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II
How does man’s
cognition arise and develop in social practice? Lenin pointed out: "From
living perception to abstract thought, and from this to practice,–
such is the dialectical path of the cognition of truth, of the
cognition of objective reality." ("Conspectus of Hegel’s Book The Science
of Logic.")
In his On Practice,
Chairman Mao, through analysis of the two leaps in the process of cognition,
profoundly elucidates the materialism and dialectics of the theory of knowledge
and further develops Lenin’s great thinking on the dialectical movement of
cognition. Chairman Mao pointed out: "Knowledge begins with experience
– this is the materialism of the theory of knowledge." "That knowledge
needs to be deepened, that the perceptual stage of knowledge needs to be
developed to the rational stage – this is the dialectics of the theory of
knowledge."
When the phenomena of
the objective world are reflected through his sense organs to man’s brain in
practice and perceptual knowledge is thus formed, this is the first step in
man’s cognition. Negating taking part in practice and negating perceptual
knowledge means negating materialism. But it should be noted that perceptual
knowledge reflects only the phenomena, the separate aspects and the external
relations of things and sometimes even presents a false picture completely
contrary to the essence of things. Chairman Mao has said: "Perception only
solves the problem of phenomena; theory alone can solve the problem of essence."
Conclusions drawn from data based on perceptual experience alone will
inevitably give rise to subjectivity, one-sidedness and superficiality and
cannot correctly and completely reflect objective things. Chairman Mao seriously
criticized the vulgar "practical men," saying they "respect experience but
despise theory, and therefore cannot have a comprehensive view of an entire
objective process, lack clear direction and long-range perspective, and are
complacent over occasional successes and glimpses of the truth. If such persons
direct a revolution, they will lead it up a blind alley." Therefore, all
comrades who have gained experience in their work should pay attention to
preventing and overcoming empiricist tendencies, use Marxism-Leninism-Mao
Tsetung Thought to conscientiously sum up experience and raise it to the level
of rational knowledge.
Chairman Mao pointed
out: "The real task of knowing is, through perception, to arrive at thought,
to arrive step by step at the comprehension of the intemal contradictions of
objective things, of their laws and of the internal relations between one
process and another, that is, to arrive at logical knowledge." Rational
knowledge is characterized by its scientific abstraction, comprehensiveness and
systematism, its reflection of the objective world in a deeper, truer and fuller
way and its reflection of the essence and mainstream of things. Therefore,
rational knowledge is a higher stage in the process of cognition and a more
important stage compared with perceptual knowledge.
The active function
of knowledge manifests itself not only in the leap from perceptual knowledge to
rational knowledge, but – and this is more important – it also
manifests itself in the leap from rational knowledge to revolutionary practice.
The second leap is of greater significance than the first.
The revolutionary
practice of the masses keeps developing. Even correct knowledge must also be
returned to practice and develop continuously with the development of practice.
If correct knowledge is not used to guide practice, it becomes meaningless.
Wang Ming, Liu Shao-chi,
Yang Hsien-chen and those like them denied that theory comes from practice and
its role in guiding revolutionary practice. They even openly made the slander
that the great truth that matter is transformed into consciousness and vice
versa is "idealist." Actually, it was specifically this gang who, proceeding
from idealist apriorism, separated the interrelations and mutual transformation
between consciousness and matter and between thinking and being on the basis of
practice.
In this great work
Chairman Mao specially stressed the guiding role of revolutionary theory in
correctly knowing and changing the world. He pointed out: "From the Marxist
viewpoint, theory is important, and its importance is fully expressed in Lenin’s
statement, ‘Without revolutionary theory there can be no revolutionary
movement.’ But Marxism emphasizes the importance of theory precisely and only
because it can guide action." We must follow Chairman Mao’s teaching Read
and study seriously and have a good grasp of Marxism. This is of great
significance to us, because if we fail to grasp Marxism we will be unable to use
revolutionary theory to guide our action and perceive political swindlers who
proclaim themselves supporters of Marxism but actually oppose Marxism. Wang
Ming, Liu Shao-chi and their bunch dressed themselves up as Marxists to cheat
and bluff persons with a relatively low theoretical level. If we do not
conscientiously study Marxist-Leninist theory, then we might take the false for
the true and regard poisonous weeds as fragrant flowers when such political
swindlers present the false as the true.
In his On Practice
Chairman Mao pointed out: "The struggle of the proletariat and the
revolutionary people to change the world comprises the fulfilment of the
following tasks: to change the objective world and, at the same time, their own
subjective world to change their cognitive ability and change the relations
between the subjective and the objective world." This teaching of Chairman
Mao’s profoundly explains the dialectics of changing the subjective world and
changing the objective world and points out to us the orientation in remoulding
our world outlook.
Man’s struggle to
change the objective world is realized through conscious actions under the
guidance of a certain world outlook. "This change in world outlook is
something fundamental." (On the Correct Handling of Contradictions Among
the People.) Remoulding world outlook means remoulding one into a
thoroughgoing dialectical and historical materialist and a staunch fighter of
continuing the revolution under the dictatorship of the proletariat, making
thinking conform to the objective world’s law of development and to the needs of
the development of the revolutionary situation, and achieving the concrete and
historical unity of the subjective and the objective and of knowledge and
practice. Chairman Mao pointed out: "In the building of a socialist society,
everybody needs remoulding." (On the Correct Handling of Contradictions
Among the People.) Both veteran cadres tested in the prolonged revolutionary
struggle and new cadres who emerged in the tempering of the Great Proletarian
Cultural Revolution have the urgent task of conscientiously remoulding their
world outlook. High-ranking cadres should set still higher demands on themselves
in remoulding their world outlook. Denying the necessity of this remoulding is
actually negating continued revolution under the dictatorship of the proletariat
and negating dialectical materialism and historical materialism.
Remoulding the
subjective world cannot be separated from the struggle to change the objective
world. Marx and Engels pointed out: "In revolutionary activity the changing
of oneself coincides with the changing of circumstances." (The German
Ideology.) The road to remoulding the subjective world lies in integrating
the conscientious study of Marxist-Leninist works and Chairman Mao’s works with
taking part in the three great revolutionary movements. Only by mastering the
weapon of Marxism-Leninism-Mao Tsetung Thought, unconditionally going deep among
the worker and peasant masses for a long time, going deep into practical
struggles and experiencing strenuous tempering can we achieve a relatively
thorough transformation in our thinking and feelings and gradually move our
stand to the side of the proletariat. When one is divorced from practical
struggle and the worker and peasant masses, talking about remoulding one’s
subjective world is out of the question.
Proceeding from
idealist apriorism, Wang Ming, Liu Shao-chi and their like consistently opposed
remoulding world outlook in the course of revolutionary practice. They babbled
that "seeing more and talking more" will "naturally" "foster one’s proletarian
world outlook." According to this fallacy, there is no need at all for people to
take part in the three great revolutionary movements – the struggle for
production, class struggle and scientific experiment – or go among the
masses; as long as they devote themselves to studying the "teachings of
Confucius and Mencius" and "examine themselves three times a day" behind the
closed doors of "studies and academies," they could "cultivate", themselves into
"excellent and politically matured revolutionaries." This is pure nonsense. How
can "revolutionaries" be "cultivated" in this way ? It can only produce
intellectual aristocrats trained by Liu Shao-chi and his gang for restoring
capitalism.
As long as one makes
revolution all his life, one needs to remould his world outlook throughout his
life for it is a long-term task. As class struggle in the socialist period is
prolonged, complex and tortuous, remoulding world outlook must be a prolonged
and arduous task. Once we slacken our efforts to do this, we will be unable to
resist corruption by bourgeois and revisionist ideas and will lose our bearings
and commit serious mistakes. Only by raising the consciousness of remoulding
one’s world outlook, studying revolutionary theory and persisting in
revolutionary practice, and making ourselves a target of revolution and
regarding ourselves as a part of the strength in the revolution can we keep our
thinking in conformity with the everchanging revolutionary situation and march
ahead to guide the chariot of society.
In his great work
On Practice Chairman Mao pointed out to us: "In the present epoch of the
development of society, the responsibility of correctly knowing and changing the
world has been placed by history upon the shoulders of the proletariat and its
party." Studying this teaching of Chairman Mao’s makes us profoundly realize
that the task entrusted to us by history is extremely important, arduous and
glorious. Guided by Marxism-Leninism-Mao Tsetung Thought and with the
revolutionary spirit of seizing the day and seizing the hour, we will make a big
effort to remould our world outlook so as to more effectively change the
objective world, make still more and greater contributions to the Chinese
revolution and the world revolution and advance triumphantly to the great goal
of communism.
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