China marked the 170th anniversary of the publication of the Communist Manifesto on Thursday.

The document has been hailed as the guiding political document for the communist movement. With its publication by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels in February 1848, Marxism emerged "as if lightning cut through dark sky", an article published by Xinhua News Agency said on Thursday.

A commentary published in Thursday's People's Daily, the Communist Party of China's flagship newspaper, compared the document to "a glorious dawn in human spiritual history" and "a spiritual home for communists".

Chinese communists today can still learn a lot from the manifesto and be inspired by it, according to an article published by Study Times, which is run by the CPC Central Committee Party School.

The Central Committee of the Communist Youth League of China published a post headlined "Happy Birthday, Communist Manifesto" on its WeChat public account, which was read by more than 100,000 people and liked by thousands.

"From the Communist Manifesto to Leninism, from Mao Zedong Thought, Deng Xiaoping Theory, Theory of Three Represents and Scientific Outlook on Development to Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, we can see a coherent trajectory," said Han Zhenfeng, dean of the School of Marxism at Beijing Jiaotong University.

Although China has walked its own path of revolution and socialist development, Marxism has always been the guide, said Chen Xianda, a professor at Renmin University of China.

The Communist Manifesto and other classics of communism could be seen on the bookshelf behind President Xi Jinping as he delivered a New Year's speech on Dec 31 that was broadcast on TV and online.

In the 170 years since the publication of the document, the world has seen China emerge from its position as a weak, less-developed country into a prosperous nation, break away from the development model of the West and figure out a more suitable pattern of modernization.

Socialism with Chinese characteristics for a new era is not only a cause for China but also a significant part of socialism in the 21st century, said Jiang Hui of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

This year not only marks the 170th anniversary of the Communist Manifesto, but is also the 40th anniversary of China's start of reform and opening-up.

China offers a reference for other developing countries that are struggling to modernize, as well as for developed countries troubled by inherent problems, said Fang Ning, head of the Institute of Political Science at the academy.

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