China-Xi’s Classical Quotes/Shared Prosperity

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Shared prosperity has been a basic ideal of the Chinese people since ancient times. Chinese President Xi Jinping quoted Confucius and Mencius to articulate the notions of “moderate prosperity” and “great harmony.”

In a study session with provincial and ministerial-level officials in January 2016, Xi used the quotes from Confucius and Mencius to stress the importance of the philosophy of shared development.

“In nature, the philosophy of shared development represents the idea of people-centered development. It reflects the demand of achieving shared prosperity in stages. Shared prosperity has been a basic ideal of the Chinese people since ancient times,” Xi said.

“Confucius said, ‘He is not concerned lest his people should be poor, but only lest what they have should be ill-apportioned. He is not concerned lest they should be few, but only lest they should be divided against one another’. Mencius said, ‘Do reverence to the elders in your own family and extend it to those in other families; show loving care to the young in your own family and extend it to those in other families’. The Book of Rites, gives a detailed and lively description of ‘moderate prosperity’ and ‘great harmony’,” Xi said.

The remarks are included in the second season of video series “Classics Quoted by Xi Jinping” produced by China Media Group. Ahead of President Xi’s upcoming trip to Johannesburg for the 15th BRICS Summit and state visit to South Africa, the program started to be broadcast in 62 mainstream media outlets in 38 countries in Africa from Sunday.

The series, featuring Xi’s quotes from ancient Chinese stories and classics in his speeches and articles, vividly demonstrates Xi’s extensive and profound cultural attainment and his deep concern about the people and his deep love for the nation. It also extracts and interprets the broad and profound traditional Chinese culture that contains the connotation of the new era and the values of globalization.