On the “Shared Human Values” Contained in Chinese Fine Traditional Culture

Zhang Kun

Abstract：The shared values have always been concerned by various social circles and contain rich contents. And these shared human values have profound historical backgrounds， cultural roots， and value bases. China desires to contribute its shared values to the world community： these focus on survival interests and a moral consensus of humanity as a whole and attempt to display Chinese wisdom on how to build a new order of humankind or world civilization. Chinese civilization arguably contains abundant thoughts of common values， and Confucian “benevolence” has made an important contribution to the common values of humanity.

Traditional Chinese culture seeks to stress life awareness and affirms human values. This consciousness of life， on the one hand， apparently affirms the value and significance of life itself， while on the other hand， regards the survival of life as a common basis for all humankind. Traditional Chinese culture also advocates the unity of humans and nature， emphasizing unity in diversity. The unity of the human person and nature mainly seems to mean the following： a human being is the product of heaven and earth， human nature can be described as the way of heaven， and harmony between an individual and nature is the ideal state. Traditional Chinese culture moreover appears to adhere to the principles to be mentioned： “harmony without uniformity，” “all nations are to live in harmony，”“do not unto others what you wouldnt have them do unto you，” diligently practice the spirit of “righteousness” utilizing rites， and follow the heavenly principles and human nature with integrity.

The basic principles of Chinese traditional culture on the value of life and social ideals apparently put forward some profound and sound ideas， and attach great importance to shared values. Confucianism advocates morality and righteousness. With the help of shared values and ideals， Confucianism can transcend material interests and construct a bond between different groups and countries， using spiritual values such as cohesion， thus realizing the social ideal of justice and fairness. This shared value can be seen as both morality and rule， displaying the wisdom and tolerance of traditional Chinese culture that is conceivably widely recognized as a social civilization model. Whats more， it can be asserted Confucius attached great importance to peoples conscious initiative， emphasized the positive role of individuals in the construction of social moral order， advocated the principle that “harmony is the most valuable，” and championed pluralism and unity which are referred to by many today. In short， shared values can be seen as the wisdom of understanding and handling the relations between different civilizations. They appear to be of great significance for building an ideological foundation of a community with a shared future for mankind and consolidating a foundation for positive interactions between China and the outside world.

Key Words：Xi Jinping; shared human values; Chinese fine traditional culture