Guo Fang: The Spirit of the War of Resistance: A Powerful Spiritual Force for the Chinese Nation to Overcome All Difficulties and Obstacles
On September 3, 2014, at a symposium commemorating the 69th anniversary of the victory of the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War, General Secretary Xi Jinping profoundly pointed out: "In the magnificent course of the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, a great Spirit of the War of Resistance was formed. The Chinese people demonstrated to the world a patriotic sentiment characterized by 'the rise and fall of all under heaven is the responsibility of every individual' [1], a national integrity characterized by facing death with equanimity and preferring death to surrender, a heroic mettle characterized by defying brute force and fighting to the end, and a conviction of victory characterized by perseverance and indomitability." Since then, General Secretary Xi Jinping has spoken about the history of the Chinese people’s resistance on multiple important occasions, emphasizing that the great Spirit of the War of Resistance "is a most precious spiritual asset for the Chinese people, and will forever be a powerful spiritual motive force inspiring the Chinese people to overcome all difficulties and obstacles and strive for the realization of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation." General Secretary Xi Jinping’s important speeches highly condense and accurately summarize the formative background, scientific connotation, and value for the era of the Spirit of the War of Resistance, providing us with a fundamental compliance and a guide for action to deeply understand, inherit, and carry forward this spirit.
The great Spirit of the War of Resistance was nurtured in the sweeping tides of the War of Resistance. The Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression was a war of self-defense by the Chinese people against the aggression of Japanese imperialism; it was a great struggle between the Chinese nation and Japanese fascism involving justice versus evil, light versus darkness, and progress versus reaction. In 1931, Japanese imperialism manufactured the September 18th Incident [2] and launched an armed war of aggression against Northeast China. The Chinese people rose up in resistance across the "White Mountains and Black Waters" [3], marking the starting point of the Chinese People's War of Resistance. In 1937, marked by the Japanese invaders shelling Wanping County and attacking the Lugou Bridge [4], the long-premeditated full-scale war of aggression against China began, and China launched its national war of resistance. Through 14 years of arduous and bloody struggle, at the heavy cost of 35 million casualties, the Chinese people defeated the Japanese invaders with their lives and blood. This marked the first complete victory for China against foreign invasion in modern times and constituted a major contribution to the victory of the World Anti-Fascist War. In this unprecedentedly tragic war, all the sons and daughters of the Chinese nation fought for national survival, for national rejuvenation, and for human justice. The breadth of social mobilization, the depth of national awakening, the tenacity of fighting will, and the firmness of the conviction of victory all reached unprecedented heights. Countless heroes of the resistance met the powerful enemy with unyielding character and built a Great Wall with their own flesh and blood, allowing the Chinese nation to stand tall with an unbending spine and forging the great Spirit of the War of Resistance that shines through the annals of history.
The patriotic sentiment that "the rise and fall of all under heaven is the responsibility of every individual" is the core essence of the Spirit of the War of Resistance. Patriotism is the core of the Chinese national spirit; since ancient times, it has flowed in the veins of the Chinese nation and has been engraved in its spiritual DNA. During the War of Resistance, facing the crisis of national survival, Chinese Communists—with their determination to fight to the end and their correct propositions for the war—demonstrated a great and deep patriotism. They ignited the hope of the entire nation for national salvation and survival and aroused a great awakening within the Chinese nation, elevating patriotic sentiment to a new stage. Three days after the September 18th Incident, the Communist Party of China (CPC) issued a declaration for resistance, followed by three more declarations and resolutions within that same month. On July 8, 1937, the day after the Lugou Bridge Incident occurred, the CPC Central Committee sent out a circular telegram appealing to the whole nation: "Beiping and Tianjin are in peril! North China is in peril! The Chinese nation is in peril! Our only way out is to implement resistance by the whole nation!" Under the banner of the Anti-Japanese National United Front advocated by the CPC, all compatriots stepped forward with a strong sense of devotion to home and country and the national self-respect of "swearing never to be slaves of a fallen nation." All parties, ethnic groups, classes, strata, and organizations shared a common hatred for the enemy and faced the national crisis together. From within and beyond the Great Wall, from the north to the south of the Yangtze River, the flames of the resistance were ignited everywhere. The anti-Japanese armies led by the Chinese Kuomintang (KMT) and the CPC respectively undertook the combat tasks of the "frontal battlefield" and the "battlefield behind enemy lines," forming a strategic posture of jointly resisting the Japanese invaders. Compatriots in Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan, as well as overseas Chinese, shared the same breath and destiny as the motherland, participating in and supporting the resistance through various means, with many laying down their lives for the country.
The national integrity of facing death with equanimity and preferring death to surrender is the personified manifestation of the Spirit of the War of Resistance. The Chinese nation has always regarded integrity as heavier than Mount Tai, advocating both the "lofty spirit" of being "uncorrupted by wealth and honors, unswerving in poverty and humble circumstances, and unyielding before power and force," and the "noble character" where "jade may be shattered but its whiteness remains, and bamboo may be scorched but its joints remain intact." The full-scale war of aggression launched by Japan was an attempt to destroy all of China. The invaders were extremely brutal toward the Chinese people, attempting to force them into submission through inhuman acts, scenes of blood and terror, and hair-raising massacres. Remaining unyielding before force was the Chinese nation's only answer to the invaders. Facing the invaders' swords, the Chinese people remained awe-inspiringly righteous, charging through the smoke of gunpowder and being determined to win national independence and people's liberation even at the cost of their precious lives, demonstrating the righteousness, fortitude, and courage of the Chinese nation. In the life-and-death struggle against Japanese fascism, countless tests of mortality highlighted the noble national integrity of the Chinese military and civilians. A group of generals including Yang Jingyu, Zhao Shangzhi, Zuo Quan, Peng Xuefeng, Tong Linge, Zhao Dengyu, Zhang Zizhong, and Dai Anlan died for their country in a manner that moved heaven and earth. Yang Jingyu, Commander-in-Chief and Political Commissar of the First Army of the Northeast Anti-Japanese United Army, led his troops in bloody battles against an enemy several times their size in freezing weather of -40°C. In the end, he fought alone until the very last moment. After his martyrdom, the brutal Japanese army cut open his abdomen only to find that there was not a single grain of food in his stomach, only grass roots, cotton batting, and tree bark. Many heroic groups, such as the "Five Heroes of Langya Mountain" of the Eighth Route Army, the "Liulaozhuang Company" of the New Fourth Army, the eight female soldiers of the Northeast Anti-Japanese United Army, and the "Eight Hundred Heroes" [5] of the KMT military, all defended national dignity and upheld national integrity through their heroic feats of facing death with equanimity.
The heroic mettle of defying brute force and fighting to the end is the external characteristic of the Spirit of the War of Resistance. The Chinese people and the Chinese nation have always possessed the heroic mettle of defying brute force and daring to overwhelm all enemies without being overwhelmed by them. In modern times, facing repeated invasions by powerful enemies, the Chinese nation did not succumb but continuously gathered its forces, as one wave fell and another rose, struggling tenaciously and vowing to fight the invaders to the end, composing countless heroic songs. Facing the bloody atrocities of the Japanese invaders, no matter how dire the situation or how cruel the war, the Chinese military and civilians always radiated a spirit of dauntless revolutionary heroism and a courageous combat spirit. Mao Zedong pointed out in On Tactics Against Japanese Imperialism that "we, the Chinese nation, have the mettle to fight the enemy to the last drop of our blood." In the Battle of Shanghai, hundreds of thousands of soldiers followed one after another, building a fortress with their flesh and blood and smashing the arrogant dream of the Japanese army to "conquer China in three months." In the Pingxingguan Ambush, the Eighth Route Army fought a bloody battle with the Japanese army and won the first victory. In the Battle of Taierzhuang, soldiers braved a hail of bullets, wiped out a large number of the Japanese army's effective strength, and achieved a great victory on the frontal battlefield. In the Hundred Regiments Offensive, the anti-Japanese military and civilians operated with strategic maneuverability, launching full-scale attacks on major transportation lines and heavily damaging the enemy's arrogance through continuous fierce fighting... In the firing line of the War of Resistance, the Chinese military and civilians threw themselves into soul-stirring struggles with the determination and courage of "not fearing even if my bones are ground to powder," fully displaying their heroic character. Ten soldiers of the 6th Squad of a certain company of the Eighth Route Army passed through Mashi Mountain; they entered and exited the enemy's encirclement four times, successfully escorting more than 1,000 people to safety, while all ten brave warriors perished on the battlefield. With their spirit of sacrifice—staying calm in the face of danger, fighting bravely, and remaining awe-inspiringly righteous—they became the most distinctive spiritual hallmark of the Chinese nation in resisting foreign aggression and the most intuitive and shocking external manifestation of the Spirit of the War of Resistance.
The conviction of victory characterized by perseverance and indomitability is the internal driving force of the Spirit of the War of Resistance. Chinese civilization has undergone many vicissitudes and suffered many hardships, but it has always strived for self-improvement, becoming the only civilization in the history of world civilizations that has never been interrupted. An important reason for this is the Chinese nation's perseverance and indomitability. Throughout the 14 years of the War of Resistance, the conviction of victory always acted like a powerful engine, continuously injecting spiritual momentum into the victory of the war and becoming the spiritual pillar for the Chinese nation to resist foreign aggression and defend its dignity. Conviction is like a torch; one has no regrets even if one dies nine times. No matter how hard the conditions, how cruel the war, or how great the sacrifice, the Chinese people never wavered in their determination to recover their lost land. The Chinese Communists, with Comrade Mao Zedong as their chief representative, used their conviction of victory and extraordinary wisdom to scientifically predict that the war would pass through three stages: strategic defense, strategic stalemate, and strategic counter-offensive. They led the Chinese military and civilians in a long-term tenacious resistance, accumulating local advantages step by step and building them into an overall victory. This allowed the Chinese people and the Chinese nation to turn from passive to active strategically, eventually turning inferiority into superiority, defeating a strong enemy with a weak force, and turning defeat into victory, defeating the ferocious Japanese militarist invaders to win the final victory of the Chinese People's War of Resistance. An article titled "Thanking the Soldiers Defending the Country," published in the L'Impartial (Ta Kung Pao) on September 19, 1937, stated: "On the northern and southern battlefields today, people are vying and rushing to die because everyone has absolute faith, knowing that sacrificing oneself is the way to win independence and freedom for generations of the Chinese nation, and they are certain that this will be achieved." It was precisely because the Chinese people were determined to fight to the end, persisted in the resistance, and sustained a protracted war that the revolutionary struggle of the people nationwide finally converged into a massive historical torrent. With the equipment of "millet plus rifles" [6], they defeated the insufferably arrogant Japanese imperialism, won the final victory of the war, and created a miracle in the history of human warfare.
Source: Study Times (Learning Times), August 29, 2025, Page 5 Online Editor: Tongxin