Abstract: Cultural practices are an important category in contemporary philosophical and cultural studies. We should pay attention to three important dimensions when we scan the relationship between cultural practices and the development of contemporary society from the perspective of historical materialism. The essence of culture and the basic forms of social practices are the starting point for the establishment of the category of the cultural practices. The relationship between ideological form and practical form, inheritance and innovation, epochal character and national character are the important factors in understanding cultural practices as the important driving force for social development. The cultural practices of government, enterprises and the public are the main paths for the promotion of contemporary social development.