Shao Wenying: General Secretary Xi Jinping’s Emphasis on the "Unity of Knowledge and Action"
The unity of knowledge and action [1] is the essence of excellent traditional Chinese culture and an important category in traditional Chinese philosophy, profoundly revealing the dialectical unity between cognition and action, thought and reality, and theory and practice. Since the 18th CPC National Congress, General Secretary Xi Jinping has repeatedly emphasized the "unity of knowledge and action," covering various aspects such as Party building, youth education, core values, global governance, and political construction. He has formed a series of important expositions and endowed the "unity of knowledge and action" with new connotations for the New Era.
On January 20, 2014, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized at the summary meeting for the first group and deployment meeting for the second group of the Party's mass line educational practice activity that in implementing the mass line, "knowledge" is the foundation and prerequisite, while "action" is the focus and key. We must promote action through knowledge and promote knowledge through action, effectively achieving the unity of knowledge and action. The relationship between education on the mass line and the construction of the Party's conduct is like that between a "source" and its "stream" [2]. To establish a sound Party spirit and conduct, one must strengthen the awareness of our purpose and practice the mass line. Party members and cadres should implement the mass line with the spirit of the unity of knowledge and action, continuously enhancing their understanding of the mass line on the basis of practice, more consciously establishing the mass viewpoint from the height of Party spirit, and in their actions, "seeking policy advice from the people, asking the people about their needs, and seeking wisdom from the people" [3], doing more good and practical deeds that satisfy the masses. The unity of knowledge and action is an organic whole where the components complement and promote each other. To achieve the organic unity of "knowledge" and "action," we must grasp both study and practice, improve ideological understanding while enhancing conscious action, and resolve problems of conduct while addressing issues of Party spirit. Only by remaining devout and persistent, with deep and profound conviction, can one act with rational consciousness and unwavering determination, continuously strengthening the consciousness and resoluteness of implementing the mass line through deepening understanding and tempering in practice.
On May 4, 2014, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized during a symposium with teachers and students at Peking University that the Way (Dao) cannot be merely discussed while sitting, nor can virtue be talked about in a vacuum. Only by exerting effort in practical areas and working hard on the unity of knowledge and action can core values be internalized as people's spiritual pursuits and externalized as their conscious actions. On May 24, 2014, during an inspection in Shanghai, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized that in cultivating and practicing socialist core values, the priority is to persist in the unity of knowledge and action, ensure that actions speak louder than words, and work hard on meticulousness, granularity, and implementation. Core values are the soul of cultural soft power and the deep-level elements that determine the nature and direction of a culture. Cultivating and practicing socialist core values is a continuous process of "cognition—practice—habituation—consolidation," where the key lies in persisting in the unity of knowledge and action. True and earnest knowledge is where action lies; clear and discerning action is where knowledge lies. We must use educational cognition as the foundation and practical experience as the carrier, employing the method of "gentle breezes and rain, moistening things in silence" [4] to integrate socialist core values into all aspects of social development and life. They should be as ubiquitous as the air, stimulating people's emotional identification with socialist core values so they become the common value pursuit and the "norms of behavior used daily without conscious thought" [5] for all people. They should be both internalized in the heart and externalized in action, achieving a state where there is action within knowledge and knowledge within action.
On September 4, 2016, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized at the 11th G20 Summit: the unity of knowledge and action, and taking pragmatic measures. One realization is better than a thousand promises. We should make the G20 an "action team" rather than a "talk shop." Currently, the international situation is characterized by intertwined chaos and changes, and the changes unseen in a century are accelerating. The global governance system faces unprecedented challenges. In this context, it is particularly important for all countries to unite and cooperate for common development on the basis of mutual respect, openness, inclusiveness, and seeking common ground while reserving differences. Peace and development are the universal aspirations of people in all countries. China combines the concept of the unity of knowledge and action with the reform of the global governance system, advocating for the construction of a new type of international relations and a community with a shared future for humanity, effectively responding to the common concerns and universal anxieties of the world. "The Greatest Way is simple; practical work is paramount" [6]. China actively participates in and leads the reform of the global governance system, improves global economic governance, and enhances the world economy's ability to resist risks. China works hand-in-hand with all countries to create new growth patterns and inject new momentum into world economic development. It aims to revitalize the twin engines of international trade and investment and jointly build an open world economy, promoting inclusive and interconnected development to seek happiness for all humanity and prosperity for the whole world.
On January 11, 2019, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized at the Third Plenary Session of the 19th CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection that strengthening the "Four Awarenesses," [7] firming up the "Four Confidences," [8] and achieving the "Two Upholds" are concrete rather than abstract. Leading cadres, especially high-ranking cadres, must examine, demand of, and check themselves from the perspective of the unity of knowledge and action. Our Party has proposed the "Four Awarenesses," "Four Confidences," and "Two Upholds" as an integrated requirement, reflecting the Party's commitment to placing political construction at the fore and leading all aspects of Party building with the Party's political construction. Taking a clear-cut political stand and attaching great importance to political construction are distinct characteristics and fine traditions of a Marxist party. In the face of major issues of principle and matters of right and wrong, leading cadres—especially high-ranking ones—must maintain a correct political direction, strictly abide by political discipline and rules, and implement the Central Committee's decisions with firm resolution and meticulous detail. They must consciously work on both knowledge and action to achieve their unity. By continuously improving political judgment, political understanding, and political execution, they ensure ideological unity, political solidarity, and consistent action, advancing the Party's various undertakings steadily and for the long term.
On March 1, 2019, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized at the opening ceremony of a training session for young and middle-aged cadres at the Central Party School (National Academy of Governance) that we must keep in mind the principle that "empty talk harms the nation, while practical work prospers the country" [9], persist in the unity of knowledge and action, work with earnest effort, and be practitioners. The unity of knowledge and action, prospering the country through practical work, and opposing empty talk are the principles of governance summarized by Chinese Communists from historical experience and lessons. They have been the key to the Chinese Communist Party leading the people to one victory after another in revolution, construction, and reform, running through the century-long history of the CPC's struggle. Since the 18th CPC National Congress, China has made major achievements in the economic, political, cultural, social, and ecological fields, and has seen major breakthroughs in agriculture, technology, aerospace, and energy engineering. Notably, the elimination of absolute poverty, the complete victory in the battle against poverty, and the comprehensive building of a moderately prosperous society [10] all reflect the CPC's spirit of the unity of knowledge and action and its commitment to earnest work. Empty talk harms the nation, while practical work prospers the country. In the New Era, Chinese Communists will continue to uphold the concept of the unity of knowledge and action, keep pace with the times, pool strength for implementation, and take on responsibilities for a new journey. With self-confidence, self-improvement, and a spirit of forging ahead with enterprise and fortitude, we will persist in seeking results and development through practical work, writing new chapters of the era's development through actual deeds.
On June 2, 2023, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized at the Meeting on Cultural Inheritance and Development that excellent traditional Chinese culture contains many important elements. Examples include social ideals like "the world belongs to the public" [11] and "Great Harmony" [12]; governance ideas like "the people are the foundation of the state" and "governing with virtue"; the tradition of "Great Unity" characterized by a "unified administration across the land" while maintaining "diversity within unity"; the patriotic sentiment of "cultivating oneself, regulating the family, ordering the state, and bringing peace to the world" [13] along with the "responsibility for the rise and fall of the nation"; the spiritual pursuits of "holding the world with great virtue" and "advancing virtue and the Way"; economic ethics of "enriching the people and sustaining life" and "balancing righteousness and profit"; ecological concepts of "unity of heaven and humanity" and "all things growing together"; philosophical thoughts of "seeking truth from facts" and "the unity of knowledge and action"; thinking methods of "grasping the two extremes and using the middle way" [14] and "upholding the mean to achieve harmony"; and ways of social interaction such as "stressing good faith and cultivating harmony" and "being kind to and maintaining good relations with neighbors." These elements together shape the prominent characteristics of Chinese civilization. Excellent traditional Chinese culture is long-standing and profound; it is the "root" and "soul" of the Chinese nation, providing the source-water for the development of Chinese civilization and the fertile cultural soil for the Sinicization and modernization of Marxism. The unity of knowledge and action is an important element of excellent traditional Chinese culture, providing an important ideological foundation for jointly shaping the prominent characteristics of Chinese civilization. Deeply mining the contemporary value and spiritual power of excellent traditional Chinese culture is of profound significance for us as we continue to promote cultural prosperity, build a leading cultural power, and develop the modern civilization of the Chinese nation on the new journey. We must integrate the ideological essence of Marxism with the gems of China's excellent traditional culture, firmly establish the practical viewpoint of the unity of knowledge and action, and consciously promote action through knowledge and seek knowledge through action. Through this unity, we shall realize the value pursuit of "the people above all," create the historical cause of national rejuvenation, and promote the building of a community with a shared future for humanity.