The Philosophical Code of the Creative Transformation and Innovative Development of Fine Traditional Chinese Culture

Fine traditional Chinese culture is broad and profound, rich in implication, and fused with the deepest life wisdom and most unique spiritual temperament of the Chinese nation. The Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core attaches great importance to the issue of the creative transformation and innovative development of fine traditional Chinese culture (hereinafter referred to as the “Two Creations”). [1]1 The “Two Creations” (两创) refers to the creative transformation and innovative development of fine traditional Chinese culture, a policy direction emphasized under Xi Jinping. In essence, the “Two Creations” are both a major theoretical and practical issue facing the construction of a socialist culture with Chinese characteristics and a philosophical speculative issue concerning the deconstruction and reconstruction of Chinese culture by the Chinese nation since modern times; they vividly manifest the theoretical character of Xi Jinping’s cultural thought, which is “to understand the substance and realize its application, integrating substance and function.” [2]2 Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, *The German Ideology* (1845–1846). The “Two Creations” policy proposed by Chinese Communists in the New Era is a wise interpretation of the era’s question, “Where is Chinese culture heading?” At present, academic circles mostly conduct external discussions on the generative background, operational mechanisms, functional value, and practical paths of the “Two Creations,” while the excavation and demonstration of their internal logic remain incomplete. So, what exactly are the “Two Creations”? Why are the “Two Creations” a kind of “necessity”? How can deeper-level “Two Creations” be promoted? This article attempts to explore the philosophical foundation of the “Two Creations”—their “origin” and “destination”—from the perspective of historical materialism.

中华优秀传统文化博大精深、意蕴深邃，熔铸着中华民族最深奥的生命智慧和最独特的精神气质。以习近平同志为核心的党中央高度重视中华优秀传统文化创造性转化和创新性发展（以下简称“两创”）问题。从本质上而言，“两创”既是中国特色社会主义文化建设中面临的重大理论和实践问题，也是近代以来中华民族解构和重塑中华文化的哲学思辨问题，生动彰显了习近平文化思想“明体达用、体用贯通”的理论品格。新时代中国共产党人提出的“两创”方针，是对“中华文化向何而去”这一时代之问的智慧解读。目前，学界多就“两创”的生成背景、运行机制、功能价值以及实践路径等展开外延上的探讨，就“两创”内在逻辑问题的挖掘和论证尚不完善。那么，“两创”究竟为何物？“两创”为何是一种“必然”？何以推动更深层次的“两创”？本文尝试从唯物史观的视角，探求“两创”之“所从来”与“何所去”的哲学基础问题。

I. The Philosophical Connotation of the Creative Transformation and Innovative Development of Fine Traditional Chinese Culture

一、中华优秀传统文化创造性转化和创新性发展的哲学内涵

The “creative transformation” of fine traditional Chinese culture means that the old forms of fine traditional Chinese culture are endowed with new connotations, and concepts that transcend their era are given new interpretations; “innovative development” means that fine traditional Chinese culture, as a source of intellectual nourishment, is integrated into Chinese-path modernization and condensed into a new cultural form of socialism with Chinese characteristics for the New Era. Clarifying the philosophical connotation of the “Two Creations” is the prerequisite for solving the problem of their philosophical foundation.

中华优秀传统文化“创造性转化”是指中华优秀传统文化旧形式被赋予新内涵、超时代观念被赋予新阐释；“创新性发展”则指中华优秀传统文化作为思想滋养，融入中国式现代化建设，凝铸为新时代中国特色社会主义文化新形态。明晰“两创”的哲学内涵是解决“两创”哲学基础问题的前提。

(I) The Ideological Connotation of the “Creative Transformation” of Fine Traditional Chinese Culture

（一）中华优秀传统文化“创造性转化”的思想内涵

What is called “creativity” is an endogenous force that makes reality exhibit novel and distinctive characteristics. “Creativity” has the meaning of originality; it is an attribute of the subject capable of producing things with properties different from those of the past. Of course, “creativity” also implies the process of transforming “creative” ideas into “creative” actions through the bridge of practice. “Transformation” is a dynamic process in which the two sides of a contradiction change under certain conditions and move toward their opposites. In the field of human social history, “transformation” is prominently manifested in the contradictory movement of productive forces and relations of production. As productive forces improve, old relations of production gradually become incompatible with the new productive forces; people transform the old relations of production to adapt to the constantly developing productive forces. The transformation of old and new relations of production creates a unity of historical continuity and discontinuity, bringing about the succession of social historical forms. “Creative transformation,” which integrates “creativity” and “transformation,” emphasizes taking “creativity” as the premise and “transformation” as the goal, fully exerting the active attribute of humans to explore beneficial values and produce novel things. It is a process of realizing the accumulation of “quantity” and the change of “quality” in the object of transformation, thereby adjusting and transforming the social form.

所谓“创造性”，是一种使现实呈现出新奇、别致特性的内生性的力量。“创造性”具有首创性含义，是主体所具备的一种能够产生区别以往事物属性的能力。当然，“创造性”还意味着以实践为桥梁，把“创造性”思想观念转化为“创造性”行为的过程。“转化”是矛盾双方在一定条件下发生变化、走向自己对立面的动态过程。在人类社会历史领域，“转化”突出表现在生产力与生产关系的矛盾运动中。随着生产力的提升，旧的生产关系逐渐难以与新的生产力相容，人们为适应不断发展的生产力而变革旧的生产关系，新旧生产关系的转化造成了历史连续性和间断性相统一，带来社会历史形态的更替。综合“创造性”与“转化”的“创造性转化”，强调以“创造性”为前提，以“转化”为目的，充分发挥人探索有益价值、生产新颖事物的能动属性，是实现转化对象“量”的积累与“质”的变化，从而调整和变革社会形态的过程。

As far as fine traditional Chinese culture is concerned, “creative transformation” means excavating and selecting those parts of fine traditional Chinese culture that still have reference significance for the present as the object of transformation, using practice as the medium to translate human “creative” ability into creative actions, adjusting, improving, or fundamentally reforming the “old cultural forms” according to the needs of the new era, and realizing the reshaping and rebirth of fine traditional culture. Specifically, the “creative transformation” of fine traditional Chinese culture has three core essential meanings.

就中华优秀传统文化而言，“创造性转化”意味着挖掘并选取中华优秀传统文化中对当今仍有借鉴意义的部分为改造对象，以实践为介质将人的“创造性”能力落实为创造行为，将“旧文化形态”依照新的时代需求加以调整改良或从根本上改革，实现优秀传统文化的重塑和新生。具体而言，中华优秀传统文化“创造性转化”具有三重核心要义。

First, “creative transformation” is a dialectical unity of cultural continuity and cultural change. The “originality” spirit in “creativity” and the process of “transformation” do not arise from nothing. “Creative transformation” involves transcending and breaking through on the basis of inheriting past historical traditions, with the aim of achieving the continuous vitality of Chinese culture. “Creative transformation” is not equivalent to “replication”; it is not about accepting and transplanting tradition wholesale through a “take-it-or-leave-it” approach. Rather, it requires sorting and distinguishing the reasonable parts of traditional culture and, through transformation, enabling them to adapt to the characteristics and needs of the new era, thereby realizing their trans-temporal value.

其一，“创造性转化”是文化承续与文化变革的辩证统一过程。“创造性”中的“首创”精神和“转化”过程均非无中生有。“创造性转化”是在承续以往历史传统的基础上有所超越和突破，目的是实现中华文化的生生不息。“创造性转化”不等同于“复刻”，不是以“拿来主义”全盘接受和搬运传统，而是要分梳甄别出传统文化中的合理部分，通过改造使之能与新时代特征和需求相适应，从而发挥超时空价值。

Second, “creative transformation” is a process of expanded reproduction of culture. The production and reproduction of human society include not only the production and reproduction of human life, material means, and social relations but also the production and reproduction of the spiritual sphere. Marx’s theory of comprehensive production shows that all human activities and even the extension of the entire society are processes and results of production. In “creative transformation,” even if a part of culture does not initially undergo a qualitative transformation in the strict sense, the expanded reproduction of quantity can still increase the volume of related spiritual products, making the spiritual sphere more complex, thereby triggering cultural reconstruction and transformation. Culture continuously generates new cultural forms in the mutual inclusion of quantitative and qualitative change.

其二，“创造性转化”是文化的扩大再生产过程。人类社会的生产和再生产不仅包括人的生命、物质资料和社会关系的生产和再生产，还包括精神领域的生产和再生产。马克思的全面生产理论表明，全部的人类活动乃至整个社会的延伸都是生产的过程和结果。在“创造性转化”中，即使一部分文化在初期并未直接发生质的意义上的转化，但量的扩大再生产依然能够通过增加相关精神产品的体量，使精神领域变得更为复杂，从而引发文化重构和转型。文化在量变与质变的相互包含中不断生成新的文化形态。

Third, “creative transformation” is a process of mutual exchange between cultural content and cultural forms of expression. Cultural content, as the basis for the existence of culture, determines the form of cultural expression; conversely, the form of cultural expression, as a carrier, can react upon cultural content, promoting or hindering cultural development. Therefore, “creative transformation” requires not only the transformation of the content of fine traditional Chinese culture but also the corresponding continuous transformation of its forms of expression to reasonably accommodate the cultural content, thereby promoting better transformation of the content and driving cultural progress.

其三，“创造性转化”是文化内容和文化表达形式互通有无的过程。文化内容作为文化存在的根据，决定了文化的表达形式；而文化表达形式作为载体，又能反作用于文化内容，推动或阻碍文化发展。因此，“创造性转化”不仅要对中华优秀传统文化的内容进行转化，还要据此不断改造其表达形式以合理容纳文化内容，以促进内容更好地转化，并推动文化进步。

(II) The Ideological Implication of the “Innovative Development” of Fine Traditional Chinese Culture

（二）中华优秀传统文化“创新性发展”的思想意蕴

“Innovation” implies renewal and change. The German sociologist Wolfgang Zapf believes: “Whether it is a new machine or a new organizational form, it is innovation.” [3]3 Friedrich Engels, *Anti-Dühring* (1878). Similar to the relationship between “creativity” and “creation,” ideological concepts and thinking abilities with “innovativeness” are translated into actual “innovation” actions through practice. Thus, “innovativeness” has the meaning of “introducing” and “breaking the old to establish the new”; it is an attribute and ability of the subject to apply new knowledge to produce new things. “Development” is the demise of old things and the emergence of new things; although the process is tortuous and circuitous, the general trend is from the lower to the higher. “Development” in the field of social history is prominently manifested in the succession of social forms and the change of people’s ideological concepts. The contradictory movement of productive forces and relations of production fundamentally causes the succession of social forms; ideological concepts change with the transformation of social forms, manifested as the emergence of new ideas and the decline of old ones. Furthermore, “development” inherently requires the subject to view the entire world from a connected, comprehensive, and dynamic perspective. Therefore, “innovative development,” which integrates “innovativeness” and “development,” emphasizes taking “innovativeness” as the driving force and “development” as the theme, tapping into people’s spiritual qualities of forging ahead and daring to be the first, while upholding an open mind and an inclusive attitude, realizing the spiral ascent and wave-like progress of the object of development, and ultimately achieving the renewal and upgrading of things.

“创新”意味着日新、变易。德国社会学家沃尔夫冈·查普夫认为：“无论是新的机器还是新的组织形式都是创新。”与“创造性”和“创造”的关系相似，具有“创新性”的思想观念和思维能力通过实践得以落实为现实的“创新”行为。因而，“创新性”具有“引进引入”“破旧立新”的含义，是主体能够应用新知产生新事物的属性和能力。“发展”是旧事物的灭亡和新事物的生成，尽管过程曲折迂回，但总趋势是由低级走向高级。“发展”在社会历史领域突出表现为社会形态的更替和人们思想观念的更迭。生产力和生产关系的矛盾运动根本性地造成了社会形态的更替；思想观念随社会形态的变化而更迭，表现为新思想的产生和旧思想的衰颓。此外，“发展”还内在地要求主体以联系的、全面的、动态的观点看待整个世界。因此，综合“创新性”与“发展”的“创新性发展”，强调以“创新性”为动力，以“发展”为主题，挖掘人们开拓进取、敢为人先的精神品质，同时秉持开放的胸怀和包容的心态，实现发展对象螺旋式上升、波浪式前进，最终实现事物的革新与升级。

As far as fine traditional Chinese culture is concerned, “innovative development” means translating human “innovativeness” ability into actual force through practical activities, expanding and extending the connotation of fine traditional Chinese culture according to the development conditions of the era, thereby realizing the qualitative optimization and transcendence of fine traditional culture. Specifically, the “innovative development” of fine traditional Chinese culture has three ideological implications.

就中华优秀传统文化而言，“创新性发展”意味着通过实践活动将人的“创新性”能力转变为现实力量，根据时代发展状况，拓展延伸中华优秀传统文化的内涵，从而实现优秀传统文化质的优化和超越。具体而言，中华优秀传统文化“创新性发展”具有三重思想意蕴。

First, “innovative development” is a process of the dialectical unity of the decline of old cultural forms and the emergence of new cultural forms. “China’s present new politics and new economy have developed from its ancient old politics and old economy, and China’s present new culture has also developed from its ancient old culture.” Nothing in the world can resist the law of metabolism, and culture is no exception. In historical change, a new cultural form is like a “seed” gestating within the old cultural form. It negates the negative and decadent elements of the old cultural form, absorbs its positive and reasonable factors, and when the time is ripe, this “seed” breaks through the soil, acquires an invincible force by virtue of its conformity to the inevitable laws of history, and achieves its own robust growth. The old cultural form, as the “mother womb” of the new cultural form as this “seed,” can never eliminate the “seed,” because eliminating the “seed” would mean its own destruction. At the same time, in historical change, the old cultural form increasingly fails to meet the demands of the new era, gradually loses its necessity for existence, and moves toward decline. It can be said that the process of cultural evolution is precisely a dialectically unified process of the continuous decay and extinction of old cultural forms and the continuous emergence and development of new cultural forms. Therefore, the “innovative development” of fine traditional Chinese culture inherently requires people to fully exert their “innovative” capacity, adhere to the concept of “development,” be adept at discovering and cultivating new growth points within fine traditional culture, and requires people to scientifically recognize the imperfections in the process of modernizing fine traditional culture, actively assist its healthy growth, and understand that the general trend of cultural development is a process of discarding the old and bringing forth the new.

其一，“创新性发展”是旧文化形态衰亡与新文化形态生发辩证统一的过程。“中国现时的新政治新经济是从古代的旧政治旧经济发展而来的，中国现时的新文化也是从古代的旧文化发展而来”，世间万事万物都无法抗拒新陈代谢规律，文化也是如此。新文化形态在历史变迁中犹如一颗“种子”孕育在旧文化形态内部，它否定旧文化形态中那些消极腐朽的东西，汲取旧文化形态中积极合理的因素，待时机成熟，这颗“种子”便会破土而出，以其合乎历史规律的必然性获得不可战胜的力量，实现自身的茁壮成长。旧文化形态作为新文化形态这颗“种子”的“母胎”，永远无法消灭“种子”，因为消灭了“种子”也就意味着自身的灭亡。同时，旧文化形态在历史变迁中愈发难以满足新的时代要求，逐渐丧失存在的必然性并走向衰亡。可以说，文化的演进过程就是旧文化形态不断衰颓、灭亡与新文化形态不断产生、发展辩证统一的过程。因此，中华优秀传统文化“创新性发展”内在地要求人们充分发挥“创新性”能力，坚持“发展”的观念，善于发现、培育优秀传统文化中新的生长点，并要求人们科学认识优秀传统文化现代化发展过程中的不完善之处，积极帮助其健康成长，认清文化发展总趋势是推陈出新的过程。

Second, “innovative development” is a process of integrating modern culture and foreign cultures into the bloodline of Chinese culture. Fine traditional Chinese culture, in terms of time, refers to those cultures from the past that still possess positive significance today; in terms of space, it refers to the Chinese national culture centered on Han culture on the land of China. Therefore, “innovative development” is, on the one hand, a process of the “past” integrating into the “present,” requiring fine traditional Chinese culture to keep pace with the times; on the other hand, it is a process of the “foreign” integrating into the “national,” requiring fine traditional Chinese culture to embrace the world with a broad vision.

其二，“创新性发展”是现代文化和外来文化融入中华文化血脉的过程。中华优秀传统文化在时间上意味着那些从过去延续至今仍具积极意义的文化；在空间上是指中华大地上以汉文化为主体的中华民族文化。因此，“创新性发展”一方面是“过去”融入“现在”的过程，要求中华优秀传统文化必须与时俱进；另一方面是“外来”融入“民族”的过程，要求中华优秀传统文化必须胸怀天下。

Third, “innovative development” is a process of extending and expanding the essential connotation of culture. Although traditional culture may be incompatible with modern society, as the foundation of national survival and development, its essence remains ever fresh. The innovative development of fine traditional Chinese culture aims to carry forward the “true spirit” of Chinese civilization, extend and perfect the essential connotation of fine traditional culture according to the characteristics of the times, and make fine traditional Chinese culture compatible with modern society.

其三，“创新性发展”是文化本质内涵延伸和拓展的过程。传统文化虽与现代社会存在不相适应的状况，但作为民族生存和发展的根基，其精髓历久弥新。中华优秀传统文化创新性发展旨在承续中华文明“真精神”，根据时代特征，对优秀传统文化的本质内涵加以延展和完善，使中华优秀传统文化与现代社会相契合。

(3) The Logical Relationship between “Creative Transformation” and “Innovative Development”

（三）“创造性转化”与“创新性发展”的逻辑关系

First, “creativity” and “innovativeness” mutually imply each other, manifested in the unity of “creation” and the difference between “making” and “newness.” On the one hand, “creation” (创) has meanings such as beginning, establishing, etc. Both “creativity” and “innovativeness” refer to the attribute and capacity to eliminate and break through backward old things and to establish positive, advanced new things in human society, possessing a transcendent character. On the other hand, “making” (造) has meanings such as constructing, producing, cultivating, achieving, etc., while “newness” (新) mainly emphasizes the relative contrast with the old and stale, being a nascent, brand-new result and state. Thus, “creativity” includes not only the capacity to break through old things and establish new ones, but also the quality of transforming and reshaping old things, presenting a dual attribute; “innovativeness” emphasizes the former process, focusing on perfecting existing things with new ideas and new technologies, without overly emphasizing the improvement and reshaping of old things. Therefore, “creativity” is the preparation for “innovativeness,” and “innovativeness” is the development of “creativity.” At the same time, the result of the “innovativeness” activity in one cycle becomes the object of the “creativity” activity in the next cycle, the two advancing alternately and continuously.

其一，“创造性”与“创新性”之间相互蕴含，体现为“创”的统一性、“造”与“新”的差异性。一方面，“创”有初始、创立等义。“创造性”与“创新性”均指在人类社会中剔除和突破落后的旧事物，创设积极的、先进的新事物的属性和能力，具有超越性特征。另一方面，“造”有建设、制作、培养、成就等义，而“新”则主要强调与老、旧的相对，是一种初生、崭新的结果和状态。因而，“创造性”不仅包括突破旧事物、建立新事物的能力，还包括改造和重塑旧事物的特质，呈现双重属性；“创新性”则侧重前一过程，强调用新思想、新技术对已有事物的完善，不过多强调对旧事物的改进和重塑。因此，“创造性”是“创新性”的准备，“创新性”是“创造性”的发展。同时，上一周期“创新性”活动的结果又成为下一周期“创造性”活动的对象，二者交替行进、连续不断。

Second, “transformation” and “development” are interwoven with each other. “Transformation” is the change of one thing into another among the two sides of a contradiction; “development” is the shedding of old qualities and the generation of new qualities. “Transformation” is a qualitative change or the preparatory stage before an imminent qualitative change, while “development” is more breakthrough-oriented and transcendent, specifically referring to the forward, upward process from quantitative change to qualitative change, from lower to higher levels; it is the tendency and result of “transformation,” and also a higher form of “transformation.” Furthermore, the realization of “development” is the synthesis of countless results of “transformation”; the process of “development” inevitably and continuously undergoes the process of “transformation.” Therefore, “transformation” is the driving force and condition for “development,” and the two are interwoven.

其二，“转化”与“发展”之间相互交织。“转化”是矛盾双方中一事物向他事物的转变，“发展”是旧质的剥落和新质的生成。“转化”是质变或即将发生质变前的准备阶段，而“发展”更具突破和超越性，特指从量变到质变、从低级到高级的前进、上升过程，是“转化”的趋向和结果，也是“转化”的高级形式。此外，“发展”的实现是无数个“转化”结果的综合，“发展”的过程必然不断经历“转化”的过程。因此，“转化”是“发展”的动因和条件，二者相互交织。

It can be said that “creative transformation” focuses on the “connection” of culture from the past to the present, aiming to make fine traditional Chinese culture “come alive”; “innovative development” focuses on the “rebirth” of culture from the present to the future, aiming to make fine traditional Chinese culture “become strong.” Fine traditional Chinese culture achieves “innovative development” through “creative transformation”; through the integration and fusion of the two, the revelation and endless continuation of a new cultural life and new cultural forms are realized. At the same time, fine traditional Chinese culture, as the object of creative transformation and innovative development, itself has been continuously undergoing “creative transformation” and “innovative development”; in this sense, the “Two Creations” [n4] are the continuation and manifestation of the characteristics of fine traditional Chinese culture.

可以说，“创造性转化”侧重文化从过去到现在的“贯通”，旨在实现中华优秀传统文化“活起来”；“创新性发展”侧重文化从现在到将来的“新生”，旨在实现中华优秀传统文化“强起来”。中华优秀传统文化在“创造性转化”中得以“创新性发展”，通过二者的融会贯通，实现文化新生命、新形态的开显和生生不息。同时，作为创造性转化和创新性发展对象的中华优秀传统文化，本身也在一直经历着“创造性转化”和“创新性发展”，就此来说，“两创”是中华优秀传统文化特质的延续和彰显。

II. The Historical Logic of the Creative Transformation and Innovative Development of Fine Traditional Chinese Culture

二、中华优秀传统文化创造性转化和创新性发展的历史逻辑

Where does culture come from? This is a gift from history to humanity. Marx believed that culture relies on history: “Where history begins, the thought process must also begin.” [n5] “Real individuals,” as subjects, while transforming the objective world, have written a vast history of human civilization. Where does culture go? This is a question posed by the era to humanity. This question of the era tests human wisdom; the “Two Creations” are the historical answer given by the Chinese people to the trajectory of Chinese cultural development.

文化从何而来？这是历史给予人类的馈赠。马克思认为，文化依托于历史，“历史从哪里开始，思想进程也应当从哪里开始”。“现实的人”作为主体，在改造客观世界的同时，书写了一部浩瀚的人类文明史。文化向何而去？这是时代抛给人类的问卷。这一时代之问考验着人类智慧，“两创”是中国人对中华文化发展轨迹给出的历史解答。

(1) The “Two Creations” Are an Inevitable Requirement of the “Historicity” of Human Practical Activity

（一）“两创”是人的实践活动“历史性”的必然要求

The birthplace of history is not “in the hazy, misty clouds of heaven,” but in “the crude material production on earth.” [n6] People complete their “first” productive activity through material practice; people’s productive life highlights human wisdom. History is the history of people unfolding their intellectual speculation and creation based on social production practice. Practical activity changes, human thinking and wisdom change, and the cultural forms forged by people inevitably change, thereby shaping the historical process of human culture. History is the temporal expression of human culture; culture is the spatial narrative of human history. In the final analysis, the culture created by people does not originate from abstract ideas, but from beginning to end comes from the material production practice of real individuals.

历史的诞生地并非在“天上的迷蒙的云兴雾聚之处”，而是在“地上的粗糙的物质生产”之中。人们通过物质性实践完成他们“第一个”生产活动，人的生产生活凸显出人的智慧，历史就是人们基于社会生产实践展开智慧思辨和创造的历史。实践活动在变，人的思维智慧在变，人铸就的文化形态必然在变，由此塑造了人类文化的历史进程。历史是人的文化的时间表达，文化是人的历史的空间叙事。归根结底，人创造的文化并不是来自抽象的观念，而是自始至终都来自现实的人的物质生产实践。

Since culture arises in practical activity, the “change” of culture must be triggered by and governed by practical activity. Culture includes both material culture and spiritual culture, but because material production constitutes the foundation of people’s life, “spiritual production is transformed along with the transformation of material production.” [n7] Culture “changes” with the change of “material production,” and also continues with the continuation of the history of “material production.” Regarding “change,” in the era of intelligence, virtual space is increasingly becoming a part of the real world; the new “network” mode of production enhances the duality of the real world and the virtual world. On the one hand, the means and platforms of cultural dissemination have broken through the limitations of traditional communication media; on the other hand, the space for cultural development has broken through traditional real-world boundaries, and the field of development has rapidly extended into virtual digital space, giving rise to new cultural forms. Regarding “continuation,” the historical achievements of predecessors become the starting point for later generations, continuously transforming and renewing in the process of social history.

既然文化在实践活动中产生，那么文化的“变”必是由实践活动引发并受实践活动支配。文化既包含物质文化，也包含精神文化，但由于物质生产构成了人们生活的基础，因而，“精神生产随着物质生产的改造而改造”。文化随“物质生产”之变而“变”，也随“物质生产”历史的延续而延续。就“变”来看，智能化时代，虚拟空间日益成为现实世界的一部分，“网络”新生产方式增强了现实世界与虚拟世界的二重性。一方面，文化传播手段和平台突破了传统传播媒介的限制；另一方面，文化发展空间打破了传统现实边界，发展领域快速延伸至虚拟数字空间，催生文化新形态。就“延续”来看，前人的历史成果会成为后人的起点，在社会历史进程中不断转化更新。

Chinese culture is the sum total of a series of values, artifacts, and institutional norms formed by the Chinese national community over a long historical evolution; it is a cultural ecosystem that has been extended and transmitted through thousands of years of exchange and collision among the Chinese nation. To construct the cultural form of Chinese-path modernization, one must face squarely the cultural evolutionary history of Chinese culture, which is a continuous lineage and a chain of cause and effect, neither “swallowing antiquity without digesting it” nor “belittling oneself,” but rather “achieving mastery through a comprehensive grasp” of the ancient and the modern, and continuously advancing the “Two Creations.”[1]1 The “Two Creations” (两创) refers to the creative transformation and innovative development of fine traditional Chinese culture, a policy direction emphasized under Xi Jinping. Therefore, the “Two Creations” are both an “ought-to-be” constrained by social material production and an “actual being” that continues historical tradition.

中华文化是中华民族共同体在长期的历史演进中形成的一系列的价值观念、器物和制度规范的总和，是几千年来中华民族历经交流碰撞而延伸流传的文化生态系统。构建中国式现代化的文化形态，必须正视中华文化一脉相承、前后相因的文化演进历史，既不“食古不化”，又不“妄自菲薄”，而是古今“融会贯通”，不断推进“两创”。所以说，“两创”既是受社会物质生产制约的“应然”，也是延续历史传统的“实然”。

(2) The “Two Creations” Are the Inevitable Result of the Promotion of Human Subjective Agency

（二）“两创”是人的主体能动性推动的必然结果

From the perspective of historical materialism, human history is the unity of subjective and objective factors. Objective material productive forces and their relations of production provide the real possibility for human social and historical activity, while humans are the creative subjects of social history; without the active participation of humans, social history would not exist. Human subjective agency promotes the inevitable occurrence of the “Two Creations,” which is mainly manifested in two aspects: the “Two Creations” are the inevitable law by which human needs are satisfied, and they are the inevitable result of humans exerting their conscious agency.

在唯物史观看来，人类历史是主客观因素的统一，客观的物质生产力及其生产关系为人的社会历史活动提供现实可能，人又是社会历史的创造主体，没有人的能动参与，社会历史同样不会存在。人的主体能动性推动了“两创”的必然发生，主要体现在“两创”是人的需要得以满足的必然规律以及是人发挥自觉能动性的必然结果两个方面。

First, the “Two Creations” are the inevitable law by which human needs are satisfied. The satisfaction of human needs does not stop at meeting basic survival needs but also includes higher-level spiritual needs and needs for social relations. Humans satisfy needs through production, and the process of satisfying a previous need and the result of that satisfaction will in turn give rise to new needs. That is to say, needs are concrete, real, and developing; they change with changes in material production. In the New Era, the living standards of the Chinese people have been greatly improved, and their needs have gradually transformed from primarily material needs to needs for a better life that harmoniously unify the material and the spiritual. Changes and developments in needs reflect and promote the evolution and progress of society, and therefore inevitably require a fundamental solution to the problem of how fine traditional Chinese culture can adapt to modern productive forces and how it can meet the needs of the people for a better life in the New Era.

其一，“两创”是人的需要得以满足的必然规律。人的需要的满足并不止步于满足基本生存需要，还包括更高层次的精神需要以及社会关系需要。人通过生产满足需要，而满足前一个需要的过程及其获得满足的结果，又会引发新的需要。也就是说，需要是具体的、现实的、发展的，会随着物质生产的变化而变化。新时代中国人民的生活水平获得大幅提高，其需要从物质性为主的需要逐渐转变为物质和精神和谐统一的美好生活需要。需要的变化和发展反映和推动着社会的演化和进步，因此也就必然要求从根本上解决中华优秀传统文化如何适应现代生产力、如何满足新时代人民群众美好生活需要的问题。

Second, the “Two Creations” are the inevitable result of humans exerting their conscious agency. Humans are both constrained by objective laws and historical conditions and can actively transform the environment to meet their own needs. As historical subjects, humans interact with the objective material world through purposeful, selective, and planned activities. On the one hand, the “Two Creations” are the rational knowledge obtained by humans through creatively reflecting on the real process. On the basis of practical activity, humans can elevate intuitive perceptual knowledge into essential rational knowledge, form new ideas and concepts, and make predictions about the future in light of actual conditions. In the cultural context, the “Two Creations” are a new concept of cultural development derived by people on the basis of following the objective laws of cultural development and combining China’s actual conditions with the trend of the times; they are also a scientific prediction of the future development of Chinese culture. On the other hand, the “Two Creations” are the objective products obtained by humans in the process of transforming the objective world. Consciousness cannot directly transform the objective world, but it can indirectly “transform” the objective world by guiding practice. The “Two Creations” are not only the rational understanding of cultural development by the Chinese Communists in the New Era but also include the objective products obtained by guiding the process of cultural construction with rational understanding, based on the cultural needs of the people. For example, the song “A Thousand Li of Rivers and Mountains”[2]2 Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, *The German Ideology* (1845–1846). is a literary and artistic work that integrates traditional cultural content into fashionable new trends and innovatively combines digital art to interpret the Song Dynasty painting *A Thousand Li of Rivers and Mountains*. In this sense, the “Two Creations” are the inevitable result of humans exerting their conscious agency.

其二，“两创”是人发挥自觉能动性的必然结果。人既受客观规律和历史条件的制约，又能积极主动地改造环境以满足自身需要。人作为历史主体，通过有目的性、选择性和计划性的活动，同客观物质世界发生相互作用。一方面，“两创”是人创造性地反映现实过程所得到的理性认识。以实践活动为基础，人能够使直观的感性认识上升为本质性的理性认识，形成新的思想观念，结合实际状况对未来作出预测。就文化语境而言，“两创”是人们在遵循文化发展客观规律、结合中国实际和时代发展潮流的基础上，得出的文化发展新理念，也是对中华文化的未来发展作出的科学预见。另一方面，“两创”是人在改造客观世界的过程中所得到的客观产物。意识不能直接改造客观世界，但可以通过指导实践间接地“改造”客观世界。“两创”不仅是新时代中国共产党人关于文化发展的理性认识，还包括依据人民群众的文化需要，以理性认识指导文化建设过程所得到的客观产物。例如，歌曲《千里江山》就是将传统文化内容融入时尚新潮流，创新性地结合数字艺术诠释宋代名画《千里江山图》所得到的文艺作品。在此意义上说，“两创”是人发挥自觉能动性的必然结果。

(3) The “Two Creations” Are the Inevitable Embodiment of the Chinese Communists’ View of Traditional Culture

（三）“两创”是中国共产党人传统文化观的必然体现

The Communist Party of China was born at a time of national crisis, shouldering the historical task of changing the country’s poverty and weakness since modern times. From the very beginning of the Party’s founding, the question of “where is Chinese culture going,” triggered by the question of “where is China going,” became an important issue facing the Chinese Communists.

中国共产党诞生于民族危亡之际，肩负改变近代以来国家积贫积弱的历史重任。自建党之初，由“中国何处去”引发的“中国文化何处去”问题就成为摆在中国共产党人面前的重要问题。

Some early Chinese Communists held a negative attitude toward traditional culture. For example, Li Dazhao said: “The stubbornness of our nation’s thought ultimately lies in following conventions, treading old paths, being ignorant and unaware, and accepting fate as it is,”[3]3 Friedrich Engels, *Anti-Dühring* (1878). and that Confucius’s doctrine “truly suffices to represent the morality of autocratic society and truly suffices to be used and exploited as a talisman by autocratic monarchs.”[4]4 Xi Jinping, speech at a symposium on cultural heritage, 2023. Chen Duxiu also said: “With regard to Confucianism, which is incompatible with this new society, new state, and new faith, we must have thorough awakening and fierce determination; otherwise, if we do not block it, it will not stop; if we do not halt it, it will not go!”[5]5 The Three Principles of the People (三民主义) are nationalism, democracy, and people’s livelihood, formulated by Sun Yat-sen. They believed that traditional culture was a product of the feudal patriarchal era, had lost its value for the times, and constrained people’s intellectual vitality; therefore, a complete break with traditional culture was necessary. Of course, there were also early Chinese Communists who believed that traditional culture needed to be viewed rationally from a Marxist perspective. For instance, Qu Qiubai said: “One must have a world perspective, knowing that new trends of thought cannot be dammed up, and quickly find ways to adapt to the world trend and conform to the world’s current situation. One must have a historical perspective, knowing that the changes in trends of thought are an inevitable process in history, unavoidable, and quickly find ways to guide them, not waiting for them to burst their banks.”[6]6 Xi Jinping, speech at the celebration of the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China, 2019. It should be said that the development of Chinese culture should not choose either Chinese tradition or Western civilization exclusively; rather, it must distinguish the good from the bad with a world perspective and change along with the trend of the times.

部分早期中国共产党人对传统文化持否定态度。如李大钊说：“吾民族思想之固执，终以沿承因袭，踏故习常，不识不知，安之若命”，其中，孔子学说“确足以代表专制社会之道德，亦确足为专制君主所利用资以为护符也”。陈独秀也说：“对于与此新社会、新国家、新信仰不可相容之孔教，不可不有彻底之觉悟，猛勇之决心；否则，不塞不流，不止不行！”他们认为，传统文化是封建宗法时代的产物，丧失了时代价值，拘束了人们的思想活力，必须与传统文化彻底决裂。当然，也有早期中国共产党人认为，需要以马克思主义的观点理性看待传统文化。如瞿秋白说：“要有世界的眼光，知道新思潮是壅不住的，赶快想法子去适应世界的潮流，迎合世界的现势。要有历史的眼光，知道思潮的变迁，是历史上一定的过程，不可避免的，赶快想法子去疏导，不等他横决。”应该说，中华文化发展不应择中华传统或西方文明之一而从，须以世界的眼光分梳优劣，沿时代潮流顺势变迁。

Starting from the August 7th Meeting,[7]7 Xi Jinping, speech on cultural confidence, 2016. the Chinese Communists, with Comrade Mao Zedong as their main representative, shifted their understanding of China’s development path from “taking the Soviet Union as teacher” to “Sinicization,” which was reflected culturally in a dialectical understanding of traditional culture. During the War of Resistance Against Japan, Mao Zedong pointed out: “We are Marxist historicists; we should not cut off history. From Confucius to Sun Yat-sen, we should sum it up and inherit this precious legacy.”[8]8 Friedrich Engels, letter to Conrad Schmidt, 1890. This marked the formal establishment by the Chinese Communists of a view of traditional culture centered on “taking the essence and discarding the dross,” which transcended the radical Westernizationism and conservative nationalism of modern times and pointed the correct direction for the development of Chinese culture.

自“八七”会议起，以毛泽东同志为主要代表的中国共产党人对中国发展道路的认识从“以苏为师”转向“中国化”，文化上反映为辩证认识传统文化。毛泽东在抗日战争时期指出，“我们是马克思主义的历史主义者，我们不应当割断历史。从孔夫子到孙中山，我们应当给以总结，承继这一份珍贵的遗产”，这代表着中国共产党人正式确立起以“取其精华，去其糟粕”为核心的传统文化观，超越了近代以来激进西化主义和保守国粹主义，为中华文化的发展指明了正确方向。

After the founding of New China, although there were twists and turns, the Party ultimately corrected erroneous tendencies by summing up experiences and lessons, and clearly affirmed the important value of fine traditional Chinese culture. Deng Xiaoping pointed out: “We must draw a clear distinction between the democratic essence and the feudal dross in the cultural heritage.”[9]9 Karl Marx, *The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte* (1852). This formed a view of traditional culture of “comprehensive innovation based on one’s own country while facing the world.” Since the Third Plenary Session of the 11th Central Committee of the Party,[10]10 Xi Jinping, speech at a symposium on the core socialist values, 2014. the Party has always adhered to the principle of unifying the inheritance and development of traditional culture as the guideline for cultural construction. Entering the New Era, General Secretary Xi Jinping has repeatedly emphasized the outstanding advantages of fine traditional Chinese culture and attached great importance to its inheritance and development. In his view, “Inheriting Chinese culture is by no means simply restoring ancient ways, nor is it blindly excluding foreign things; rather, it means making the past serve the present and foreign things serve China, making a dialectical selection and discarding the old and creating the new, discarding negative factors and inheriting positive ideas, ‘using the rules of the ancients to open up one’s own new path,’ and realizing the creative transformation and innovative development of Chinese culture.”[11]11 “Two Creations” (两创) is the abbreviated term for the creative transformation and innovative development of fine traditional Chinese culture, a policy concept promoted under Xi Jinping. This gradually formed a view of traditional culture centered on the “Two Creations.” In June 2023, at the Symposium on Cultural Heritage and Development, General Secretary Xi Jinping profoundly discussed the scientific connotation and basic requirements of “upholding fundamental principles” and “breaking new ground”: “For cultural construction, upholding fundamental principles prevents losing oneself and losing direction, while breaking new ground enables grasping the times and leading the times. Upholding fundamental principles means upholding the fundamental system of Marxism’s guiding position in the ideological domain, upholding the fundamental requirements of the ‘Two Integrations,’[12]12 The quotation is from the Chinese scholar Zhang Liwen (张立文), a prominent researcher on the concept of “harmony and cohesion” (和合) in traditional Chinese philosophy. and upholding the Party’s cultural leadership and the cultural subjectivity of the Chinese nation. Breaking new ground means creating new ideas, new discourses, new mechanisms, and new forms.”[13]13 Xi Jinping, “Speech at the Opening Ceremony of the Eleventh National Congress of the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles and the Tenth National Congress of the China Writers Association” (2016). This discussion demonstrates the deep and organic integration of scientific theory, national culture, and practical experience by the Chinese Communists in the New Era, elevating the Party’s view of traditional culture to a new height, and highlighting the theoretical character of Xi Jinping Thought on Culture, which unifies practice and cognition as “understanding the substance to apply it, integrating substance and function.”[14]14 Karl Marx, “Theses on Feuerbach” (1845), Thesis 11. In this sense, the “Two Creations” are the inevitable embodiment of the Chinese Communists’ view of traditional culture and a vivid manifestation of Xi Jinping Thought on Culture.

新中国成立后，虽经历曲折徘徊，但最终通过总结经验教训纠正了错误倾向，明确肯定了中华优秀传统文化的重要价值。邓小平指出，“要划清文化遗产中民主性精华同封建性糟粕的界限”，这形成了“立足本国而又面向世界的”综合创新的传统文化观。自党的十一届三中全会以来，党始终坚持以传统文化的继承与发展相统一为文化建设的原则遵循。进入新时代，习近平总书记多次强调中华优秀传统文化的突出优势，高度重视中华优秀传统文化的传承发展。在他看来，“传承中华文化，绝不是简单复古，也不是盲目排外，而是古为今用、洋为中用，辩证取舍、推陈出新，摒弃消极因素，继承积极思想，‘以古人之规矩，开自己之生面’，实现中华文化的创造性转化和创新性发展”，逐步形成了以“两创”为核心的传统文化观。2023年6月，习近平总书记在文化传承发展座谈会上深刻论述了“守正”与“创新”的科学内涵和基本要求：“对文化建设来说，守正才能不迷失自我、不迷失方向，创新才能把握时代、引领时代。守正，守的是马克思主义在意识形态领域指导地位的根本制度，守的是‘两个结合’的根本要求，守的是中国共产党的文化领导权和中华民族的文化主体性。创新，创的是新思路、新话语、新机制、新形式。”这一论述体现出新时代中国共产党人对科学理论、民族文化和实践经验的深度有机融合，将党的传统文化观上升到了新高度，突显出习近平文化思想实践与认识相统一的“明体达用、体用贯通”之理论品格。从这一意义上说，“两创”是中国共产党人传统文化观的必然体现，也是习近平文化思想的生动彰显。

3. The Theoretical Logic of the Creative Transformation and Innovative Development of Fine Traditional Chinese Culture

三、中华优秀传统文化创造性转化和创新性发展的理论逻辑

Fine traditional Chinese culture embodies the deepest life wisdom of the Chinese nation, subtly nourishing the thoughts and conduct of the Chinese people and shaping their character and moral conduct. However, fine traditional Chinese culture must undergo transformation and development based on the current national conditions and the characteristics of the times in order to activate its vitality. The “Two Creations” [1]1 The “Two Creations” (两创) refers to the creative transformation and innovative development of fine traditional Chinese culture, a policy direction emphasized under Xi Jinping. are the process by which fine traditional Chinese culture, on the basis of transforming its old forms of existence and adding the spirit of the new era, regains new life and expands its influence, fully embodying the dialectical relationship between social existence and social consciousness.

中华优秀传统文化积淀着中华民族最深奥的生命智慧，它在潜移默化中滋润着中国人的思想和举止，塑造着中国人的人格和品行。但中华优秀传统文化必须立足当下国情与时代特征进行转化和发展，才能激发其生命活力。“两创”是中华优秀传统文化在转换旧有存在形式、增添新时代精神的基础上，重获新生并扩大影响的过程，充分体现了社会存在与社会意识辩证关系原理。

(1) The principle that “social existence determines social consciousness” determines that fine traditional Chinese culture, as a historical existence, must undergo creative transformation and innovative development

（一）“社会存在决定社会意识”原理决定了作为历史性存在的中华优秀传统文化必须创造性转化和创新性发展

The fundamental question of historical materialism is the relationship between social existence and social consciousness. Marx pointed out: “We must begin from the material production of immediate life and expound the real process of production, and understand the form of intercourse connected with and created by this mode of production, i.e., civil society in its various stages, as the foundation of all history.” [2]2 Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, *The German Ideology* (1845–1846). Civil society is essentially a relation of production and constitutes the foundation of history. Therefore, the ultimate cause of social change “must be sought in changes in the mode of production and exchange.” [3]3 Friedrich Engels, *Anti-Dühring* (1878). Social existence is the precondition of social consciousness, and material production has a determining role over spiritual production. Culture, as the social consciousness of a given social stage, is formed through practice, is a concrete and historical existence, is conditioned by the production conditions of a particular society, and to varying degrees bears the marks of its era and nation.

唯物史观的基本问题是社会存在与社会意识的关系问题。马克思指出：“从直接生活的物质生产出发阐述现实的生产过程，把同这种生产方式相联系的、它所产生的交往形式即各个不同阶段上的市民社会理解为整个历史的基础。”市民社会本质上是一种生产关系，构成了历史的基础。因此，社会变迁的终极原因，“应当到生产方式和交换方式的变更中去寻找”。社会存在是社会意识的前提，物质生产对精神生产具有决定作用。文化作为一定社会阶段的社会意识，是在实践中凝结而成的，是具体的、历史的存在，受一定社会生产条件制约，不同程度地呈现出时代和民族的标记。

For a long historical period, China maintained a natural mode of production combining agriculture and pastoralism, forming an agricultural civilization value system dominated by Confucian values. This system had both regional characteristics, being diverse and varied, and common features, fostering harmony and coexistence. It can be said that the natural mode of production combining agriculture and pastoralism to a certain extent created the harmonious and complementary temperament of the various elements of fine traditional Chinese culture, “among which are contained the important expressions of the Chinese people’s worldview, view of the world, view of society, and view of morality accumulated over long-term production and life, such as the world being for all, the people being the foundation of the state, governing with virtue, discarding the old and establishing the new, appointing people on their merits, the unity of heaven and humanity, unceasing self-renewal, embracing all things with virtue, honoring trustworthiness and cultivating good-neighborliness, and being kind to neighbors.” [4]4 Xi Jinping, speech at a symposium on cultural heritage, 2023. Before this mode of production was broken, Chinese culture, in a state of ultra-stable structure, was always within a cultural transformation system of “self-change.”

在很长一段历史进程中，中国保持着农耕—游牧的自然生产方式，形成了以儒家价值观念为主导的农业文明价值体系，既具有地域性特征，多元纷呈，又具有通约性特质，修睦共生。可以说，农耕—游牧的自然生产方式一定程度上造就了中华优秀传统文化多种要素和谐互补的气质，“其中蕴含的天下为公、民为邦本、为政以德、革故鼎新、任人唯贤、天人合一、自强不息、厚德载物、讲信修睦、亲仁善邻等，是中国人民在长期生产生活中积累的宇宙观、天下观、社会观、道德观的重要体现”。在这种生产方式被打破前，中华文化以一种超稳定结构的状态，始终处于“自变”的文化转化体系中。

However, the continuously expanding Western capitalist mode of production broke this ultra-stable structure and “self-change” system. Modern China was forcibly drawn into the Western capitalist industrial mode of production, and the traditional self-sufficient natural economy was forcibly disintegrated. Yet advanced Chinese fully exerted their historical initiative, promoting the exchange and interaction between traditional Chinese agricultural civilization and modern Western civilization. For example, the bourgeois reformists represented by Kang Youwei and Tan Sitong, relying on restoring ancient ways to reform, promoted constitutional monarchy, combining Confucian thought with Western political concepts, advancing the self-awakening of the feudal ruling class. The bourgeois revolutionaries represented by Sun Yat-sen, holding high the banner of the “Three Principles of the People,” [5]5 The Three Principles of the People (三民主义) are nationalism, democracy, and people’s livelihood, formulated by Sun Yat-sen. organized and launched the Xinhai Revolution, overthrew the feudal monarchy, and established the Republic of China. Regrettably, the “truth” sought from the West and the cultural interactions promoted by various social strata did not truly “save” China; their failure was fundamentally due to the lack of genuine scientific theoretical guidance. The October Revolution brought Marxism to China, and the Communist Party of China emerged in response to the times, leading the Chinese people from standing up to becoming prosperous and then strong. The founding of New China laid the social foundation for the construction of a mainstream culture that unified “abolishing the old” and “establishing the new.” “Since the founding of New China, especially since reform and opening up, in less than 70 years, our Party has led the people to unswervingly liberate and develop social productive forces, completing the development process that took the West several hundred years, and rapidly propelling China to become the world’s second-largest economy.” [6]6 Xi Jinping, speech at the celebration of the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China, 2019. The achievements in material civilization construction have propelled the pace of cultural-ethical progress. Of course, overtaking on the curve in material civilization construction also requires cultural-ethical progress to proceed steadily and far.

然而，不断扩张的西方资本主义生产方式打破了这种超稳定结构和“自变”体系。近代中国被迫卷入西方资本主义工业生产方式，传统自给自足的自然经济被迫解体，但先进的中国人充分发挥历史主动精神，推进了中国传统农业文明与西方现代文明的交流互动。例如，以康有为、谭嗣同为代表的资产阶级维新派，凭借托古改制推行君主立宪，将儒家思想与西方政治观念相结合，推进了封建统治阶级的自我警醒；以孙中山为代表的资产阶级革命派，高擎“三民主义”大旗，组织并发动辛亥革命，推翻了封建帝制，建立了中华民国。但遗憾的是，各阶层努力向西方寻求的“真理”和推动的文化互动，并没有真正“救”中国，他们的失败，根本上是因为缺乏真正的科学理论指导。十月革命给中国送来了马克思主义，中国共产党应运而生、应时而起，带领中国人民从站起来到富起来再到强起来。新中国的成立为“革旧”与“立新”相统一的主流文化建设奠定了社会基础。“新中国成立以来特别是改革开放以来，在不到70年的时间内，我们党带领人民坚定不移解放和发展社会生产力，走完了西方几百年的发展历程，推动我国快速成为世界第二大经济体。”物质文明建设的成就，推动了精神文明建设的步伐。当然，物质文明建设上的弯道超车，也需要精神文明建设以行稳致远。

The infiltration of erroneous trends of thought such as cultural nihilism and historical nihilism affects the process of China’s cultural-ethical progress; constructing cultural identity is a sharp weapon to purge the adverse influence of these ideological currents. Fine traditional Chinese culture is the cultural foundation jointly built, shared, and enjoyed by the entire Chinese nation, and can serve as the root force for constructing the nation’s self-identity and gaining the cultural identity of other nations. “The cornerstone of cultural confidence is laid by Chinese culture, which is organically constituted by the integration of various forms, levels, and regional cultures.” [7]7 Xi Jinping, speech on cultural confidence, 2016. Only by letting fine traditional culture discard the old and absorb the new, keeping pace with the times, can it fully manifest its value implications for cultivating national ambition, backbone, and confidence.

文化虚无主义、历史虚无主义等错误思潮的渗透影响着我国精神文明建设进程，构筑文化认同是肃清思想逆流影响的锐利武器。中华优秀传统文化是整个中华民族共建、共约、共享的文化底蕴，能够作为构筑本民族的自我认同和获得他民族文化认同的根源力量。“文化自信的基石是由各形态、各层次、各区域等不同文化相互融合、有机构成的中华文化所奠定的。”只有让优秀传统文化吐故纳新，紧随时代步伐，才能使其充分体现培育民族志气、骨气和底气的价值意蕴。

(2) The principle of “the relative independence of social consciousness” determines that fine traditional Chinese culture, as intellectual nourishment, must undergo creative transformation and innovative development

（二）“社会意识的相对独立性”原理决定了作为思想滋养的中华优秀传统文化必须创造性转化和创新性发展

“The material mode of existence is the primary cause, but this does not preclude the ideological sphere from reacting back upon the material mode of existence.” [8]8 Friedrich Engels, letter to Conrad Schmidt, 1890. Historical materialism holds that social consciousness not only reflects social existence but also possesses relative independence, prominently manifested as a reaction upon social existence. Regarding cultural inheritance, the historical continuity of culture, its asynchrony and imbalance with the development of social material conditions, and the mutual permeation and influence among the internal elements of culture determine that fine traditional culture, as intellectual nourishment, must undergo creative transformation and innovative development.

“物质存在方式虽然是始因，但是这并不排斥思想领域也反过来对物质存在方式起作用。”唯物史观认为，社会意识不仅能够反映社会存在，而且具有相对独立性，突出表现为对社会存在的反作用。就文化传承来看，文化的历史继承性、与社会物质条件发展的不同步和不平衡性以及文化内部各要素之间的相互渗透和影响，决定了作为思想滋养的优秀传统文化必须创造性转化和创新性发展。

First, the historical continuity of culture determines that fine traditional Chinese culture must undergo creative transformation and innovative development. “Men make their own history, but they do not make it as they please; they do not make it under self-selected circumstances, but under circumstances existing already, given and transmitted from the past.” [9]9 Karl Marx, *The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte* (1852). The formation process and temperament of culture are always influenced by the preceding historical stage, containing cultural factors from that stage, and possess historical continuity. This is the inherent manifestation of the diachronic law of culture. The historical existence of ethnic groups and the diachronic existence of ethnic culture determine the legitimacy of cultural ethnicity and the continuity of ethnic culture. Of course, to maintain the legitimacy of ethnic culture, it is necessary to scientifically grasp the dual positive and negative dimensions of culture as a historical existence in the process of cultural development. On the positive dimension, the historical continuity of culture determines that culture can be internalized into the cultural genes of a specific group, influencing the value orientation of that group. For example, the Chinese nation “has thoughts such as esteeming benevolence, valuing the people, keeping good faith, emphasizing dialectics, advocating harmony, and seeking great unity, and traditional virtues such as unceasing self-renewal, being dedicated to work and delighting in community, supporting the right and promoting good, helping the needy and relieving the distressed, acting bravely for a just cause, and being filial to parents and respecting the elderly.” [10]10 Xi Jinping, speech at a symposium on the core socialist values, 2014. These fine traditional cultural genes have inherently influenced the intergenerational continuity of the Chinese nation and its culture, promoted the historical evolution of culture, and are the intellectual force behind the unbroken flow of Chinese civilization. On the negative dimension, the historical continuity of culture determines that elements of traditional culture that still have referential significance for the new era must undergo creative transformation and innovative development based on the context of the new era. For instance, the “family-country sentiment” in the Chinese cultural gene, with its spirit of loyalty, filial piety, and concern for the world, can be effectively transformed into the psychological foundation of the patriotic spirit of the new era, and can be transformed into a sense of community, promoting the formation of strong national centripetal force and cohesion. However, the historical formation of China’s traditional “family-country sentiment” is closely related to the ancient consciousness of “family—state—world,” growing out of the core values of a patriarchal-political society based on “loving one’s kin” and “respecting the respected,” which to a certain extent fettered the development of individual independent personality. Therefore, it is necessary to make a dialectical selection, continuing the thought of “governing the world and managing the state” within the “family-country sentiment,” eliminating its feudal autocratic elements, and realizing the vivid dissemination and further enhancement of the traditional “family-country sentiment” in the new era.

其一，文化的历史继承性决定中华优秀传统文化必须创造性转化和创新性发展。“人们自己创造自己的历史，但是他们并不是随心所欲地创造，并不是在他们自己选定的条件下创造，而是在直接碰到的、既定的、从过去承继下来的条件下创造。”文化的形成过程和性格气质始终受到前一个历史阶段的影响，包含前一个历史阶段的文化因子，具有历史继承性，这是文化历时性规律的内在体现。民族群体的历史性存在和民族文化的历时性存在，决定了文化民族性的合法性和民族性文化的连续性。当然，维护民族文化的合法性，必须科学把握文化发展进程中文化作为历史性存在的正反双重向度。正向度上，文化的历史继承性决定了文化能够内化为特定群体的文化基因，影响这一群体的价值取向。比如，中华民族“有崇仁爱、重民本、守诚信、讲辩证、尚和合、求大同等思想，有自强不息、敬业乐群、扶正扬善、扶危济困、见义勇为、孝老爱亲等传统美德”，这些优秀传统文化基因内在地影响了中华民族及其文化的代际承续，推动了文化的历史演进，是中华文明未曾断流的思想力量。反向度上，文化的历史继承性决定了传统文化中对新时代仍具借鉴意义的要素，要基于新时代语境创造性转化和创新性发展。如中华文化基因中的“家国情怀”，其忠孝、淑世精神能有效转化为新时代爱国主义精神的心理基础，能转化为共同体意识，推动形成强大的民族向心力和凝聚力。但中国传统的“家国情怀”的历史生成与古代“家—国—天下”意识密切相关，是在“亲亲”“尊尊”中生长出的宗法—政治社会的核心价值，对个人独立人格发展造成一定程度上的桎梏，故需辩证取舍，延续“家国情怀”中“济世经邦”思想，消除其中的封建专制色彩，实现传统“家国情怀”在新时代的生动传播和踵事增华。

Second, the asynchrony and imbalance between culture and the development of society’s material conditions determine that fine traditional Chinese culture must undergo creative transformation and innovative development. Constrained by subjective and objective conditions, social consciousness often lags behind social being, but, as Engels said, “economically backward countries can still play first violin in philosophy”; social consciousness may also be ahead of social being. From a diachronic perspective on culture, the level of material production in modern society has advanced by leaps and bounds, and great achievements have been made in material civilization. Yet it is undeniable that, in many fields and many respects, the contradiction of uncoordinated development between socialist cultural-ethical progress and material civilization persists. Owing to the inertial force formed over a long period, social cultural-ethical progress exhibits a lagging character relative to the development of material civilization. This causes people, confronted with an endless array of material products, to gradually lose their bearings because of the relative impoverishment of spiritual life, breeding an excessive pursuit of material goods and allowing such notions as consumerism and hedonism to raise their heads from time to time. Therefore, it is necessary to give full play to the nourishing role of fine traditional Chinese culture, to, through the “Two Creations,” [11]11 “Two Creations” (两创) is the abbreviated term for the creative transformation and innovative development of fine traditional Chinese culture, a policy concept promoted under Xi Jinping. infuse the essence of fine traditional culture deep into people’s souls, enrich people’s spiritual world, and achieve the coordinated development of material civilization and cultural-ethical progress. Conversely, even in traditional societies with a relatively low level of material production, the culture they gave birth to also contains trans-epochal, prescient elements that can serve modern society. For example, the Chinese people value “harmony” (和) and esteem “cohesion” (合); “‘Harmony and cohesion’ (和合) is the true spirit of traditional Chinese culture, the core value of traditional Chinese culture.” [12]12 The quotation is from the Chinese scholar Zhang Liwen (张立文), a prominent researcher on the concept of “harmony and cohesion” (和合) in traditional Chinese philosophy. Although “harmony and cohesion” was born from speculation on the ancient Way of Heaven and the Way of Man, the principles of the operation of all things in the universe and the laws of the development of human society that it embodies can still serve today as behavioral norms for handling the relationships between man and nature, between man and man, between man and society, and between civilizations. From a synchronic perspective on culture, the levels of material production in various countries and regions at the same historical stage are uneven, and the levels of cultural development are also uneven. On the one hand, economically developed countries and regions may also contain negative and backward cultural elements; learning from and borrowing from the culture of developed countries and regions must not be blind worship or indiscriminate swallowing. On the other hand, economically relatively backward countries and regions are not lacking in progressive, positive, and vibrant cultural elements. Germany in the 18th–19th centuries, although its political and economic conditions lagged far behind those of Britain and France, gave birth to a dialectical philosophy that transcended mechanistic philosophy and nurtured Marxism. Therefore, economically backward countries and regions also contain beneficial essences in their cultures, and one must be eager to learn and choose the good to follow.

其二，文化与社会物质条件发展的不同步、不平衡性决定中华优秀传统文化必须创造性转化和创新性发展。受主客观条件制约，社会意识往往落后于社会存在，但正如恩格斯所说，“经济上落后的国家在哲学上仍然能够演奏第一小提琴”，社会意识还可能超前于社会存在。从文化的历时性来看，现代社会物质生产水平突飞猛进，物质文明建设取得巨大成就，但不可否认的是社会主义精神文明与物质文明在诸多领域诸多方面仍存在发展不协调的矛盾问题。由于长期形成的惯性力量，社会精神文明相较于物质文明发展显现出滞后性特征，使得人们在层出不穷的物质产品面前因精神生活的相对匮乏逐渐迷失方向，滋生出对物质的过度追求，造成消费主义、享乐主义等观念时有抬头。所以，要充分发挥中华优秀传统文化的涵养作用，通过“两创”将优秀传统文化精髓浸润到人们的灵魂深处，丰盈人们的精神世界，实现物质文明与精神文明协调发展。相反，即使在物质生产水平较低的传统社会，其孕育出的文化也有超时代的预见部分，能够服务现代社会。如中国人重“和”崇“合”，“‘和合’是中国传统文化的真精神，是中国传统文化的核心价值”。“和合”虽基于古代天道与人道的思辨而生，但体现的宇宙万物运行法则和人类社会发展规律，置于今日仍能作为处理人与自然、人与人、人与社会、文明与文明关系的行为准则。从文化的共时性来看，同一历史阶段各个国家、地区物质生产水平参差不齐，文化发展水平也参差不齐。一方面，经济发达的国家和地区，也会含有消极落后的文化成分，学习借鉴发达国家和地区的文化不可盲目崇拜、囫囵吞枣。另一方面，经济相对落后的国家和地区，也不乏进步的、积极鲜活的文化成分。18—19世纪的德国，虽然其政治经济状况远远落后于英法国家，但产生了超越机械论哲学的辩证法哲学，并孕育了马克思主义。因此，经济上落后的国家和地区，文化上也存在有益精华，必须敏而好学、择善而从。

Third, the mutual permeation and mutual influence among the various factors within social consciousness determine that fine traditional Chinese culture must undergo creative transformation and innovative development. Social consciousness includes philosophy, law, morality, literature, art, etc. They complement each other in content, are interrelated and mutually reinforcing in form, and collectively reflect the nature of the social formation and social being. At the same time, constrained by their own unity, a change in one factor or form inevitably causes changes in other factors, and in their mutual linkage they jointly drive the transformation and development of social consciousness. Taking art as an example, General Secretary Xi Jinping points out, “Culture is the spiritual lifeline of a nation; literature and art are the bugle of the times.” [13]13 Xi Jinping, “Speech at the Opening Ceremony of the Eleventh National Congress of the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles and the Tenth National Congress of the China Writers Association” (2016). Art, as a carrier of culture, expands the real space for the dissemination of fine traditional Chinese culture, while fine traditional Chinese culture provides profound intellectual resources for artistic creation. Therefore, art, as an expression of thought, ultimately serves cultural content; and culture, as a spiritual condensation, also needs art to enhance its realistic appeal. The two always maintain a dynamic resonance. In this sense, the intelligent New Era provides art with dual channels of dissemination—virtual and real—expanding the modes and spaces of artistic expression, which inevitably requires art, as a cultural form, to transcend its old forms.

其三，社会意识内部诸因素相互渗透、相互影响决定中华优秀传统文化必须创造性转化和创新性发展。社会意识包括哲学、法律、道德、文学、艺术等，它们在内容上相互补充，在形式上相互关联、相辅相成，集中反映着社会形态和社会存在的性质。同时，受自身统一体的制约，某一因素或形式的变化，必然引起其他因素发生改变，在彼此联动中共同推动社会意识的变迁和发展。以艺术为例，习近平总书记指出，“文化是民族的精神命脉，文艺是时代的号角”。艺术作为文化的载体，为中华优秀传统文化的传播拓展了现实空间，而中华优秀传统文化为艺术创作提供了深厚的思想资源。因此，艺术作为思想的表达，终究是为文化内容服务；而文化作为精神凝结，也需要艺术来增强现实感召，二者始终保持动态呼应。在此意义下，智能化的新时代为艺术提供了虚拟与现实的双传播渠道，拓展了艺术的表达方式和表达空间，必然要求艺术这一文化形式超越旧形态。

IV. The Practical Logic of the Creative Transformation and Innovative Development of Fine Traditional Chinese Culture

四、中华优秀传统文化创造性转化和创新性发展的实践逻辑

“The philosophers have only interpreted the world, in various ways; the point is to change it.” [14]14 Karl Marx, “Theses on Feuerbach” (1845), Thesis 11. As a philosophical reflection on “where Chinese culture is headed” in the New Era, the “Two Creations” is the philosophical speculation on cultural development by advanced Chinese intellectuals and the Chinese Communists in modern times. How to turn theory into reality and realize the “Two Creations”? This requires exploring the practical logic of the “Two Creations” from three aspects: the subject, the direction, and the path.

“哲学家们只是用不同的方式解释世界，而问题在于改变世界。”作为新时代思考“中华文化向何处去”的“两创”哲学，是近代以来中国先进知识分子和中国共产党人关于文化发展的哲学思辨。如何将理论照进现实，实现“两创”？这就要从主体、路向和路径三方面探析“两创”的实践逻辑。

(A) Clarifying the Practical Subject of the “Two Creations”

（一）明确“两创”的实践主体

First, the people are the decisive force driving the “Two Creations.” Historical materialism points out that the subject that creates history is the masses of the people. It is precisely the people’s constantly developing material and cultural needs that provide a powerful spiritual driving force for the “Two Creations.” “As long as we always persist in being for the people and relying on the people, respect the people’s principal position and initiative, and fully stimulate the wisdom and strength contained in the masses of the people, we will certainly be able to continuously create more human miracles that command admiration!” [15]15 Xi Jinping, “Speech at a Meeting Celebrating the 95th Anniversary of the Founding of the Communist Party of China” (2016). Therefore, to grasp the practical subject of the “Two Creations,” we must adhere to a people-centered approach, give full play to the people’s creative spirit and innovative ability, respect the people’s principal position, and meet the people’s spiritual and cultural needs.

其一，人民是推动“两创”的决定力量。唯物史观指出，创造历史的主体是人民群众。正是人民不断发展的物质文化需求，为“两创”提供了强大精神动力。“只要我们始终坚持为了人民、依靠人民，尊重人民群众主体地位和首创精神，把人民群众中蕴藏着的智慧和力量充分激发出来，就一定能够不断创造出更多令人刮目相看的人间奇迹！”因此，把握“两创”的实践主体，必须坚持以人民为中心，充分发挥人民的创造精神和创新能力，尊重人民的主体地位，满足人民的精神文化需求。

Second, the leadership of the Party is the political guarantee for promoting the “Two Creations.” The leadership of the Communist Party of China is the most essential feature of socialism with Chinese characteristics. This determines that advancing the “Two Creations” must closely link and organically unify adhering to a people-centered approach with upholding the Party’s leadership. “Since its founding, the Communist Party of China has been both an active leader and practitioner of China’s advanced culture and a faithful inheritor and promoter of fine traditional Chinese culture.” [16]16 Xi Jinping, “Speech at a Symposium on the Work of Literature and Art” (2014). The Party has always represented the forward direction of advanced culture and has always taken cultural construction and development as an important strategic task. Therefore, we must uphold the Party’s leadership to provide a strong political guarantee for the “Two Creations.”

其二，党的领导是推动“两创”的政治保障。中国共产党的领导是中国特色社会主义的最本质特征。这决定了推进“两创”必须将坚持以人民为中心与坚持党的领导紧密相连、有机统一。“中国共产党从成立之日起，既是中国先进文化的积极引领者和践行者，又是中华优秀传统文化的忠实传承者和弘扬者。”党始终代表先进文化的前进方向，始终将文化建设和发展作为重要战略任务。因此，必须坚持党的领导，为“两创”提供坚强的政治保障。

(B) Clarifying the Future Direction of the “Two Creations”

（二）厘清“两创”的未来路向

First, this future direction is one of adhering to “scientific truth.” The century-long struggle of the Party leading the people has always adhered to Marxism as the fundamental guiding ideology, regarding Marxism as a powerful spiritual weapon for us to understand and transform the world. “On the fundamental issue of upholding the guiding position of Marxism, we must be unwavering and must not waver in the slightest under any circumstances or at any time.” [17]17 Xi Jinping, “Speech at a Meeting Celebrating the 95th Anniversary of the Founding of the Communist Party of China” (2016). Therefore, the future direction of the “Two Creations” must necessarily uphold the guiding position of Marxism, follow the basic principles of Marxism, and scientifically and objectively handle the dialectical relationships between criticism and inheritance, and between upholding fundamental principles and breaking new ground in the “Two Creations.”

其一，这种未来路向是坚持“科学真理”的路向。党领导人民的百年奋斗征程始终坚持以马克思主义为根本指导思想，将马克思主义作为我们认识世界、改造世界的强大精神武器。“在坚持马克思主义指导地位这一根本问题上，我们必须坚定不移，任何时候任何情况下都不能有丝毫动摇。”因此，“两创”的未来路向必然要坚持马克思主义的指导地位、遵循马克思主义基本原理，科学、客观地处理“两创”中批判与继承、守正与创新的辩证关系。

Second, this future direction is one of adhering to “Chinese characteristics.” Marxism, as a theory that reveals the general laws of the development of human society, has the characteristic of “the unity of the universality and particularity of truth.” Its process of adapting to the Chinese context and the needs of the times is precisely the process of promoting the construction of the theory of socialism with Chinese characteristics and unswervingly taking the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics. In the field of culture, “Chinese characteristics” means continuing the bloodline of fine traditional Chinese culture and forging a strong sense of community for the Chinese nation and a value consensus of Chinese culture. Therefore, the future direction of the “Two Creations” is one of adhering to “Chinese characteristics.” This is “Chinese characteristics” in culture, striving to ensure that the transformed and developed culture has traceable origins, fully highlighting cultural identity and a sense of belonging; it is also “Chinese characteristics” in institutions, using China’s national conditions and systems to promote and ensure the smooth progress of the “Two Creations.”

其二，这种未来路向是坚持“中国特色”的路向。作为揭示人类社会发展一般规律的马克思主义，具有“真理的普遍性与特殊性相统一”的特性，其中国化时代化的过程就是推动构建中国特色社会主义理论、坚定不移走中国特色社会主义道路的过程。就文化领域而言，“中国特色”即意味着承续中华优秀传统文化血脉，铸牢中华民族共同体意识和中华文化的价值共识。因此，“两创”的未来路向是坚持“中国特色”的路向，既是文化上的“中国特色”，力求转化、发展后的文化有源可溯，充分凸显文化认同感和归属感；也是制度上的“中国特色”，以中国国情和制度，推动和保障“两创”顺利进行。

Third, this future direction is one of “keeping pace with the times.” Marx said, “All earlier history … was the product of the economic relations of its own time.” [18]18 Friedrich Engels, “Socialism: Utopian and Scientific” (1880), quoting Marx’s view. China’s traditional culture was generated within the agricultural civilization system; it is a culture adapted to feudal society. Because it was anchored in the feudal political system, traditional culture encounters problems of incoordination and maladaptation after entering modern society. To enable fine traditional Chinese culture to integrate into the continuously improving and developing form of socialism with Chinese characteristics, it is necessary, through the “Two Creations,” to establish a future direction that keeps pace with the times, and to promote the construction of a new form of human civilization that incorporates the value system of modern society and discards the drawbacks of Western capitalist civilization.

其三，这种未来路向是“顺应时代”的路向。马克思说：“以往的全部历史……都是自己时代的经济关系的产物。”中国的传统文化在农业文明体系中生成，是一种与封建社会相适应的文化。由于依托于封建政治制度，导致传统文化在进入现代社会后会出现不协调与不适应问题。为使中华优秀传统文化能够融入不断完善和发展的中国特色社会主义形态，就需要通过“两创”确立起顺应时代的未来路向，推动建成融现代社会之价值体系、摒西方资本主义文明弊端的人类文明新形态。

Fourth, this future direction is a “world-oriented” direction. The Marxist theory of world history holds that the tendency of human social development is for various peoples gradually to break down regional boundaries and form an interdependent whole. Globalization and informatization have expanded the spatial field of human spiritual life, and the phenomenon of “time-space compression” highlights even more the profound insight of Marx’s theory of “world history”; the modernization of fine traditional Chinese culture should also be coordinated and unified with the world. On the one hand, historical experience proves that a cultural attitude of zero-sum gaming and self-seclusion inevitably leads to ignorance and backwardness; on the other hand, the generative process of fine traditional Chinese culture is itself a process of multi-cultural exchange, integration, and mutual agitation. Therefore, the “world-oriented” future direction is both the externally generated path of the “two creations” [19]19 “Two creations” (两创) is an abbreviated reference to the “creative transformation and innovative development” (创造性转化和创新性发展) of fine traditional Chinese culture, a policy concept promoted under Xi Jinping. and the internally necessary requirement of the “two creations.”

其四，这种未来路向是“面向世界”的路向。马克思主义世界历史理论认为，人类社会的发展趋向是各民族逐渐打破地域限制，形成一个相互依存的整体。全球化和信息化扩大了人类精神生活的空间场域，“时空压缩”现象更加凸显出马克思“世界历史”理论的深刻洞察力，中华优秀传统文化的现代化也应与世界协调统一。一方面，历史经验证明，零和博弈、故步自封的文化态度必然导致愚昧落后；另一方面，中华优秀传统文化的生成过程本身就是多文化交流融合、相互激荡的过程。因此，“面向世界”的未来路向，既是“两创”的外生之路，也是“两创”的内成之需。

(3) Exploring the practical path of the “two creations”

（三）探究“两创”的实践路径

First, strengthen the coordinated construction of cultural time and space, and expand the developmental dimensions of the “two creations.” “Time is actually the active existence of human beings; it is not only the measure of human life but also the space for human development.” [20]20 Karl Marx, “Economic Manuscripts of 1857–1858,” in *Marx and Engels Collected Works*, vol. 30 (Beijing: People’s Publishing House, 1995), p. 532. The Marxist view of time and space is social in nature, emphasizing the unity of time-space and social progress. Free time enables people to achieve self-improvement; the improvement of productive forces opens up developmental space for social progress; and world-wide exchange breaks through spatial limitations, shortening the time required for social development through information sharing. Therefore, to promote the “two creations,” on the one hand, it is necessary to fully combine the authoritative advantages of traditional media with the communication advantages of modern media, enhance the appeal and dissemination of fine traditional culture, and expand the space for cultural development; on the other hand, it is necessary to learn from the advanced concepts of cultural construction in countries around the world, avoid detours, and use more free time to make greater contributions to human civilization.

其一，加强文化时空协同建设，拓展“两创”的发展维度。“时间实际上是人的积极存在，它不仅是人的生命的尺度，而且是人的发展的空间。”马克思主义时空观具有社会性，强调时空与社会进步的统一。自由时间使人们获得自我提升，生产力的提高为社会进步开拓发展空间，而世界性的交流突破了空间局限，通过信息共享缩短社会发展所需时间。因此，推动“两创”，一方面要使传统媒体的权威优势与现代媒体的传播优势充分结合，增强优秀传统文化的感召力和传播力，拓展文化发展空间；另一方面要学习世界各国文化建设的先进理念，少走弯路，以更多的自由时间为人类文明作出更大贡献。

Second, promote the construction of a discourse system, and build channels that connect the ancient and the modern, China and the West, through the “two creations.” Adopting a single, traditional dimension and model of interpretation for existing texts and phenomena often leads to mechanical repetition: “In interpreting Chinese practice and constructing Chinese theory, we should have the most say, but in reality, the voice of China’s philosophy and social sciences in the international arena is still relatively weak; we are in a situation where we have reasons but cannot articulate them, and when articulated, they cannot be spread.” [21]21 Xi Jinping, “Speech at a Symposium on Philosophy and Social Sciences,” May 17, 2016. Therefore, to do a good job of the “two creations,” it is necessary to strengthen the construction of a discourse system, build a Chinese discourse system characterized by global expression, regional expression, and segmented expression, break through traditional interpretive dimensions, dismantle the barriers between ancient and modern, China and the West, and ultimately realize the exchange and mutual learning between Chinese culture and the global tide.

其二，推动话语体系建设，搭建贯通“两创”的古今、中西通道。对既有文本、现象采取单一、传统的诠释维度和模式，往往导致陈陈相因，“在解读中国实践、构建中国理论上，我们应该最有发言权，但实际上我国哲学社会科学在国际上的声音还比较小，还处于有理说不出、说了传不开的境地”。因此，做好“两创”，需要加强话语体系建设，构筑具有全球化表达、区域化表达、分众化表达特征的中国话语体系，突破传统诠释维度，打破古与今、中与西的壁垒，最终实现中华文化和世界浪潮的交流互鉴。

Third, improve the rule-of-law guarantee system to ensure the reasonableness and compliance of the “two creations.” Law has a compulsory character and can play a guiding and regulating role in social development. The realization of the “two creations” cannot be separated from the regulation and guarantee of law. On the one hand, it is necessary to improve relevant laws and regulations on the protection of cultural heritage, to warn against, stop, and combat acts that, in the name of the “two creations,” damage tangible fine traditional culture and distort intangible fine traditional culture, regulate the subjects of the “two creations,” and protect the objects of the “two creations”; on the other hand, it is necessary to improve relevant laws and regulations on the protection of intellectual property rights, remove unreasonable obstacles in the promotion of the “two creations,” and safeguard the implementation and further development of the achievements of the “two creations.”

其三，完善法治保障体系，确保“两创”的合理合规。法律具有强制性特征，能够对社会发展起到指引和规范作用。“两创”的实现，离不开法律的调节和保障。一方面要完善文化遗产保护的相关法律法规，警告、制止、打击以“两创”的名义，破坏物质性优秀传统文化和扭曲精神性优秀传统文化的行为，规范“两创”主体，保护“两创”对象；另一方面要完善保护知识产权的相关法律法规，破除“两创”推进中的不合理阻碍，维护“两创”成果的落实和再发展。

Fourth, optimize the national education system to stimulate and cultivate the endogenous consciousness of the “two creations.” “Education is the fundamental way for humanity to inherit civilization and knowledge, cultivate the younger generation, and create a better life.” [22]22 Xi Jinping, “Speech at the Commemoration of the 100th Anniversary of the Founding of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization,” September 28, 2015. By focusing on cultivation at the three levels of society, school, and family, we can consolidate and enhance people’s understanding of fine traditional Chinese culture, make traditional culture part of daily life and abstract culture part of everyday practice, enable people to form a correct cognition of culture, enhance their sense of experience and need for culture, and thereby activate innovative and creative thinking, triggering from the inside out people’s conscious and active awareness of the “two creations.”

其四，优化国民教育体系，激发和培养“两创”的内生自觉。“教育是人类传承文明和知识、培养年轻一代、创造美好生活的根本途径。”通过以社会、学校、家庭三方面培育为着手点，巩固提升人们对中华优秀传统文化的认识，使传统文化生活化、抽象文化日常化，使人们形成对文化的正确认知，增强对文化的体验感和需求感，进而激活创新创造思维，自内而外地触发人们对“两创”的自觉和主动意识。

In summary, the realization of the “two creations” is a process of progressive layering and gradual unfolding. Exploring how to promote the “two creations” is both a realistic return to the proposition of the “two creations” and a rational reflection on the philosophical foundation of the “two creations”; it is a practical test of whether major theoretical issues can take effect and be implemented.

总之，“两创”的实现是一个层层递进、逐步展开的过程。探讨如何推动“两创”，既是“两创”命题的现实回归，也是对“两创”哲学基础问题的理性反思，是关乎重大理论问题落地生效的实践检验。

Online editor: Tongxin

网络编辑：同心

Source: *Shandong Social Sciences*, Issue 11, 2023

来源 :《山东社会科学》2023年第11期

(Author bios: Zhang Ruitao, male, Ph.D. in Philosophy, professor and doctoral supervisor at the School of Marxism, China University of Petroleum (East China); Guo Binbin, female, doctoral candidate at the School of Marxism, China University of Petroleum (East China))

（作者简介：张瑞涛，男，哲学博士，中国石油大学(华东)马克思主义学院教授、博士生导师；郭彬彬，女，中国石油大学(华东)马克思主义学院博士研究生）