We Chinese are a people of great ingenuity, known around the world for our tremendous creative faculties. As Confucius said: "If you can in one day renovate yourself, do so from day to day. Yea, let there be daily renovation." These words are a perfect description of the Chinese ingenuity.
—Speech given by Xi Jinping at the New Year's Tea Reception of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, December 31, 2013
If You Can in One Day Renovate Yourself, Do So from Day to Day. Yea, Let There Be Daily Renovation
"If you can in one day renovate yourself, do so from day to day. Yea, let there be daily renovation." Xi Jinping included this quote, taken from The Great Learning at the New Year's tea reception of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference at the close of 2013. The broader passage reads thus:
On the bathing tub of Tang, the following words were engraved: --"If you can in one day renovate yourself, do so from day to day. Yea, let there be daily renovation." In the Announcement to Kang it is said, "Stir up the people to seek what is new." In The Book of Poetry, it is said, "Although Zhou was an ancient State, the ordinance which lighted on it was new." Therefore, the superior man in everything uses his utmost endeavors.
This is evidently where the Chinese word for "innovation" comes from.
The Great Learning used to be a part of The Book of Rites, until Cheng Hao and Cheng Yi, brothers from the Song Dynasty (960-1279), extracted the text and arranged it into chapters and verses. The Confucian scholar Zhu Xi later provided annotations and included it in what became known as The Four Books of Confucianism, along with The Doctrine of the Mean, Confucian Analects, and The Mencius. The Great Learning was thus canonized as a Confucian classic.
"If you can in one day renovate yourself, do so from day to day. Yea, let there be daily renovation." These words were inscribed on the bathtub of Cheng Tang, the founding monarch of the Shang Dynasty (1600-1046 BC), to signal the physical renewal that comes from washing the body each day. The saying is taken to refer to ideological cleansing, moral cultivation, and the pursuit of spiritual newness. It emphasizes continuous innovation. If renovating oneself "in one day" is thought of as a relatively easy task, then doing so "from day to day" is harder, and "daily renovation" is harder yet. China is a nation with an ancient history, and yet "the ordinance which lighted on it is new." Chinese culture has traditionally placed a high value on innovation and discourages one from taking the beaten path. It directs society to strengthen itself through continuous reform, and it calls on those in authority to renew their minds through constant moral cultivation. Thanks to this tradition, the Chinese people have been able to make indelible contribution to humankind by furnishing countless creations, innovations, and inventions throughout history.
That is what Xi Jinping was getting at when he said this Confucian quote is a perfect description of the spirit of Chinese ingenuity. He also included the quote in his speech on May 4, 2013 to encourage young persons to lead the way in innovation: "Innovation is the soul driving a nation's progress and an inexhaustible source of a country's prosperity. It is also an essential part of the Chinese national character. This is what Confucius meant when he said: 'If you can in one day renovate yourself, do so from day to day. Yea, let there be daily renovation."'
Today, in a world where challenge and opportunity go hand-in-hand, innovation is a matter of unquestionable importance. It is a powerful engine that drives social progress, and has doubtless played a crucial role in China's rapid development in the 21st century. Xi Jinping's use of this Confucian quote not only bears testimony to the fact that the Chinese people have been marked by innovation and tremendous creative faculties from of old. Even more, it highlights the fact that China needs to continue its tradition of innovation in order to keep up with the times.
"Daily renovation" requires that one must be committed to constant self-improvement and a life of learning, both of which have always been part and parcel of the Chinese narrative. As we face the winds of constant change and the fires of fierce competition, China will be prepared to take on every challenge and will continue to shine on the global stage -- so long as we keep the spirit of ingenuity alive.
(An excerpt from XI JINPING: WIT AND VISION -- SELECTED QUOTATIONS AND COMMENTARY, published by FOREIGN LANGUAGES PRESS in 2015)
