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Mao Zedong first put forward "historical materialism is the basis of our party's philosophy"

Release date:

2021-03-17

Under the influence of Li Dazhao and Chen Duxiu, young Mao Zedong came into contact with Marxism. In the process of studying Marxism, Mao Zedong's view of social history has undergone fundamental changes and rapid progress.

On July 14, 1919, the inaugural issue of "Xiangjiang Review" founded by Mao Zedong came out. The "Declaration on the Creation of Publication" was written by Mao Zedong, the editor-in-chief, and raised two sharp questions: "What is the biggest problem in the world?" "What is the strongest force?" These are the two fundamental questions of the social and historical outlook. Mao Zedong made a materialist answer to this: "The biggest problem is eating"; "The people's joint power is the strongest." It is further pointed out in the Great Union of the people that the great union of the people is the fundamental way to solve the dark problems of the state and society.

At the end of 1919, Mao Zedong went to Beijing for the second time to visit Li Dazhao. Li Dazhao recommend him a batch of Chinese books about communism and the Russian October Revolution. During this period, Mao Zedong came into contact with three books, including the Communist Manifesto translated by Chen Wangdao, class struggle by Kautsky, and the history of socialism by kokapu, which had a profound impact on the transformation of the world outlook and prompted him to establish his belief in Marxism.

The following year, Mao Zedong presided over the establishment of the early Communist Party of Changsha organization. He later said in his self-report: "By the summer of 1920, in theory, and to a certain extent in action, I became a Marxist."

From August 1920 to January 1921, Cai Hesen, who was far away in France, wrote letters with Mao Zedong at home to discuss how to transform China and the world.

Cai Hesen in France wrote to Mao Zedong that the starting point of the Russian social revolution is historical materialism, and historical materialism must be used as the guiding ideology of the revolution in order not to fall into a maze.

Mao Zedong wrote back to Cai Hesen, expressing "deep agreement" with Cai Hesen's views on organizing the Communist Party, implementing class struggle, and the dictatorship of the proletariat; and after receiving Cai Hesen's letter in September, Mao Zedong responded enthusiastically: "Your letter is very well received. I don't agree with a word."

On January 21, 1921, in his reply to Cai Hesen, Mao Zedong clearly put forward the view that "historical materialism is the basis of our party's philosophy" for the first time, which laid the foundation for the Communist Party of China to adhere to Marxism as its guiding ideology. Since then, historical materialism has become the basic principle and method of the Communist Party of China.

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