Ouyang Song: A Dialectical Materialist Epistemological Interpretation of the Great Founding Spirit of the Party
The Great Founding Spirit of the Party is rich in connotation and profound in vision; it radiates across our journey and illuminates our future.
On July 1, 2021, at the Ceremony Marking the Centenary of the Founding of the Communist Party of China (CPC), General Secretary Xi Jinping delivered a magnificent and inspiring speech, proposing for the first time the 32-character "Great Founding Spirit of the Party": upholding truth and ideals, fulfilling our original aspiration and founding mission, fighting bravely without fear of sacrifice, and remaining loyal to the Party and faithful to the people. He issued a call to the entire Party to "forever inherit and carry forward the Great Founding Spirit of the Party." This important exposition and great call by General Secretary Xi Jinping fully reflect that the CPC's understanding of the spiritual pedigree of Chinese Communists has reached a new height, its understanding of the laws governing its own development has reached a new height, and its summary of the Party's centenary history has reached a new height. It fully embodies the epistemology of dialectical materialism and constitutes a major original contribution to the Marxist theory of party building. It further enriches and develops the "Party History and Party Building" chapter of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, possessing rich theoretical connotation, great practical significance, and profound historical significance.
The Great Founding Spirit of the Party possesses extremely rich ideological connotation
At the Ceremony Marking the Centenary of the Founding of the CPC, General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "A hundred years ago, the pioneers of the CPC founded the Party and developed the Great Founding Spirit of the Party, which consists of upholding truth and ideals, fulfilling our original aspiration and founding mission, fighting bravely without fear of sacrifice, and remaining loyal to the Party and faithful to the people. This is the Party's source of spirit." He emphasized that "over the past hundred years, the Party has carried forward this Great Founding Spirit. In its long-term struggles, the Party has constructed a spiritual pedigree for Chinese Communists and tempered a distinct political character."
This important exposition by General Secretary Xi Jinping enlightens us: the creators of the Great Founding Spirit were the pioneers of the CPC; its inheritors are generations of Chinese Communists; its chronological starting point was over a hundred years ago; and its time span has lasted more than a century to the present day. Its basic positioning is both the "source" and the "stream" of the CPC's spirit. It is the most important spirit occupying the "overarching" and "headwater" position in the spiritual pedigree, while also being a specific spirit within that pedigree. It can serve both as a means of self-motivation for individual Party members and as the spiritual hallmark of the entire Party. It belongs to yesterday, but even more so to today and tomorrow.
Specifically, "upholding truth and ideals" is the root and origin of the CPC, manifesting the power of the Party's faith. "Fulfilling our original aspiration and founding mission" is the theme and main thread of the entire practice of Chinese Communists, manifesting the power of the Party's purpose. "Fighting bravely without fear of sacrifice" is the backbone and characteristic of Chinese Communists, manifesting the power of their will and character. "Remaining loyal to the Party and faithful to the people" is the great virtue and public morality of Chinese Communists, manifesting the power of their Party spirit (党性 [1]).
The Great Founding Spirit of the Party is an organic whole. The 32 characters can be divided into four groups with close internal links and a clear logical relationship: truth and ideals give rise to the original aspiration and mission; the original aspiration and mission summon sacrifice and struggle; and sacrifice and struggle are dedicated to the Party and the people. Within these plain expressions, the four groups of 32 characters provide profound enlightenment and immense strength. Today, in discussing the generative logic of the Great Founding Spirit, we must first deeply grasp the historical necessity and subjective agency of the birth of the CPC. Without the subjective foundation of the Party's creation, it is impossible to understand the generation and development of the Great Founding Spirit.
The great practice of founding the Party gave birth to the Great Founding Spirit of the Party
The epistemology of dialectical materialism holds that "it is not the consciousness of men that determines their existence, but their social existence that determines their consciousness." Human cognition is not an intuitive, passive, or negative reflection of the objective world, but an internal, active, and energetic reflection conducted in the process of transforming the objective world. Precisely because of this, great practice often gives birth to a great spirit. The Great Founding Spirit was nurtured precisely within the great practice of founding the CPC.
The successful practice of the Party's pioneers in creating the Party from nothing initiated an epoch-making event [2], providing the organizational conditions for the formation of the Great Founding Spirit. Any spirit must belong to a subjective entity. This process moved from the establishment of the early Communist organization in Shanghai as the initiating group to the successive secret establishment of early organizations in Beijing, Wuhan, Jinan, Changsha, Guangzhou, as well as in Japan and France. It moved from the First National Congress, which first stipulated that the Party's main task was to conduct social revolution, to the Second National Congress, which for the first time proposed a thorough anti-imperialist and anti-feudal revolutionary program, first proposed the idea of the Party's united front—the idea of a democratic united front—and first put forward relatively complete requirements for the workers', youth, and women's movements. In the process of turning the ideal of building a party into reality, the early Communists dared to break new ground and act, pioneering ahead of others and creating many unprecedented "firsts" with extraordinary courage and exceptional talent. Standing at the forefront of the times and wielding the sharp ideological weapon of Marxism, the early Chinese Communists analyzed the current nature of society, grasped the shifts in class structure, and responded to the development of revolutionary trends. They gave birth to a CPC that dared to "open up the heavens and create the earth" (开天辟地 [2]) and was capable of "governing the heavens and the earth" (经天纬地 [3]), providing the most important prerequisite for the formation of the Great Founding Spirit. The creation of the CPC resulted in the organizational achievement of establishing the CPC and the spiritual achievement of forming the Great Founding Spirit.
The arduous practice of the Party's pioneers in sowing the seeds of Marxism established the scientific theoretical faith and lofty ideals and beliefs of early Chinese Communists, providing the ideological conditions for the formation of the Great Founding Spirit. Comrades Li Dazhao and Chen Duxiu made outstanding contributions to the early dissemination of Marxism in China. In May 1919, Li Dazhao opened a "Marxist Research" column in the Morning Post (晨报) supplement, publishing a series of articles introducing Marx's life, teachings, and contributions. In December of the same year, Chen Duxiu published the "Manifesto of New Youth" (新青年), proposing to "create new political, moral, and economic concepts"—this new concept was Marxism. Subsequently, with the publication of the Communist Manifesto translated by Chen Wangdao, the spread of Marxism in China became the trend of the times. Many advanced elements, such as Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai, Dong Biwu, Cai Hesen, and Yun Daiying, became steadfast believers in Marxism after repeated reflection. The arduous journey of Chinese Communists in rooting and sowing the seeds of revolutionary thought provided a deep ideological foundation for the Party’s creation, forged a character of determined and indomitable struggle, and provided the core elements for the formation of the Great Founding Spirit.
The fearless exploration of the Party's pioneers in leading the labor and peasant movements initiated the dangerous practice of bloody struggle, providing the conditions for a clear political stance and tenacious willpower. After recognizing the historical role of the proletariat, the early Chinese Communists dedicated themselves to promoting the integration of Marxism with the Chinese workers' and peasants' movements, making the working class the leading force and backbone of the social revolution. While leading the Anyuan Railway and Mining Workers' Strike [4], Mao Zedong changed into coarse cloth shorts and straw sandals, having heart-to-heart talks with workers at the coal faces underground and in their dwellings at Bajiaojing. Peng Pai gave away his family fortune and plunged into the midst of the peasantry, affectionately called "Bodhisattva Peng" (彭菩萨) by the peasant masses. Deng Zhongxia changed his name and organized the "Civilian Education Lecture Group" to spread the truth, opening a new chapter in leading the Chinese labor movement at Changxindian. Chen Tanqiu was wanted by warlords immediately after leading the Beijing-Hankou Railway Strike; though his life hung by a thread, he persisted in the struggle.
As the city with the highest concentration of working-class power, Shanghai saw a succession of strikes, including the rickshaw pullers' strike (June 1919), the machine workers' strike (February 1920), the Japan-China Cotton Mill strike (February 1919 – late 1921), the Chinese Electric Power Company workers' strike (March 1921), the British-American Tobacco workers' strike (July 1921), the postal workers' strike (April 1922), the seafarers' strike (July 1922), and the gold and silver industry workers' strike (October 1922). Many of these were led by the early Shanghai Communist organization and the Shanghai branch of the China Labor Union Secretariat. "Wake up the workers and peasants in their millions / To fight with one heart!" [5] In their fearless exploration of leading the worker and peasant movements, the early Communists gradually formed the spiritual qualities of "fighting bravely without fear of sacrifice," which highly aligns with "remaining loyal to the Party and faithful to the people" in the Great Founding Spirit.
The many historical conditions that allowed for the creation of the CPC constituted the historical coordinates of the Party’s embryonic period, influenced the historical activities of the Party during that period, and determined the ideological direction of the Party's pioneers—developing from an initial acceptance of Marxism into "upholding truth and ideals"; sublimating from joining the torrent of saving the nation and people into "fulfilling our original aspiration and founding mission"; tempering the dauntless quality of "fighting bravely without fear of sacrifice" through participation in specific anti-imperialist and anti-feudal activities; and manifesting the "infant’s heart" (赤子情怀 [6]) of "remaining loyal to the Party and faithful to the people" by practicing the Party's nature and purpose. These finally converged into the Great Founding Spirit of the Party. The pioneers' nurturing of this spirit achieved the first leap from perceptual knowledge to rational knowledge.
The Great Founding Spirit of the Party has promoted the cause of revitalizing and strengthening the Party
The epistemology of dialectical materialism holds that human cognition undergoes two leap processes: from perceptual knowledge to rational knowledge, and then from rational knowledge to practice. In the first leap, whether the spirit, ideas, thinking, theories, and policies reflect the essence of objective things is not yet fully verified. Only by entering the second leap of cognition—putting the rational knowledge and spiritual products obtained in the first leap back into practice for testing, enrichment, and development—can truthful knowledge be attained. This second leap is even greater in significance. Mao Zedong pointed out: "It is man’s social existence that determines his thinking. Once the correct ideas characteristic of the advanced class are grasped by the masses, these ideas turn into a material force which changes society and changes the world." General Secretary Xi Jinping noted: "Although dialectical materialism emphasizes that the unity of the world consists in its materiality, it does not deny the reaction of consciousness on matter. Instead, it maintains that this reaction can sometimes be immense." The Great Founding Spirit originated from the great practice of creating the CPC and has run through the hundred-year journey of establishing, revitalizing, and strengthening the Party. It reflects the original aspiration for building the Party, the mission for revitalizing it, and the foundation for its establishment. It has continued to branch out and leaf as the Party's practice has advanced, demonstrating vigorous vitality and lasting influence in every historical period, and constantly bearing fruitful spiritual, theoretical, and practical results. The reaction of spirit upon matter is thus continuously manifested.
The Great Founding Spirit fully embodies the requirements of the Party's original aspiration and founding mission and is the "living headwater" of the spiritual pedigree of Chinese Communists. For over a hundred years, our Party has carried its original aspiration and mission, continuing to explore and struggle, and making possible the formation and forging of many great revolutionary spirits. These mainly include the Great Founding Spirit, the Jinggangshan Spirit, the Soviet Area Spirit, the Long March Spirit, the Zunyi Conference Spirit, and the Yan'an Spirit formed during the New Democratic Revolution period; the Spirit to Resist U.S. Aggression and Aid Korea, the "Two Bombs, One Satellite" Spirit, the Lei Feng Spirit, and the Jiao Yulu Spirit formed during the Socialist Revolution and Construction period; the Reform and Opening-up Spirit, the Special Economic Zone Spirit, the Flood-Fighting Spirit, and the Manned Spaceflight Spirit formed during the new period of Reform and Opening-up and Socialist Modernization; and the Poverty Alleviation Spirit, the Scientist Spirit, the Lunar Exploration Spirit, and the New Era Beidou Spirit formed in the New Era of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics. These specific spirits span time and space, remaining fresh through the ages, and forming the spiritual pedigree of Chinese Communists. The reason these spirits can form a "pedigree" is that a common red thread runs through them. This red thread consists of the elements contained in the "Great Founding Spirit": truth, ideals, sacrifice, struggle, loyalty, and serving the people. Therefore, in a sense, the Great Founding Spirit is not only the source of the Chinese revolutionary spirit but also the sum total of the connotations of the spiritual pedigree of Chinese Communists—the most brilliant spiritual fruit borne of the CPC's centenary history.
The Great Founding Spirit spurs Chinese Communists to have the courage for self-revolution, forging a Party that is firm and powerful. For over a hundred years, the spiritual pedigree of Chinese Communists, developed from the Great Founding Spirit, has both formed within the practice of the Party's hundred-year exploration and consistently nourished the century-old CPC, exerting an incalculable and profound influence on the Party’s self-construction.
In the process of realizing the two historical tasks [7] of the Chinese nation, the great achievements of Party building are first reflected in its development into a strong and powerful Party. For over a century, while the world situation, national conditions, and the Party’s internal state have constantly changed, the Great Founding Spirit of the Party—under the guidance of the Party's innovative theories—has always inspired our Party organizations at all levels and our Party members and cadres to conform to the developmental trends of the era and grasp the pulse of Chinese social progress. It has built the Party into one that always stands at the forefront of the times, possesses the courage for self-revolution, and maintains a vigorous vitality. It has always encouraged our Party organizations and cadres to keep firmly in mind their original aspiration and founding mission, persevere in heart-and-soul service to the people, and uphold the principle of the "people centered" approach, thereby building the Party into one that always receives the heartfelt support of the people. It has always inspired our Party organizations and cadres to pursue self-improvement, growing more courageous through setbacks and increasingly mature, building the Party into a Marxist political party capable of withstanding the tests of all manner of storms.
The Great Founding Spirit of the Party inspires Chinese Communists to actively conduct ideological exploration and continuously achieve leaps in the Sinicization of Marxism. The Sixth Plenary Session of the 19th CPC Central Committee pointed out that during the period of the New Democratic Revolution, the Chinese Communists, with Comrade Mao Zedong as their chief representative, combined the basic tenets of Marxism-Leninism with China’s concrete realities to create Mao Zedong Thought, pointing out the correct direction for the victory of the New Democratic Revolution. During the period of socialist revolution and construction, Comrade Mao Zedong proposed the "Second Combination," [8] and Mao Zedong Thought was further enriched and developed. Mao Zedong Thought is the creative application and development of Marxism-Leninism in China; it is a synthesis of the correct theoretical principles and experiences concerning the Chinese revolution and construction as proven by practice, and it represents the first historic leap in the Sinicization of Marxism.
After the Third Plenary Session of the 11th CPC Central Committee, the Chinese Communists, with Comrade Deng Xiaoping as their chief representative, profoundly summarized both the positive and negative experiences since the founding of the People's Republic. Focusing on the fundamental questions of what socialism is and how to build it, and by drawing on the historical experience of world socialism, they created Deng Xiaoping Theory. After the Fourth Plenary Session of the 13th CPC Central Committee, the Chinese Communists, with Comrade Jiang Zemin as their chief representative, deepened the understanding of what socialism is and how to build it, and what kind of Party to build and how to build it, forming the Theory of Three Represents. After the 16th National Congress of the CPC, the Chinese Communists, with Comrade Hu Jintao as their chief representative, profoundly recognized and answered major questions such as what kind of development to achieve and how to develop under new circumstances, forming the Scientific Outlook on Development. The Party profoundly realized that to open a new chapter in reform, opening up, and socialist modernization, it must lead the development of the cause through theoretical innovation. Proceeding from new practices and the characteristics of the times, the Party persisted in and developed Marxism, scientifically answering a series of fundamental questions concerning the path, stage, fundamental tasks, driving forces, strategies, political guarantees, national reunification, foreign and international strategies, and the leadership and reliance forces of building socialism with Chinese characteristics. This formed the theoretical system of socialism with Chinese characteristics, achieving a new leap in the Sinicization of Marxism.
Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, the Chinese Communists, with Comrade Xi Jinping as their chief representative, have persisted in combining the basic tenets of Marxism with China’s concrete realities and with China’s fine traditional culture. Upholding Mao Zedong Thought, Deng Xiaoping Theory, the Theory of Three Represents, and the Scientific Outlook on Development, and by profoundly summarizing and fully utilizing the historical experience since the Party’s founding, they proceeded from new realities to create Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era. General Secretary Xi Jinping is the primary founder of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, having proposed a series of original new concepts, thoughts, and strategies for governance concerning major themes of the era: what kind of socialism with Chinese characteristics to uphold and develop in the New Era and how to uphold and develop it; what kind of great modern socialist country to build and how to build it; and what kind of Marxist party that will exercise long-term governance to build and how to build it. Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era is contemporary Chinese Marxism and 21st-century Marxism; it is the essence of Chinese culture and the Chinese spirit in this era, achieving a new leap in the Sinicization of Marxism.
The Great Founding Spirit of the Party embodies the essence of China’s fine traditional culture, revolutionary culture, and advanced socialist culture. On one hand, the gestation, formation, and development of the Great Founding Spirit were nourished by Marxism, especially Sinicized Marxism. On the other hand, the promotion and development of the Great Founding Spirit have greatly advanced the process of the Sinicization of Marxism, facilitating the realization of the three leaps [9] in the Sinicization of Marxism.
The Great Founding Spirit of the Party inspires the Chinese Communist Party to lead the Chinese people in tireless struggle, achieving great accomplishments that shine through the annals of history. The Party has united and led the people of all ethnic groups in promoting the Great Founding Spirit, creating great achievements in four areas: the New Democratic Revolution; socialist revolution and construction; reform, opening up, and socialist modernization; and socialism with Chinese characteristics in the New Era. It has built four milestones: the founding of the CPC; the establishment of the People’s Republic of China; the advancement of reform, opening up, and socialist modernization; and the realization of the First Centenary Goal. It has realized and advanced three great leaps for China and the Chinese nation, and is now welcoming a even greater leap—realizing the great leap from thousands of years of feudal autocracy to people’s democracy; realizing the great leap of a vast, poor, and populous Eastern country marching in giant strides into a socialist society; realizing the historic leap from a life of inadequate food and clothing to overall moderate prosperity and toward the comprehensive completion of a moderately prosperous society, thus advancing the great leap of the Chinese nation from standing up to becoming prosperous; and welcoming the great leap from standing up and becoming prosperous to becoming strong. This has resulted in five areas of historic contributions to the country, the Chinese people, the Chinese nation, scientific socialism, and human society.
In summary, the Great Founding Spirit of the Party emerges from the extraordinary journey of the Party’s creation, yet it has also driven the Party’s century of exploration and struggle and has been tested by the Party’s century of practice. On one hand, it adheres to materialism, emphasizing that practice is the source of knowledge, the basis of its formation, and the driving force of its development. On the other hand, it adheres to dialectics, recognizing the active revolutionary theory of reflection [10] and the counter-action of knowledge upon practice. The Great Founding Spirit is a vivid interpretation of the Party’s original aspiration and founding mission, a "success code" for the Party’s century of struggle, and an inexhaustible spiritual driving force for realizing the historical mission of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. Simultaneously, the Great Founding Spirit itself is being continuously carried forward and amplified under the nourishment of the fruits of Sinicized Marxism and through the tempering of the Party’s Great Struggle, Great Project, Great Cause, and Great Dream. [11] It continuously impels the magnificent cause of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation to roar forward, repeatedly enacting the majestic drama of "matter turning into spirit, and spirit turning into matter," [12] and continuously demonstrating the infinite charm of the Sinicization and modernization of Marxism! We must unite more closely around the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, and under the inspiration of the Great Founding Spirit, stay true to our original aspiration, keep our mission firmly in mind, be willing to make sacrifices, persist in the struggle, and make new and greater contributions to the comprehensive building of a great modern socialist country!
(The author is the former Director of the Institute of Party History and Literature of the CPC Central Committee) Source: Academic Frontiers of Qiushi, 2025, Issue 13. Web Editor: Ma Jingren.