Nishan Forum： Dialogue among Civilizations

By Wang Xiang

“Some 2，500 years ago， when some of the most famous and influential philosophers of all time such as Socrates and Aristotle were active in the ancient Greek world， Confucius （551-479 B.C.） was born on Nishan Mountain， 30 kilometers southeast of todays city center of Qufu， Shandong Province. Thereafter， Nishan is closely associated with Confucius， a thinker and educator who deeply influenced mankind， and is considered a holy place of Confucianism，” declared Liu Jiayi， secretary of the Shandong Provincial Committee of the CPC and director of the Standing Committee of the Shandong Provincial Peoples Congress， to welcome more than 500 experts and scholars from 25 countries and regions at the opening ceremony of the 2018 Qufu International Confucius Cultural Festival and the Fifth Nishan Forum on World Civilizations on September 26. The participants gathered to discuss how Chinese civilization would contribute to the building of a community of shared future for mankind.

In 2013， Chinese President Xi Jinping first proposed the concept of a community of shared future for mankind， looking at promoting common development of all countries while seeking domestic development. This concept coincides with Confucius ideal： “When the great way prevails， the world community is equally shared by all.”

This forum， with the themes of “telling the Chinese story in Confucian culture” and “common destiny， integration and connectivity： integration of civilizations and a community of shared future for mankind，” closely follows President Xi Jinpings initiative of building a community of shared future for mankind and actively responds to the call of the United Nations World Civilization Dialogue to deeply explore the integration of civilizations and the ways in which a community of shared future for mankind can be built， make the voice of China be heard and gather suggestions for peaceful and orderly development of mankind.

Integration of Civilizations

Against the backdrop of an ever-changing world， Chinese President Xi Jinpings proposal to build a community of shared future for mankind and a clean and beautiful world featuring lasting peace， universal security， common prosperity， openness and inclusiveness provides “Chinese wisdom” and “Chinese solutions” to problems facing the world.

At the forum， Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National Peoples Congress （NPC） Zhang Chunxian discussed how to recognize and treat different civilizations around the world where there are more than 200 countries and thousands of ethnic groups speaking thousands of languages and believing various religions， which is an increasingly important issue facing mankind. Conflict of civilizations is not a way out， and different civilizations living in harmony is the only path forward. Chinas excellent cultural traditions， including Confucianism， have undergone thousands of years of testing and can provide philosophical and cultural support for the integration of different civilizations.

Zhang advocated that civilizations are “colorful， equal and inclusive，” and that different peoples “maintain the diversity of civilizations， respect the civilizations of all countries and ethnic groups， learn from civilizations correctly， and scientifically treat cultural traditions.” Each civilization enjoys its own uniqueness， and different civilizations should live in harmony. Civilization integration can serve as a bridge to enhance the friendship between peoples， a driving force for the advancement of human society and a bond to maintain world peace.

Deputy Foreign Minister Wang Chao said， “The Nishan Forum， named after the mountain on which Confucius was born， provides an important platform for international ideological and cultural exchange through conducting dialogue among different civilizations， promoting excellent Chinese culture and advancing Chinese-foreign cultural exchange.” Today， against the backdrop of world multipolarization， economic globalization， information socialization and cultural diversification， all countries are intertwined and dependent on each other. They need to have awareness that the world is shared by all to jointly address risks and challenges facing mankind.

This year marks the Fifth anniversary of the introduction of the Belt and Road Initiative. The ancient Silk Road was also a passage of mutual learning among civilizations and a driver of peace and friendship. For the first time， Nishan Forum is introducing dialogues between mayors of cities along the Belt and Road， which will further strengthen the exchange between countries along the Belt and Road， Wang Chao added at the forum.

Since 2010， the Nishan Forum has conducted a series of dialogues between different civilizations successively： Confucianism and Christianity， Confucianism and Judaism， and Confucianism and Hinduism. Starting this year， the Nishan Form has been incorporated into the framework of the Qufu International Confucius Cultural Festival to be held concurrently.

Vice Minister of Culture and Tourism Li Qun remarked that the Nishan Forum plays a unique role in advancing cultural exchange and cooperation as well as boosting confidence in Chinese culture.

Working Together to Promote Development

“The integration of civilizations and the ultimate goal of building a community of shared future for mankind is neither a problem if it can be achieved， nor a problem if we should do it； it is inevitable，” proclaimed Xu Jialu， former vice-chairman of the NPC Standing Committee and council president of Nishan Forum on World Civilizations. “It will inspire us to conduct close cooperation and frequent exchange and dig deep into the concept of a community of shared future for mankind to spread it more broadly.”

Baek Kun-ki， mayor of Yongin， South Korea， one attending mayor representing countries along the Belt and Road， revealed， “I have read many books on Confucianism， so it is already deeply rooted in my mind. A Confucius Institute has been operating in Taeseong High School in Yongin since 2008， which was the first Confucius Institute in South Korea. By September 2017， a total of 267 students had studied here.”

Nikolaos Bampalos， mayor of Leo， Greece， another cradle of human civilization， insisted that Greeks are familiar with Chinese traditional culture. Confucius anchored the East at the same time Socrates changed Western civilization. Although these two philosophers lived far apart and didnt know each other， they shared fundamental viewpoints on people and life.

“To this day， people from China and Greece still share a common philosophical foundation，” added Bampalos.

Civilization becomes diversified because of exchange and mutual learning. The differences between civilizations can be overcome through integration via exchange and dialogue. If we hold tight to inclusiveness and ensure equal communication， we can ensure myriad blooming civilizations live in harmony.

“Let us make the Nishan Forum the starting point of a journey to seek maximized civilization consensus and cultural identity，” Liu Jiayi concluded. “We are looking forward to making Chinese culture contribute to human civilization， ensuring diversified civilizations prosper and helping people around the world build a community of shared future for mankind hand in hand.”