Chinese poetry is a unique national cultural treasure that is in the blood of each and every Chinese citizen. During Spring Festival 2017, the hit game show Chinese Poetry Competition became a cultural phenomenon.

The nation’s poetry is an intellectual testament to the richness of Chinese civilization. The Book of Songs, the Songs of Chu, poems from the Eastern and Western Han dynasties as well as the Six Dynasties, Tang-Song poetry, Ming-Qing poetry, and modern and contemporary classical poems are familiar and touch the souls of the Chinese people.

Poems embody the essence of Chinese culture. They show how the intellectual features of the Chinese people have changed over thousands of years while instilling in the public a sense cultural confidence and national pride.

As Chinese President Xi Jinping pointed out, “Time-honored Chinese culture represents the deepest intellectual pursuit and a unique icon of the Chinese nation, providing rich nourishment for the continuous development and expansion of the nation.”

Though it comes from a different age, traditional poetry is still soul stirring and enlightening. More than 100 ordinary individuals participated in the conference. Poetry is a source of inner peace in a fast-paced, chaotic world, and contestants gave the audience a taste of the cultured life nurtured by classical poetry.

The Chinese Poetry Competition is a great way to integrate traditional culture into modern life. On the show, a quiz competition heightened the suspense. Fresh stage design concepts, including a huge studio, water stage and large screens, made the program more pleasing to the eye. Interactive features, like “mobile phone shake,” and technological applications, like multi-screen communication, added interest to the show.

The organic combination of poetry and media, culture and technology built the largest traditional culture classroom, reducing the distance with the audience. The wonderfully designed program informed people on topics other than poetry, such as historical background and related stories. It also deepened their interest in the Chinese poetry culture. Many teachers commented that the original and innovative content, form and thinking of the program will help guide Chinese language teaching reform.

From the idiom competition to the poetry competition, the popularity of recent programs related to Chinese language and culture fully displays the ideals and willingness of the younger generation to carry on the legacy of traditional culture.

In recent years, the competition series jointly launched by the State Language Commission and China Central Television, including the Chinese characters dictation, idiom and poetry competitions, reflects public, cultural and creative characteristics. The selected Chinese characters, idioms and poems exhibit the charm of the Chinese language and characters, setting an example for boosting cultural confidence and improving cultural soft power as well as cultivating core socialist values through public platforms and mass communication.

The conclusion of the second Chinese Poetry Competition has coincided with a revival of interest in classical poetry. This is not accidental. Concentrating the wisdom and sentiments of ancient poets, it is a result of the public’s lasting affinity for traditional culture. To inherit and carry forward excellent Chinese traditional culture with new era conditions taken into consideration will definitely promote our cultural confidence and set the stage for the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.

Yao Xishuang is deputy director of the State Language Commission and director of the Department of Language and Character Management under the Ministry of Education.