrenewable and irreplaceable treasures of China’s splendid civilization. We should actively protect and utilize cultural relics, and better preserve and carry forward our cultural heritage. We should exploit the multifaceted values of cultural relics and heritage, and promote more iconic products that embody China’s culture and spirit.

We Chinese Communists are not historical or cultural nihilists. We must not underestimate ourselves; we should cherish the best of our traditions and culture. Leading officials at all levels should have a profound respect for our history and traditional culture. We should attach great importance to the protection and utilization of cultural relics and the preservation and promotion of cultural heritage, and provide more policy support for historians and archeologists to conduct research, pursue further knowledge, and participate in training and exchanges. We should create a social environment that encourages society-wide commitment to carrying on China’s civilization, by popularizing the research results of endeavors such as the Chinese Civilization Origins Project and by providing education and guidance, especially for the young, to help people better understand and identify with Chinese civilization and have greater pride, confidence and assurance in their identity as Chinese.

* Speech at the 39th group study session of the Political Bureau of the 19th CPC Central Committee.

(Not to be republished for any commercial or other purposes.)