Deeply Perceiving the Power of Truth and the Great Vitality of Practice in Mao Zedong Thought

On the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the profound development of Party history study and education throughout the entire Party, the 8th Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) Mao Zedong Thought Forum convened in Changsha on June 5th. In order to tell the great story of the CPC’s struggle for the happiness of the people and the rejuvenation of the nation, and to push forward the in-depth study of Mao Zedong Thought—especially to further deepen the study of the relationship between Mao Zedong Thought and Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era—the forum was jointly organized by the CASS Marxism Theory Disciplinary Construction and Theory Research Project, the CASS Department of Marxist Studies, the CASS Institute of Marxism Studies, the Hunan Academy of Social Sciences, and the Hunan Association for Marxist Theory Research.

Centered on the theme “Mao Zedong Thought at the Convergence of Two Centuries ^[1],” the forum conducted in-depth discussions from perspectives such as “Xi Jinping’s inheritance and development of Mao Zedong Thought,” “Mao Zedong’s thought on governance,” and “The Century-Old Communist Party of China.” Keynote speeches were delivered by a range of experts and scholars, including Wang Lisheng, Secretary of the Party Committee of the CASS Institute of Philosophy; Yang Mingwei, Director of the Bureau of Foreign Cooperation and Exchange of the Institute of Party History and Literature of the CPC Central Committee; Chang Guangmin, former Director and Senior Editor of the Political Editorial Department of Qiushi magazine; Professor Xue Guangzhou of the Central Party School of the CPC; Xiao Guiqing, Executive Vice President and Professor of the Institute for Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era at Tsinghua University; Yang Fengcheng, Executive Dean and Professor of the Institute of CPC Party History and Party Building at Renmin University of China; Liu Jianwu, Counselor to the Hunan Provincial People’s Government and former Party Secretary and President of the Hunan Academy of Social Sciences; Li Youxin, Director and Professor of the Mao Zedong Thought Research Center at Xiangtan University; Song Zhengrong, Second-level Inspector of the United Front Work Department of the Hunan Provincial Party Committee; Liu Zhiming, Director and Researcher of the Department of Sinicization of Marxism at the CASS Institute of Marxism Studies; He Xinyuan, Deputy Director and Researcher of the Department of Sinicization of Marxism at the CASS Institute of Marxism Studies; Professor Liu Xiaoling of the School of Marxism at Hunan University; Zhu Jidong, Director and Researcher of the Mao Zedong Thought Research Office at the CASS Institute of Marxism Studies; Professor Zuo Yongzhang of the School of Public Administration at Nanjing Normal University; Yang Guoli, Party Branch Secretary and Director of the Mao Zedong Memorial Museum in Shaoshan; and Professor Lu Guochao of the College of Military Management at the National Defense University. More than 120 experts and scholars from various institutions—including the CASS, the Institute of Party History and Literature of the CPC Central Committee, the Central Party School of the CPC, Qiushi magazine, Tsinghua University, Renmin University of China, the National Defense University, the National University of Defense Technology, Xiangtan University, Hunan University of Science and Technology, the Mao Zedong Memorial Museum in Shaoshan, and the Mao Zedong Library in Shaoshan—attended the forum.

Cao Puhua, Party Secretary and President of the Hunan Academy of Social Sciences, pointed out in his address that discussing Mao Zedong Thought at the convergence of two centuries ^[1], profoundly perceiving how Mao Zedong Thought changed China and the world, and deeply feeling the power of truth and the great practical might of Mao Zedong Thought help us to draw nourishment and stimulate the drive for progress. He noted that such efforts allow us to better arm our minds with Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, to guide practice, and to promote research.

Yu Junxiao, Secretary of the Discipline Inspection Commission and Vice President of the CASS Institute of Marxism Studies, elaborated in her speech that Mao Zedong Thought must be studied deeply within the long river of history encompassing Party history, the history of New China, the history of Reform and Opening-up, and the history of socialist development. This approach aims to further clarify the great contributions of Mao Zedong Thought and to deepen the grasp of the laws governing Communist Party governance, the laws of socialist construction, and the laws of human social development ^[2], thereby contributing wisdom and strength to the new journey of comprehensively building a modern socialist country.

Liu Xue, Deputy Director of the Propaganda Department of the Hunan Provincial Party Committee, emphasized in his address the need to profoundly recognize the lofty ideals and convictions of the Chinese Communists, with Comrade Mao Zedong as their chief representative, in order to raise ideological heights and fortify the political soul. He stressed the importance of profoundly recognizing the distinct "people-centered" ^[3] stance of the Chinese Communists represented by Mao Zedong to clarify core values and manifest the commitment to our mission; recognizing the ideological line of seeking truth from facts to draw on precious experience and utilize this "important magic weapon" ^[4]; recognizing the tenacious spirit of struggle to temper political character and undergo practical tempering; recognizing the profound historical thinking to grasp the mainstream essence and follow the laws of development; and recognizing the expansive global vision to grasp world trends and solve the challenges of the times. He called on social science and theoretical workers in Hunan to always maintain deep affection and a strong sense of responsibility and mission, further deepening research on the persistence and development of Mao Zedong Thought by Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, making greater efforts for the prosperity of the philosophy and social sciences.

During the forum, a symposium was also held to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the publication of the Annual Report on Mao Zedong Research. This report, jointly authored by experts from the Hunan Academy of Social Sciences and Hunan University of Science and Technology and published by the People’s Publishing House, is an authoritative publication that summarizes and analyzes the annual status of the field of Mao Zedong studies. It has been published for ten consecutive years. The participating experts and scholars fully affirmed the value of the report and provided valuable suggestions on how to further develop it into a masterpiece in the field of Mao Zedong studies.