Page 8 - 2022(1) International Confusion Studies

Int. Confucian Stud. 2022; 1(1): 1–4

Liu Yandong
Inherit and Carry Forward Traditional
Chinese Culture, Promote Communication

and Mutual Learning Between World
Civilizations

https://doi.org/10.1515/icos-2022-2001

The launch of International Confucian Studies represents a pioneering endeavor of
the International Confucian Association and a significant event worth noticing
among international scholars on Confucianism.
Confucian theory, initiated by Confucius, based on which Confucian thought
has evolved and become established, is a fundamental part of traditional Chinese
culture. Not only has it produced a profound impact on the long, continuous
development of the Chinese nation and civilization, it has also contributed a
significant share to the progress of human society and civilization as a whole. The
meaning of Confucianism for the world has become more prominent along with
deeper and more extensive global communication. Though proposed more than
2000 years ago, the key concepts of Confucianism, such as ren (仁, benevolence),
yi (义, righteousness), li (礼, propriety), zhi (智, intelligence), and xin (信, good
faith), have since been inherited, expounded, and carried forward by thinkers and
intellectuals generation after generation, thus maintaining long-lasting vitality.
They have led to philosophical, ethical, moral, and spiritual ideals such as: a
benevolent person loves others, put people first (in governance), governance
based on virtue, the world belongs to all, constantly improve oneself, have ample
virtue and carry all things, people and nature should be united as one, seek
common ground while setting aside differences, seek harmony but not uniformity,
unity of knowledge and action, and so on. The values expressed in these ideals still
hold true for such areas as the economy, politics, culture, society, and ecological
civilization, and may provide inspirations for humanity in the face of complex
problems and major challenges.

*Corresponding author: Liu Yandong, President of International Confucian Association, Beijing,
China, E-mail: icos@fltrp.com

Open Access. © 2022 the author(s), published by De Gruyter. This work is licensed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.