One should value not only one's own culture, but also the cultures of others, and this will contribute to the flourishing of all cultures.

One should value not only one's own culture, but also the cultures of others, and this will contribute to the flourishing of all cultures.

This is a well-known saying from Fei Xiaotong (1910-2005), a Chinese sociologist, anthropologist and social activist. In a keynote speech, he proposed an idea about handling the relations between different cultures: "One should value not only one's own culture, but also the cultures of others, and this will contribute to the flourishing of all cultures." Such respect for other nations and cultures would bring prosperity to all cultures in the world.

The Chinese culture holds that nations should appreciate their own brilliant culture as well as those created by others, during which process, harmony will be achieved among different civilizations, and thus the beauty of all is preserved.

Addressing the opening of the Conference on Dialogue of Asian Civilizations in May 2019, Xi Jinping said: We need to appreciate the beauty of each civilization and the diversity of civilizations around the world. Each civilization is the crystallization of human creation, and each is beautiful in its own way. Civilizations don't have to clash with each other; what is needed are eyes to see the beauty in all civilizations. We should keep our own civilizations dynamic and create conditions for other civilizations to flourish. Together we can make the garden of world civilizations more colorful and vibrant.

美人之美，美美与共

“美人之美，美美与共” ，语出中国社会学家费孝通先生的主题演讲《人的研究在中国——个人的经历》，他以“各美其美，美人之美，美美与共，天下大同”这十六字箴言阐明如何处理不同文化关系，即要尊重其他民族文化，实现世界文化共同繁荣。中华文化向来认为，在欣赏本民族创造的灿烂文明的同时，也应该去欣赏其他民族的文明，在互相欣赏的过程中促进不同文明达到一种和谐状态，实现理想中的大同美。

2019年5月，习近平在亚洲文明对话大会开幕式上指出，应坚持美人之美、美美与共。每一种文明都是美的结晶，都彰显着创造之美。各种文明本没有冲突，只是要有欣赏所有文明之美的眼睛。我们既要让本国文明充满勃勃生机，又要为他国文明发展创造条件，让世界文明百花园群芳竞艳。