Governing by both rites and the law

This term means that in governing a country, the ruler needs to combine the edification by li (rites) and the rule by fa (law).

In the ancient governance system, rites originated from Confucianism and the law from Legalism. Confucianism extolled self-cultivation, while Legalism held that severe punishments and harsh laws would work better. Educating the people relied on Confucianism, which encouraged bringing the good elements in human nature into full play, while governing society needed Legalism, which preferred rule by law – to place all activities and behaviors of the country, society and all individuals under the law – and saw the law as the best tool to turn Confucian ideals into realities. It may be said that combining rites with the law was the governance norm practiced in the heyday of all dynasties in Chinese history.

At the 18th group study session of the Political Bureau of the 18th CPC Central Committee in October 2014, Xi Jinping said: Ancient ruling approaches such as "governing by both rites and the law" provide great inspiration. To govern China well, we need to understand history and traditional culture, and summarize ancient governance practices and wisdom.

禮法合治

“禮法合治”意為治理國家要將教化與法律相結合。在中國古代國家治理體系中，“禮”源于儒家，“法”出自法家。儒家的“禮”講究“自我修養”的提升過程，法家的“法”則堅持“嚴刑峻法”才是出路。教化社會以儒家學說為主，因為要激揚人性善的一面，但治理社會卻要以法家為主，法家主張“以法治國”，即把國家社會個人的一切活動和行為納入法制的軌道，認為這是儒家理想化為社會現實的最主要的抓手。可以說，“禮法合治”是中國歷朝歷代鼎盛時期的政治準繩。

2014年10月，習近平在中共十八屆中央政治局第十八次集體學習時的講話中提到，“禮法合治”等治國理政經驗能給人們重要啟示，要治理好今天的中國，既需要對中國歷史和傳統文化有深入了解，也需要對中國古代治國理政的探索和智慧進行積極總結。