The Connotation and Contemporary Implications of Lenin’s Thought on Socialist State Governance

The Third Plenary Session of the 18th Central Committee of the CPC [1]1 The Third Plenary Session of the 18th Central Committee of the CPC was held in November 2013; it adopted a decision on comprehensively deepening reform. first put forward the concept of “state governance,” establishing “modernizing the state governance system and governance capacity” as the overarching goal of comprehensively deepening reform. The Fourth Plenary Session of the 19th Central Committee of the CPC [2]2 The Fourth Plenary Session of the 19th Central Committee of the CPC was held in October 2019; it focused on upholding and improving the socialist system with Chinese characteristics. adopted the “Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Several Major Issues Concerning Upholding and Improving the Socialist System with Chinese Characteristics and Advancing the Modernization of the State Governance System and Governance Capacity,” marking an overall advance in China’s state governance toward the modernization of the state governance system and governance capacity. At present, as China embarks on a new journey toward the second centenary goal [3]3 The second centenary goal refers to building China into a modern socialist country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced, harmonious, and beautiful by the middle of the 21st century, the 100th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China., the modernization of the state governance system and governance capacity has become a major practical issue. Looking back on the history of world scientific socialism, it is necessary to deeply explore theoretical nourishment from Lenin’s exploration of socialist state governance. This article attempts to take Lenin’s theoretical inquiry into socialist state governance as its foundation, seeking theoretical inspiration and practical implications for the modernization of China’s state governance system and governance capacity.

党的十八届三中全会首次提出“国家治理”这一概念，将“推进国家治理体系和治理能力现代化”确定为全面深化改革的总目标。党的十九届四中全会作出《中共中央关于坚持和完善中国特色社会主义制度、推进国家治理体系和治理能力现代化若干重大问题的决定》,我国国家治理实现了向国家治理体系和治理能力现代建设的整体迈进。当前我国开启迈向第二个百年奋斗目标新征程之际，国家治理体系和治理能力现代化建设成为当前的重大实践课题。回顾世界科学社会主义发展史，有必要从列宁对社会主义国家治理的探索中深入挖掘理论养分。本文尝试以列宁对社会主义国家治理思想的理论探究为基底，探求对中国国家治理体系和治理能力现代化建设的理论启迪与现实启示。

I. The Issue Raised: The Modernization of the Socialist State Governance System and Governance Capacity

一、问题的提出：社会主义国家治理体系和治理能力的现代化建设

The modernization of state governance and governance capacity is an urgent task currently facing China and an inevitable requirement for upholding and developing the socialist system with Chinese characteristics. Lenin, who made outstanding contributions to the birth of the world’s first socialist state, began theoretical reflections on socialist state governance as early as the beginning of the 20th century. Lenin explored and put into practice the first proletarian dictatorship state government of a socialist country in human history, initially forming theoretical prototypes such as industrial construction represented by national electrification, carrying out a “cultural revolution” to cultivate proletarian culture and morality, and attempting the participation of all people in state governance. He put forward the idea that “without learning from the organizers of the trusts, it is impossible to establish or implement socialism.” [4]4 V. I. Lenin, “The Immediate Tasks of the Soviet Government” (1918). “In his dictated ‘political testament,’ Lenin creatively elaborated on the logical path of modernization.” [5]5 The “political testament” refers to a series of articles and letters Lenin dictated in late 1922 and early 1923, including “On Cooperation,” “On the Question of Nationalities or ‘Autonomization,’” and “Letter to the Congress.” Although Lenin was later forced by illness to terminate his continued exploration of socialist state governance, his exploration of Soviet state governance still produced systematic experience and wisdom. Domestic academic circles generally believe that Lenin’s reflections on socialist state governance are an important theoretical source for the modernization of the socialist state governance system and governance capacity, and they have conducted theoretical explorations of Lenin’s thought on socialist state governance from three main perspectives.

国家治理和治理能力现代化建设是我国当前面临的迫切任务，也是坚持和发展中国特色社会主义制度的必然要求。对世界上第一个社会主义国家诞生厥功至伟的列宁，早在20世纪初便开始了对社会主义国家治理的理论思考。列宁探索并实践了人类历史上第一个社会主义国家的无产阶级专政国家政府，初步形成了以国家电气化为代表的工业建设、开展“文化革命”培育无产阶级文化道德、尝试全体人民参与国家治理等理论雏形，提出了“不向托拉斯的组织者学习就不能建立或实施社会主义”的思想。“列宁在其口授的‘政治遗嘱’中，创造性地阐述了关于现代化的逻辑进路。”虽然其后列宁由于疾病缠身而被迫终止对社会主义国家治理的继续探索，但他对苏维埃国家治理的探索，仍然形成了系统的经验和智慧。国内学界普遍认为，列宁对社会主义国家治理的思考是社会主义国家治理体系与治理能力现代化建设的重要理论源泉，并从三个主要方面对列宁的社会主义国家治理思想进行了不同视角的理论探索。

First, a comprehensive exposition of Lenin’s thought on socialist state governance.

第一，对列宁社会主义国家治理思想的全面阐释。

Gu Yulan comprehensively analyzed Lenin’s reflections on socialist state governance, summarizing his achievements in state governance thought, including upholding the Party’s overall leadership, giving play to the principal role of the masses, rule of law, and promoting advanced proletarian culture and communist morality. [6]6 Gu Yulan, “Lenin’s Thought on Socialist State Governance and Its Contemporary Value,” *Studies on Marxism*, no. 2 (2015). Yang Yinyin et al., on the basis of criticizing the class essence and democratic illusion of capitalist state governance, expounded Lenin’s practical approach and ideal blueprint construction for socialist state governance from the aspects of Bolshevik Party leadership, universal participation of the masses, and law-based governance. [7]7 Yang Yinyin and Wang Yonggui, “Lenin’s Thought on Socialist State Governance and Its Implications,” *Journal of Socialist Theory Guide*, no. 8 (2017). Wang Yuxin argued that Lenin’s exploration of socialist state governance manifested in three aspects: the political guarantee of Soviet state governance being Party leadership, its essential requirement being democratic political construction, and its spiritual support being cultural construction. [8]8 Wang Yuxin, “Lenin’s Exploration of Socialist State Governance and Its Contemporary Implications,” *Studies on Lenin*, no. 3 (2018).

顾玉兰全面探析了列宁关于社会主义国家治理的思考，概括了列宁对坚持党的总的领导、发挥人民群众主体作用、法治化、弘扬先进的无产阶级文化与共产主义道德等国家治理思想方面的成果。阳银银等在批判资本主义国家治理的阶级实质与民主幻象基础上，从布尔什维克党的领导、人民群众普遍参与、依法治国等方面，阐释了列宁对社会主义国家治理的实践进路与理想蓝图建构。王钰鑫认为，列宁对社会主义国家治理的探索，表现为苏维埃国家治理的政治保证是党的领导、本质要求是民主政治建设、苏维埃国家治理的精神支撑是文化建设等三个方面。

Second, an analysis of the essence and principles of Lenin’s socialist state governance.

第二，对列宁社会主义国家治理本质和原则的剖析。

Luo Xucheng argued that the dictatorship of the proletariat is the fundamental principle of proletarian state governance, and the leadership and governance of the proletarian political party are the key links in proletarian state governance, with the key being whether the party can correctly, lawfully, and effectively operate state power. [9]9 Luo Xucheng, “The Dictatorship of the Proletariat and Socialist State Governance: Lenin’s Theoretical Contribution,” *Journal of the Party School of the Central Committee of the CPC*, no. 4 (2016). Zhang Qianyuan et al. argued that upholding and correctly realizing the Party’s leadership over national life is an unshakable principle. [10]10 Zhang Qianyuan and Liu Jiangyue, “Lenin’s Thought on the Party’s Leadership of State Governance and Its Contemporary Value,” *Journal of the Party School of the Central Committee of the CPC*, no. 2 (2019). Chen Xingliang argued that Lenin’s ideas of cultivating socialist new people with proletarian culture, training communist successors with “communist morality,” and building socialist state culture through a “cultural revolution” are “the spiritual and intellectual pillars that guided the Soviet people to actively participate in socialist construction during this period.” [11]11 Chen Xingliang, “Lenin’s Thought on Cultural Construction and Socialist State Governance,” *Journal of Socialist Theory Guide*, no. 5 (2018).

罗许成认为，无产阶级专政是无产阶级国家治理的根本原则，无产阶级政党的领导和执政是无产阶级国家治理的关键环节，关键在于政党是否能正确、合法、有效地运作国家的权力。张乾元等认为，坚持和正确实现党对国家生活的领导是不可动摇的原则[7]。陈兴亮认为，列宁以无产阶级文化孕育社会主义新人、以“共产主义道德”培养共产主义接班人、以“文化革命”为契机建设社会主义国家文化等思想，是“引领这个时期苏维埃人民积极投身社会主义建设的精神智力支柱”。

Third, an interpretation of the subjects and measures of Lenin’s state governance.

第三，对列宁国家治理主体、举措等的解读。

Sun Li et al. argued that Lenin’s state-centered governance route pioneered the path of socialist state governance, initiating a state-led governance process for the entire socialist movement. [12]12 Sun Li and Wang Jian, “Lenin’s State-Centered Governance Route and Its Historical Status,” *Studies on Marxism*, no. 6 (2017). Zhang Zhen argued that Lenin’s thought on the Party’s overall leadership has important theoretical significance and reference value for the CPC in upholding and strengthening the Party’s overall leadership in the New Era. [13]13 Zhang Zhen, “Lenin’s Thought on the Party’s Overall Leadership and Its Implications for the New Era,” *Journal of the Party School of the Central Committee of the CPC*, no. 1 (2020). Wang Jianguo explored the embryonic form of Lenin’s law-based governance strategy for socialist state governance from the aspects of the constitution, power supervision, legal implementation, and law-based exercise of power. [14]14 Wang Jianguo, “Lenin’s Thought on Law-Based Governance and Its Implications for China’s Rule of Law Construction,” *Studies on Lenin*, no. 4 (2018). Sun Xiuling studied Lenin’s early state theory and its theoretical contributions, arguing that Lenin “initiated a political science research paradigm for the state issue and scientifically demonstrated the Party spirit principle of philosophy.” [15]15 Sun Xiuling, “Lenin’s Early State Theory and Its Theoretical Contributions,” *Journal of the Party School of the Central Committee of the CPC*, no. 3 (2019).

孙力等认为列宁以国家为中心的治理路线开创了社会主义国家治理的先河，使整个社会主义开始了国家主导的治理进程。张振认为，列宁的党的全面领导思想，对新时代中国共产党坚持和加强党的全面领导具有重要的理论意义和借鉴价值。王建国从宪法、权力监督、法制实施、依法执政等方面，探究了列宁社会主义国家治理的依法治国方略雏形。孙秀玲研究了列宁早期的国家学说及其理论贡献，认为列宁“开创了国家问题的政治学研究范式并科学论证了哲学的党性原则”。

In summary, Lenin’s relevant theories and practical contributions formed the ideological source for exploring the issue of socialist state governance. His series of thoughts on socialist state governance are the theoretical source, institutional template, and practical framework for many later socialist countries in constructing their own state governance systems. Currently, academic research on Lenin’s thought on state governance has achieved considerable results, but there remains significant room for theoretical excavation of Lenin’s state governance thought, for example, exploring the fundamental prerequisite of state governance from the dimension of the dictatorship of the proletariat, exploring the spiritual consciousness of state governance from the perspective of communist cultural guidance, and exploring the value orientation of state governance from the angle of people’s participation methods. At the same time, research combining Lenin’s state governance thought with the achievements and experience already gained in the modernization of China’s state governance system and governance capacity in the New Era is still relatively lacking. Accordingly, this article attempts to explore the connotation and essential meaning of Lenin’s thought on socialist state governance from three aspects—the fundamental prerequisite, spiritual consciousness, and value orientation of state governance—and to uncover its important implications for the modernization of China’s state governance system and governance capacity.

综上可见，列宁的相关理论及其实践贡献，形成了探索社会主义国家治理问题的思想源头，他的系列社会主义国家治理思想是后来诸多社会主义国家建构本国国家治理体系的理论源泉、制度模板和实践框架。目前，学术界对列宁国家治理思想的研究，取得了不少成果，但对列宁国家治理思想的理论挖掘仍有较大空间，比如从无产阶级专政维度探究国家治理的根本前提、从共产主义文化引领视角探究国家治理的精神自觉、从人民参与方式角度探究国家治理的价值旨归等。同时，将列宁的国家治理思想与新时代中国国家治理体系与治理能力现代化建设已取得的成就经验相结合的研究，目前也还相对较为欠缺。据此，本文尝试从国家治理的根本前提、精神自觉、价值旨归三个方面，探讨列宁社会主义国家治理思想的内涵要义，发掘其对中国国家治理体系与治理能力现代化建设的重要启示。

II. The Dictatorship of the Proletariat Is the Fundamental Prerequisite for the Development of Proletarian State Governance

二、无产阶级专政是无产阶级国家治理得以开展的根本前提

“The dictatorship of a class is necessary not only for class society in general, not only for the proletariat which has overthrown the bourgeoisie, but also for the entire historical period between capitalism and ‘classless society,’ i.e., communism.” [16]16 V. I. Lenin, “The State and Revolution” (1917). “Democracy is a form of the state, one of the manifestations of the state… But, on the other hand, democracy signifies the formal recognition of the equality of all citizens, the recognition that all have equal rights to determine the structure of the state and to administer the state.” [17]17 V. I. Lenin, “The State and Revolution” (1917). This is Lenin’s scientific explanation of the relationship between the dictatorship of the proletariat and socialist state governance, indicating that the dictatorship of the proletariat and democracy, as two sides of the same coin organically unified, can not only deprive the exploiters and eliminate the basis for the existence of classes but also serve as a necessary form for organizing the masses to participate in state governance and promoting the continued development of productive forces. In essence, the existence of the democratic dictatorship of the proletariat is a dialectical unity of conformity with laws and conformity with purposes, and it is even more so the fundamental prerequisite for the functioning of the proletariat’s state governance functions.

“一个阶级的专政不仅对一般阶级社会是必要的，不仅对推翻了资产阶级的无产阶级是必要的，而且对介于资本主义和‘无阶级社会’即共产主义之间的整整一个历史时期都是必要的。”“民主是国家形式，是国家形态的一种……但另一方面，民主意味着在形式上承认公民一律平等，承认大家都有决定国家制度和管理国家的平等权利。”这是列宁对无产阶级专政与社会主义国家治理之间关系的科学阐释，表明无产阶级专政与民主作为一体两面的有机统一，不仅可以剥夺剥削者、消灭阶级存在的基础，而且是组织人民群众参与国家治理、推动生产力继续发展的必要形式。质言之，无产阶级专政民主的存在是合规律性与合目的性的辩证统一，更是无产阶级国家治理职能得以发挥的根本前提。

(I) The Dictatorship of the Proletariat Is the Fundamental Principle of Socialist State Governance

(一)无产阶级专政是社会主义国家治理的根本原则

By defending and developing the Marxist doctrine on the transitional period of the dictatorship of the proletariat, Lenin held that after the successful proletarian revolution, what is established is a socialist state of the dictatorship of the proletariat. At this time, the proletariat still needs to perform the functions of social governance and public administration of the dictatorship of the proletariat through the form of the “state,” so as to continue to advance the development of social productive forces. “The state is still needed to safeguard the common ownership of the means of production, and to safeguard the equality of labor and the equality in the distribution of products.” [18]18 V. I. Lenin, *The State and Revolution*, *Collected Works*, Vol. 31, p. 89. (Approximate reference; the exact phrasing is from Lenin’s critique of the Gotha Programme context.) It can be said that “the fundamental question of any revolution is that of state power.” [19]19 V. I. Lenin, *The State and Revolution*, *Collected Works*, Vol. 31, p. 17. Only when the proletariat seizes state power can it carry out socialist state governance in the true sense. Regarding the form of realization of the dictatorship of the proletariat, Lenin believed that the future state power of the proletariat would no longer be a bureaucratic government, but a government of action like the Commune. [20]20 Reference to the Paris Commune of 1871, which Lenin held up as a model for the proletarian state. Lenin advocated for the establishment of a “practical” and “cheap” governance-oriented government in the socialist state, mainly for the following reasons: first, a “practical” government is an equal government organization established after smashing the old state machine, abolishing bureaucratic privileges, and eliminating the hierarchical system; second, a “practical” government is a government of the people, which for the first time unites the oppressed and exploited workers and peasants to participate in state management, establishing state organs that are responsible to the people, subject to their supervision, and can be recalled at any time through popular elections; third, a “cheap” government is one that can reduce operating costs and lighten the people’s burden. The proletarian government practices strict economy in political, legal, personnel, and material aspects to reduce costs, with public officials’ salaries being roughly equivalent to those of ordinary workers, thereby internalizing the proletarian attribute of public officials from the economic base and depriving them of the material basis to stand above the people. In Lenin’s theory of socialist state governance, the dictatorship of the proletariat must exist in the first phase of communism; only such a dictatorship can ensure the political power and interests of the masses and enable more people to truly participate in state governance.

列宁通过对马克思主义无产阶级专政过渡时期学说的捍卫与发展，认为无产阶级革命成功后建立的是无产阶级专政的社会主义国家]。此时的无产阶级还需要通过“国家”这一形式履行无产阶级专政政权的社会治理与公共管理职能，以推动社会生产力继续向前发展，“还需要有国家在保卫生产资料公有制的同时来保卫劳动的平等和产品分配的平等”,可以说，“一切革命的根本问题是国家政权问题”,只有无产阶级掌握了国家政权，才能进行真正意义上的社会主义国家治理。对于无产阶级专政的实现形式，列宁认为，未来的无产阶级国家政权不再是官僚政府，而是像公社那样的实干政府。列宁推崇社会主义国家建立“实干”“廉价”的治理型政府，主要原因是：其一，“实干”型政府是在打碎旧的国家机器、取消官僚特权、废除等级制后建立的人人平等的政府组织；其二，“实干”型政府是人民的政府，它第一次把受压迫受剥削的工农群众联合起来参与国家管理，通过人民投票选举并建立对人民负责、受人民监督并可以随时撤换的国家机关；其三，“廉价”政府就是能够降低运行成本、减轻人民负担的政府，无产阶级政府从政治、法律、人员、物资等方面厉行节约，降低成本，公职人员与普通工人工资水平相当，从经济基础上内化公职人员的无产阶级属性，使其不具备凌驾于人民之上的物质基础。在列宁的社会主义国家治理理论中，共产主义第一阶段必须有无产阶级专政的存在，只有这样的专政才能确保人民群众的政权和利益,才能使更多的人民真正参与到国家治理中来。

(II) Leadership by the Proletarian Political Party Is the Essential Feature of Socialist State Governance

(二)无产阶级政党领导是社会主义国家治理的本质特征

In Lenin’s view, upholding the Party’s leadership is determined by the Party’s nature, required by its new status, dictated by the historical mission of the working class, and is a summary of the experience of the Russian revolutionary struggle. The practice of socialist construction in the Soviet Union led Lenin to recognize that the time was not yet ripe for workers to directly manage the state; it was still necessary for “the Communist Party, the vanguard of the class-conscious workers, to lead.” [21]21 V. I. Lenin, *Report on the Role and Tasks of the Trade Unions*, *Collected Works*, Vol. 32, p. 20. Under this major premise, “the task of the Party is to exercise general leadership over the work of all state organs,” [22]22 V. I. Lenin, *On the Tasks of the People’s Commissariat for Justice under the New Economic Policy*, *Collected Works*, Vol. 33, p. 326. that is, the unity of political leadership, ideological leadership, and organizational leadership.

在列宁看来，坚持党的领导，是由党的性质决定的，是新的地位所要求的，也是由工人阶级的历史使命决定的，是俄国革命斗争经验的总结。苏联社会主义建设实践让列宁认识到工人直接管理国家的时机还不够成熟，尚需“由工人阶级觉悟的先锋队共产党领导”。在这个大前提下，“党的任务则是对所有国家机关的工作进行总的领导”,即政治领导、思想领导、组织领导的统一。

First, Lenin proposed realizing the political leadership of the proletarian party. The task of political leadership is to determine the direction, path, and major principles of the development of state power construction, including the content of the activities of state organs and organizations, as well as the relationships among various organs of state power and the supervision of state work. [23]23 V. I. Lenin, *On the Tasks of the People’s Commissariat for Justice under the New Economic Policy*, *Collected Works*, Vol. 33, p. 327. At the same time, it involves “raising the political consciousness” and political awareness of the proletariat and guiding non-proletarians to change their political stance. [24]24 V. I. Lenin, *What Is to Be Done?*, *Collected Works*, Vol. 5, p. 369. To summarize, Lenin’s “political leadership” has two implications: first, the Party ensures through political leadership that construction activities always adhere to the socialist direction and aim for the communist goal; the Party realizes its leadership over all state work by leading state organs and formulating programs, strategies, and lines concerning the socialist cause; second, it guides and enhances the political awareness and consciousness of the proletariat, facilitates the transformation of the political stance of non-proletarians, establishes firm socialist convictions, and enables the masses to recognize the correctness of the Party’s and the state’s policies and to understand and implement them.

首先，列宁提出要实现无产阶级政党的政治领导。政治领导的任务是决定国家政权建设的发展方向、道路和重大原则，包括国家机关和组织活动的内容，及各政权机关的关系和对国家政权工作的监督[7],同时“提高无产阶级的政治意识”和政治觉悟，引导非无产阶级转变政治立场[22]。总结起来，列宁所说的“政治领导”有两方面意蕴：其一，党通过政治领导保证建设活动始终以社会主义为方向、以共产主义为目标，党通过对国家机关的领导、制定事关社会主义事业的纲领、策略、路线等实现党对所有国家工作的领导；其二，引导和提高无产阶级的政治意识和政治觉悟、促成非无产阶级的政治立场转变，树立坚定的社会主义信念，使群众认识到党和国家政策的正确性并得到理解和执行。

Second, realize the Party’s organizational leadership over various aspects of national life. On the one hand, give full play to the Party’s comprehensive leadership over the political, economic, cultural, and social life of the state. The newly established Soviet socialist state faced issues such as consolidating the dictatorship of the proletariat, continuing to develop social productive forces, safeguarding the various interests of the broad masses, and ensuring the forward direction of socialism and communism. To this end, as early as 1922, Lenin proposed that “the task of the Party is to exercise general leadership over the work of all state organs,” [25]25 V. I. Lenin, *On the Tasks of the People’s Commissariat for Justice under the New Economic Policy*, *Collected Works*, Vol. 33, p. 326. which was conducive to the smooth progress of the Party’s various tasks and also helped improve the Party’s leadership capacity and work efficiency. On the other hand, build a strong organizational fortress of the Party. First, improve the Party’s organizational structure and expand its membership, because the Party’s membership directly affects the degree, intensity, and effectiveness of the implementation of the Party’s programs and policies; second, make great efforts to train and educate Party cadres and all Party members, cultivating a large number of cadres and Party members with correct political stances, high levels of Marxist theoretical proficiency, outstanding management capabilities, and strong professional and technical skills, thereby providing a solid organizational foundation for the Party’s leadership over work in various fields.

其次，实现党对国家各种生活的组织领导。一方面，发挥党对国家政治、经济、文化、社会等各种生活的全面领导。刚刚成立的苏维埃社会主义国家面临着巩固无产阶级专政、推动社会生产力继续发展、维护广大人民群众各项利益、保障社会主义和共产主义的前进方向等问题，为此，列宁早在1922年便提出“党的任务则是对所有国家机关的工作进行总的领导”,这样才有利于党的各项工作开展，同时也有助于党的领导能力与工作效率提升。另一方面，构建强大的党的组织堡垒。一是健全党的组织机构扩充党的队伍，因为党的队伍直接影响党的纲领政策贯彻落实的程度、力度、效度；二是花大力气对党的干部和全体党员进行培养教育，培养大批政治立场正确、马克思主义理论水平高深、管理能力超群、专业技术能力过硬的干部和党员，使党对各个领域工作的领导具备坚实的组织基础。

Third, realize ideological leadership over Party cadres and all the people. As early as the autumn of 1901, Lenin elucidated the theoretical struggle strategy and propaganda and ideological work methods of the proletarian party in *What Is to Be Done?* [26]26 *What Is to Be Done?* (1902) is a key work by Lenin on the role of the vanguard party and the necessity of revolutionary theory. When the dictatorship of the proletariat was first established, various non-proletarian ideologies and bourgeois vestiges still existed, and socialist and communist cultural thought could not quickly form a leading trend nationwide. To reverse this situation, Lenin proposed strengthening ideological guidance for the proletarian party, such as by compiling and publishing Marxist and socialist theoretical works, leveraging the role of Party schools, etc., to conduct ideological education for all the people, especially Party cadres, consolidate the Party’s ideological and theoretical foundation, and cultivate socialist new people guided by proletarian ideology throughout society.

第三，实现对党员干部及全体人民的思想领导。早在1901年秋，列宁就在《怎么办?》中阐明了无产阶级政党的理论斗争策略以及宣传思想工作方法。无产阶级专政刚刚建立时，各种非无产阶级思想、资产阶级遗风等还存在，社会主义与共产主义文化思想无法迅速在全国形成引领之势。为了扭转这一情势，列宁提出对无产阶级政党加强思想引领，如通过编印出版马克思主义与社会主义理论著作、发挥党校的作用等对全体人民特别是党员干部进行思想教育，夯实党的思想理论根基，在全社会培养以无产阶级思想意识为指引的社会主义新人。

(III) Law-Based Governance Is the Basic Strategy of Socialist State Governance

(三)依法治国是社会主义国家治理的基本方略

From the practice of socialism, Lenin recognized that the rule of law is an indispensable and important support for the proletarian state in governing the country. Only socialist rule of law that is fundamentally consistent with socialist democracy can reflect the interests and demands of the proletariat and the broad working masses. [27]27 V. I. Lenin, *The State and Revolution*, *Collected Works*, Vol. 31, p. 79. Without the protection of legal procedures and laws and regulations, the dictatorship of the proletariat could degenerate into a tool of privilege for a minority group, and socialist democracy could become a mirage. In view of this, Lenin believed that the rule-of-law approach based on the construction of socialist rule of law is an effective strategy for socialist state governance. Only by organically combining the dictatorship of the proletariat with the rule of law can the disorder and chaos resulting from a lack of legal discipline and the autocracy resulting from a lack of democracy be avoided.

列宁从社会主义实践中认识到，法治是无产阶级国家治国理政不可或缺的重要依托，只有与社会主义民主根本一致的社会主义法治，才能体现无产阶级和广大劳动人民的利益诉求[3]。如若没有法治程序与法律法规的保驾护航，无产阶级专政可能沦为少数群体的特权工具，社会主义民主也可能沦为海市蜃楼。鉴于此，列宁认为，以社会主义法治建设为基础的法治方式是社会主义国家治理的有效方略，无产阶级专政与法治有机结合，方能避免缺乏法治规训的无序混乱与缺乏民主的专制。

Lenin explored the rule-of-law approach to socialist state governance from the aspects of law-making, enforcement, and supervision. On the one hand, based on the principle that “in the absence of corresponding decrees or when decrees are incomplete, the laws of the overthrown government should be discarded, and the socialist legal consciousness should be followed,” [28]28 V. I. Lenin, *Draft Decree on the Courts*, *Collected Works*, Vol. 26, p. 281. constitutions and laws reflecting the will of the proletariat were formulated to standardize socialist legislation, law enforcement, and judiciary. Under Lenin’s advocacy, the first socialist constitution was formulated and promulgated, establishing the socialist nature of the state under the dictatorship of the proletariat, establishing an electoral system granting equal suffrage to all citizens within the territory, and ensuring that the people enjoy extensive rights to reflect the principle of popular sovereignty. On the other hand, Lenin emphasized strict implementation of all socialist laws after legislation. He demanded that Party and state organs at all levels, starting with Party cadres, uphold the dignity and authority of socialist laws, that law enforcement agencies strictly enforce the law and administer justice impartially, and that the people consciously abide by the law. Lenin also proposed that the exercise of supervisory functions both inside and outside the Party is an important link in ensuring that state governance is carried out in accordance with laws and regulations. To ensure the rule of law in state governance, it was necessary to “let the broad masses of non-Party people inspect all state work and learn to manage themselves.” [29]29 V. I. Lenin, *How to Organize Competition?*, *Collected Works*, Vol. 26, p. 404. To this end, Lenin presided over the formulation of the *Regulations on Workers’ Control* and reorganized the Workers’ and Peasants’ Inspectorate, etc., to ensure the people’s supervision over the rule of law in socialist state governance, providing an important guarantee for the legalization of socialist state governance.

列宁从法律制定、执行、监督等环节探索了社会主义国家治理的法治方式。一方面，以“在没有相应的法令或法令不完备时，要屏弃已被推翻的政府的法律，而遵循社会主义的法律意识”[24]为原则，制定体现无产阶级意志的宪法和法律，规范社会主义立法、执法、司法。在列宁的倡导下，制定并颁布了第一部社会主义宪法，确立了无产阶级专政国家的社会主义性质，确立了全境公民享有平等选举权的选举制度，保障人民享有广泛权利以体现人民主权原则。另一方面，强调立法之后严格贯彻执行社会主义各项法律，列宁要求党和国家机关各级部门应该从党员干部做起，维护社会主义法律的尊严与权威，各执法机关严格执法、公正司法，人民自觉守法。列宁还提出，党内外监督职能的发挥，是保障国家治理依法依规开展的重要环节。为保障国家治理的法治化，必须“让广大的非党群众来检查一切国家工作，学会自己管理”[25],列宁为此主持制定了《工人监督条例》、改组了工农检察院等，以保障人民对社会主义国家治理法治化的监督，为社会主义国家治理的法治化提供了重要保障。

III. Proletarian Culture Is the Spiritual Consciousness for Enhancing Socialist State Governance

三、无产阶级文化是提升社会主义国家治理的精神自觉

In his practice of leading the exploration of proletarian state governance, Lenin discovered that exceptionally backward culture and morality had become the greatest obstacle to the effective conduct of state governance. He said: “We know full well what the cultural backwardness of Russia means, and what effect it has on the Soviet government; the Soviet government in principle has introduced a proletarian democracy that is incomparably higher than any other, and has set an example of such democracy for the whole world, but this cultural backwardness has limited the role of the Soviet government and revived bureaucracy.” To ensure that the construction of Soviet society always adhered to the socialist orientation, to shake off the pernicious influence of bourgeois decadent culture, and to raise the scientific level of state governance, it was necessary to be guided by an advanced, correct, and scientific proletarian culture and communist culture, “to raise cultural and technical education to a higher level, which is exceptionally necessary to ensure the success of the entire Soviet construction.” [26]26 *What Is to Be Done?* (1902) is a key work by Lenin on the role of the vanguard party and the necessity of revolutionary theory.

列宁在领导探索无产阶级国家治理的实践中，发现异常落后的文化道德已成为国家治理有效开展的最大阻碍，他说：“我们深深知道，俄国文化不发达是什么意思，它对苏维埃政权有什么影响；苏维埃政权在原则上实行了高得无比的无产阶级民主，对全世界作出实行这种民主的榜样，可是这种文化上的落后却限制了苏维埃政权的作用并使官僚制度复活。”要保证苏维埃社会建设始终坚持社会主义方向，摆脱资产阶级腐朽文化的不良影响，提高国家治理的科学水平，就需要以先进、正确、科学的无产阶级文化和共产主义文化为指导，“使文化和技术教育进一步上升到更高的阶段，是保证整个苏维埃建设获得成功所异常必需的”[26]。

(I) Cultivating the Cultural and Moral Foundation of Soviet Socialist State Governance with Communist Culture

(一)以共产主义文化培育苏维埃社会主义国家治理的文化道德基础

The reason Lenin emphasized the important position of proletarian and communist culture and morality in state governance came, on the one hand, from Marx and Engels’ thought on culture, morality, and social development, and on the other hand, from his concern about the cultural deficiency in the development of Soviet socialist construction and state governance. After the establishment of the Soviet government, the state urgently needed to establish Soviet socialist state institutions and organize the restoration of production, but the people of the Soviet state at that time had not yet formed a conscious awareness of proletarian and communist culture commensurate with carrying out socialist production and establishing new relations of production. In Lenin’s view, to advance the communist cause, it was necessary to cultivate and promote communist morality; while promoting the development of various socialist undertakings in Soviet Russia and realizing social transformation, it was also necessary to reconstruct the cultural system of Soviet society, using positive and advanced proletarian culture and morality to eliminate the pernicious influence of backward and decadent capitalist culture on the entire society, and to cultivate state organ workers and socialist builders who possessed proletarian culture and communist morality.

列宁之所以强调无产阶级和共产主义文化道德在国家治理中的重要地位，一方面来自马克思恩格斯关于文化道德与社会发展的思想，另一方面来自对苏维埃社会主义建设事业发展和国家治理中文化匮乏的担忧。在苏维埃政权建立后，国家亟须建立苏维埃社会主义国家机构，组织恢复生产，而当时的苏维埃国家人民尚未形成与进行社会主义生产、建立新的生产关系等相匹配的无产阶级和共产主义文化意识自觉。在列宁看来，要推进共产主义事业，就必须培育和弘扬共产主义道德,在促进苏俄社会主义各项事业发展、实现社会转型的同时，重构苏俄社会的文化体系,以积极、先进的无产阶级文化道德消解落后腐朽的资本主义文化对整个社会的不良影响，培养拥有无产阶级文化、共产主义道德的国家机关工作人员与社会主义建设者。

To this end, “learning communism” became the primary task of Soviet cultural construction at that time. Lenin said: “Proletarian culture must be the logical development of the sum total of knowledge accumulated by mankind under the oppression of capitalist, landlord, and bureaucratic society.” He emphasized that to build a socialist state and advance the communist cause, it was necessary to actively cultivate and practice communist morality, because “we must also subordinate our communist morality to this task. We say: morality serves to destroy the old exploiting society and to unite all working people around the proletariat, which is creating a new communist society. Communist morality is the morality that serves this struggle… Morality serves to raise human society to a higher level, to free it from the exploitation of labor.” In summary, Marxist theory, proletarian culture, and communist morality provided ideological guidance for socialist state governance, intrinsically stipulating the nature of the dictatorship of the proletariat to guarantee the people’s principal position as masters of the country, to establish a new communist society of equality and mutual assistance, to eliminate the alienation of labor, to eliminate the alienation of the state, and to safeguard the interests of all the people. They provided state governance and public administration with an advanced, disciplined, conscious, combative, anti-exploitation, and united culture and morality, jointly constituting the spiritual consciousness of socialist state governance and the spiritual driving force for the people’s participation in socialist state governance.

为此，“学习共产主义”成为当时苏维埃文化建设的首要任务。列宁说：“无产阶级文化应当是人类在资本主义社会、地主社会和官僚社会压迫下创造出来的全部知识合乎规律的发展。”他强调要建设社会主义国家、推进共产主义事业，必须积极培育践行共产主义道德，因为“我们也要使我们的共产主义道德服从这个任务。我们说：道德是为摧毁剥削者的旧社会、把全体劳动者团结到创立共产主义者新社会的无产阶级周围服务的。共产主义道德是为这个斗争服务的道德……道德是为人类社会上升到更高的水平，为人类社会摆脱对劳动的剥削服务的”。概而言之，马克思主义理论、无产阶级文化、共产主义道德为社会主义国家治理提供了思想指引，内在规定了无产阶级专政保障人民当家作主的主体地位、建立平等互助的共产主义新社会、摆脱劳动异化、消除国家异化、维护全体人民利益的性质，为国家治理与公共管理提供了先进的、纪律的、自觉的、斗争的、反剥削的、团结的文化道德，共同构成了社会主义国家治理的精神自觉与人民参与社会主义国家治理的精神动力。

(II) Cultivating the Cadre Contingent and Professional Talents Needed for State Governance through Political Education

(二)通过政治教育培养国家治理需要的党员干部队伍以及专业人才

At the beginning of the establishment of the Soviet socialist state, there was a large gap in the number of Party cadres and state organ workers who possessed a solid foundation in Marxist theory, firm communist convictions, and relatively strong management and service capabilities. Lenin said: “We must recruit our own administrators from our own class.” It was necessary to cultivate and select Party cadres and state functionaries who were guided by Marxist theory as their ideological guide, took communist ideals as their goal of struggle, and possessed a certain level of management knowledge, ability, and scientific culture.

苏维埃社会主义国家建立之初需要的马克思主义理论功底扎实、共产主义信仰坚定、管理服务能力较强的党员干部和国家机构工作人员存在大量缺口。列宁说：“我们应当从本阶级队伍中征集自己的管理人员。”要培养选用以马克思主义理论为思想引领、以共产主义理想为奋斗目标的、具有一定管理知识能力与科学文化水平的党员干部与国家机关公职人员。

First, it was necessary to cultivate a vanguard of the proletariat and its leading cadre contingent with firm political convictions, a solid foundation in Marxist theory, and a high level of management ability. Political education activities with Marxist theory, proletarian culture, and communist morality as the main content were carried out to cultivate the proletarian outlook and communist ideals of Party cadres, making them the guiding ideology and spiritual cohesion for directing Party cadres and state organ workers in state governance. Lenin put forward strict requirements for the organizational construction of the Party, demanding strict control over the entry gate for admitting Party members and regularly “purging” undesirable elements who had infiltrated the Party. These ideas of Lenin formed the basic system of political construction, organizational construction, and disciplinary construction of the proletarian party, with the goal of establishing the Party’s comprehensive leadership over the socialist cause.

首先，要培养一支政治信仰坚定、马克思主义理论功底扎实、管理水平较高的无产阶级先锋队及其领导干部队伍。开展以马克思主义理论、无产阶级文化、共产主义道德为主要内容的政治教育活动，培养党员干部的无产阶级观念和共产主义理想，让其成为指导党员干部、国家机关工作人员进行国家治理的指导思想与精神凝聚。列宁对党员的组织建设提出严格要求，要求严把吸收党员的入口关，定期对混进党内的不良分子进行“清洗”。列宁的这些设想，形成了无产阶级政党以建立党对社会主义事业的全面领导为目标的政治建设、组织建设、纪律建设的基本体系。

Second, combining quality and quantity, outstanding state functionaries were to be selected and cultivated. In his work “Better Fewer, But Better,” Lenin specifically expressed his position on the selection of personnel for socialist state organs: only those who are single-mindedly striving for socialism, who are knowledgeable, educated, and trained, can be used to build the Soviet socialist state organs; for the sake of the socialist cause, all kinds of professional talents should be vigorously cultivated, and people with truly modern qualities should be concentrated in the state organs. Regarding the criteria for selecting personnel in state organs, Lenin believed that strict examination and selection were necessary, and that state functionaries such as those in the Workers’ and Peasants’ Inspection should also meet conditions such as passing knowledge tests on state organ management theory and office systems, and being recommended by several Communist Party members. In addition to strict selection, Lenin also proposed that the selected state functionaries should undergo long-term training. To achieve the task of socialist renewal of state organs, the first was study, the second was study, and the third was still study, and then inspection; study was not simply school-style learning, but should also be combined with professional work. For state organs, Lenin believed that, as with the Party, strict economy should be practiced, and all wasteful phenomena left over from capitalism should be eradicated. These considerations were also very much in line with Lenin’s standard of a “cheap government.”

其次，质量与数量相结合，选拔培养优秀的国家机关公职人员。列宁在《宁肯少些，但要好些》中特别表明他对社会主义国家机关用人的立场：只有一心为社会主义奋斗的人，有知识的、受过教育和训练的人，才能用来建立苏维埃社会主义国家机关；为了社会主义事业要大力培养各类专业人才，把真正具有现代素质的人才集中到国家机关中来。在机关选人标准方面，列宁认为需要通过严格考核选拔，而像工农检察院等国家机关公职人员还应该具备通过关于国家机关管理理论和办公制度等知识测试、由几名共产党员推荐等条件。除了严格选拔外，列宁还提出应该对选拔出的机关公职人员进行长期培养。要实现国家机关的社会主义革新的任务，第一是学习，第二是学习，第三还是学习，然后是检查；学习不是单纯的学校式的学习，还应与业务结合起来学习。对于国家机关，列宁认为应该像对党员一样厉行节约，把资本主义遗留的一切浪费现象铲除干净，这些思考也非常符合列宁的“廉价政府”标准。

IV. Participation of the Entire People Is the Value Goal of Socialist State Governance Thought

四、全体人民参与是社会主义国家治理思想的价值旨归

Lenin inherited the theoretical core of the thought of “people’s subjectivity,” insisting that the masses of the people are the true creators of history and the decisive force in social change. He believed that with the continuous development of political revolution and social revolution, the masses of the people would participate more and more extensively in the history of promoting social development. It was necessary to awaken the people’s consciousness of their own subjective role in promoting historical development, so that the people fully recognize that they are the masters of the country, and that the affairs of the people’s country need to be managed and resolved by the people themselves. This also became the value goal of Lenin’s conception of enabling the masses of the people to participate in state governance and supervise the Party and state organs through new socialist forms of democracy.

列宁承袭了“人民主体性”思想的理论内核，坚持人民群众是历史的真正创造者、是社会变革的决定性力量，认为随着政治革命与社会革命的不断发展，人民群众将越来越广泛地参与到推动社会发展的历史中来，需要唤醒人民对自己推动历史发展主体作用的意识觉醒，让人民充分认识到他们是国家的主人，人民国家的事务需要人民自主管理解决，这也成为列宁构想让人民群众通过社会主义新型民主形式参与国家治理、监督党与国家机关等国家治理活动的价值旨归。

(I) Proletarian Democracy Is a New Form of Democracy for People’s Participation in State Governance

(一)无产阶级民主是人民参与国家治理的新型民主形式

Lenin made a very apt metaphor, likening “democracy” and “dictatorship” to “twin brothers,” holding that when speaking of “democracy” one cannot fail to speak of “dictatorship,” and when speaking of “dictatorship” one cannot neglect “democracy.” The practice of Soviet socialism further proved that only by realizing proletarian democracy can it become possible for the people to participate in the governance of a socialist state. On the one hand, direct democracy, in which the people participate directly, embodies the people-centered nature of socialist state governance. In Lenin’s view, “the working masses truly becoming the builders and managers of a socialist state is forever the ultimate goal and highest pursuit of all proletarians in building and managing a socialist society.” To fully guarantee the direct participation of the people, Lenin envisioned that the selection of Soviet state organs and their public officials should implement the same direct elections as the Paris Commune, granting the masses the right to directly elect, supervise, and recall Soviet public officials, as well as the right to directly participate in organizing, managing, and supervising production and other state governance activities. On the other hand, the indirect democratic form of “the Party representing the people in management” proved in practice to be more suited to the reality of Soviet socialist state governance. The universally backward cultural level of the Russian people led to a lack of political participation awareness and relevant managerial capabilities among the masses; only by absorbing the vanguard of the proletarian revolution could this democracy be realized [5]5 The “political testament” refers to a series of articles and letters Lenin dictated in late 1922 and early 1923, including “On Cooperation,” “On the Question of Nationalities or ‘Autonomization,’” and “Letter to the Congress.”. Thereafter, Lenin combined direct democracy with indirect democracy and proposed a new type of socialist democracy, one that is democracy for the majority, democracy for the oppressed, comprehensive democracy, substantive democracy, and genuine democracy, as opposed to the false democracy of capitalism, which is “a paradise for the rich, a trap and a swindle for the exploited and the poor.” Lenin’s exploration of this new type of socialist democracy laid and consolidated the class foundation of Soviet power and also provided ideas for enhancing the effectiveness of socialist state governance.

列宁作了一个十分巧妙的比喻，他将“民主”和“专政”喻为“孪生兄弟”,认为讲“民主”时不能不讲“专政”,讲“专政”时不能忽视“民主”。苏维埃社会主义的实践，更是证明了只有实现无产阶级民主，才能使人民参与社会主义国家治理成为可能。一方面，人民直接参与的直接民主体现了社会主义国家治理的人民主体性。在列宁看来，“劳动群众真正能够成为社会主义国家的建设者和管理者，永远是所有无产阶级进行社会主义社会建设和管理的最终目标和最高追求”。为了充分保障人民的直接参与，列宁构想苏维埃国家机关及其公职人员的产生，应该实行与巴黎公社同样的直接选举，赋予人民群众直接选举、监督和罢免苏维埃公职人员及直接参与组织、管理、监督生产等国家治理行为的权利。另一方面，“党代表人民管理”的间接民主形式，在实践中被证实更符合苏维埃社会主义国家治理的现实。俄国人民普遍落后的文化水平导致人民政治参与意识、相关管理能力等缺乏，只有吸收了无产阶级革命的先锋队，才能实现这种民主[5]。此后，列宁将直接民主与间接民主相结合，提出了一种全新的社会主义新型民主，这一民主是多数人的民主、被压迫者的民主、全面的民主、实质的民主、真正的民主，而不是资本主义“对富人是天堂，对被剥削者、对穷人是陷阱和骗局”的虚假民主。列宁对社会主义新型民主的探索，奠定巩固了苏维埃政权的阶级基础，也为提升社会主义国家治理效能提供了思路。

(II) People’s Supervision as the Embodiment of the People’s Subjectivity in Participating in Socialist State Governance

(二)人民监督是人民参与社会主义国家治理的主体性体现

“Socialism is not something that a minority, not something that a single party, can implement. It can be implemented only when hundreds of millions of people learn to do it themselves.” The proletarian state should be managed by millions of people themselves, so that “the masses have the right to choose their own responsible leaders, the right to replace them, the right to know about and supervise every small step of their activities” [33]. This is Lenin’s conception of the people participating in state governance through supervising the performance of functions by state organs.

“社会主义不是少数人，不是一个党所能实施的。只有千百万人学会亲自做这件事的时候，他们才能实施社会主义”,无产阶级国家应由千百万人民自行管理，使“群众有权为自己选择负责的领导者。有权更换他们，有权了解和监督他们活动的每一个小步骤”[33],这便是列宁设想的人民通过监督国家机关职能履行而参与国家治理的构想。

The role of the masses in supervision is an important manifestation of people’s subjectivity beyond political and economic activities such as elections, recalls, and organizing production, and it is also an important area of supervision beyond the performance of oversight functions by state supervisory organs. Through the people’s supervision of the Party and state organs, the people can gain a deeper understanding of the Party’s policies, strategies, and goals, as well as the organization and operation of state governance functions; at the same time, supervision can promote the standardization and orderliness of state governance organs and the scientific and efficient conduct of governance activities. To this end, Lenin constantly explored a power supervision system that conforms to the essence of proletarian power and the conditions of one-party rule. He presided over the formulation of a series of laws and regulations, such as the “Regulations on Workers’ Supervision” and the “Draft Decree on the Right of Recall,” granting the people the rights of supervision and recall. The masses enjoy the right to vote and the right of recall; they have the right to supervise, in accordance with the law, the conduct of officials and public personnel exercising state power, and have the right to recall, in accordance with legal procedures, those who abuse state power or violate the will of the people. Only by institutionally guaranteeing the people’s right to supervise public power and the right to recall derelict public servants can the people’s right to be masters of the country and manage state affairs be truly realized [35]. As for how to supervise, Lenin proposed that workers and peasants with a certain level of education, class consciousness, and subjective awareness could participate in state supervisory organs, and that they should be the main body, enabling the worker and peasant masses to supervise the operation of state organs and the work conduct of public officials through supervisory bodies such as the Workers’ and Peasants’ Inspectorate and the Central Control Commission. The people’s supervision that Lenin proposed and explored in practice gave the people an in-depth understanding of a series of working mechanisms for the performance of socialist state governance functions and the organization of socialist construction activities, expanded the ways and fields in which the people participate in state governance, improved Party-mass relations, fully embodied the people’s subjectivity, and highlighted the value orientation of state governance serving the people.

人民群众监督作用的发挥是除了选举、罢免、组织生产等政治经济活动之外的人民主体性的重要体现，也是除国家监督机关履行监察职能之外的重要监督领域。通过人民对党和国家机关的监督，既可以让人民更加了解党的政策策略、奋斗目标，了解国家机关治理职能的组织运行等，也可以在监督中促进国家治理机关规范有序、治理行为科学高效。为此，列宁一直在探索符合无产阶级政权的本质以及符合一党执政条件的权力监督制度,他主持制定了《工人监督条例》《罢免权法令草案》等一系列法律法规，赋予人民监督权、罢免权。人民群众享有选举权和罢免权，有权对行使国家公权力的官员和公职人员的行为依法进行监督，对于滥用国家权力、违背人民意愿者，有权依照法定程序罢免。唯有从制度上保障人民群众监督公权力和罢免渎职公务人员的监督权与罢免权，才能真正实现人民当家作主管理国家的权利[35]。对于如何监督，列宁提出，可以让有一定文化水平、阶级觉悟和主体意识的工人农民代表参与到国家监督机关中来，并且要以他们为主体，让工农群众可以通过工农检察院、中央监察委员会等监察机关来监督国家机关的运行及公职人员的工作行为等。列宁提出并探索实践的人民监督，使人民对社会主义国家治理的一系列职能发挥、社会主义建设活动组织等工作机制，有了深入的了解，拓展了人民参与国家治理的方式与领域，融洽了党群关系，充分体现了人民主体性，彰显了国家治理为人民的价值导向。

(III) Cultural Education as the Basic Prerequisite for Enhancing the People’s Participation in Socialist State Governance

(三)文化教育是提升人民参与社会主义国家治理的基础前提

Lenin pointed out that any management work requires special skills; to manage, one must know the trade, must be proficient in all aspects of production, must understand modern production technology, and must have received a certain scientific education. These are the conditions we must in any case possess. To enable the people to effectively participate in state governance, it is first necessary to raise the people’s knowledge and skills, which requires the socialist state to first develop education and do a good job of national education.

列宁指出，任何管理工作都需要有特殊的本领，要管理就要懂行，就要精通生产的全部情况，就要懂得现代水平的生产技术，就要受过一定的科学教育。这就是我们无论如何都应当具备的条件。要想让人民有效参与国家治理，必须首先提高人民的知识与技能，这就要求社会主义国家先行发展教育事业，做好国民教育工作。

First, raise the people’s basic level of education and cultural quality. Between 1897 and 1920, the number of literate people per thousand in Russia was only 319. This harsh reality made Lenin realize: “As long as illiteracy exists in our country, it is difficult to talk about political education. … An illiterate person stands outside politics; they must first be taught to read and write. Without literacy there can be no politics; without literacy there can only be rumors, lies, and prejudice, but no politics.” Starting from the source of raising the people’s basic cultural level, Lenin conceived of concentrating state resources on educational and teaching institutions, increasing the number of educational institutions and their budgets, and so on, to lay the material foundation for the people’s learning. Then, raise the status and treatment of teachers, so that teachers generally feel the respect of the Soviet regime for teachers and education, ensuring teachers’ enthusiasm and initiative in carrying out educational activities, and preparing a contingent of educational personnel with reliable political quality and profound professional competence for the development of national education.

首先，提高人民的基础受教育水平与文化素质。1897年到1920年间，俄国每千人中识字人数仅为319人，这一残酷现实让列宁认识到：“只要在我国还存在文盲现象，那就很难谈得上政治教育。……文盲是处在政治之外的，必须先教他们识字。不识字就不可能有政治，不识字只能有流言蜚语、谎话偏见，而没有政治。”列宁从提高人民基础文化水平的源头出发，酝酿通过集中国家编制到教育教学机构、增加教育机构及其预算等方式，为人民打好学习的物质基础；然后，提高教师地位、提高教师待遇，使教师普遍感受到苏维埃政权对教师与教育的尊重，保障教师开展教育活动的积极性与主动性，为国民教育的开展准备一支政治素质可靠、专业素养精深的教育人才队伍。

Second, raise the political and cultural foundation for the people’s participation in socialist state governance. Possessing only a basic level of culture is far from sufficient for the people to truly participate in state governance; more importantly, it is necessary to form a political and cultural foundation among the people whose content is the goals of the proletarian revolution and the Marxist worldview and methodology. To this end, Lenin proposed strengthening political education for the people, requiring schools to offer communist courses such as “Communism, General History, Revolutionary History, and the History of the 1917 Revolution” to achieve the goal of “building a new generation of people for communist society.” He established propagandists and agitators to shape the Marxist worldview and proletarian culture among the masses, “and also to have the cultural literacy to teach people to fight against red tape and bribery.” Through this education, a new type of socialist person guided by the Marxist worldview and proletarian culture would be cultivated, without “lordly” airs, without “bureaucratic” habits, without “interest” doctrines, always bursting with full enthusiasm to actively participate in the construction of the socialist state.

其次，提升人民参与社会主义国家治理的政治文化基础。仅具备基础文化水平远不足以使人民真正参与到国家治理中来，更重要的是使人民形成以无产阶级革命目标和马克思主义世界观、方法论为内涵的政治文化基础。为此，列宁提出加强对人民的政治教育，要求在学校开设“共产主义、通史、革命史、1917年革命史”等共产主义课程，以实现“建设共产主义社会的新一代人”的目标。设立宣传员和鼓动员，对群众进行马克思主义世界观与无产阶级文化的塑造，“还要有能教人们同拖拉作风和贪污受贿行为作斗争的文化素养”。经过这些教育，培养出以马克思主义世界观和无产阶级文化为指导的社会主义新人，没有“老爷”做派，没有“官僚”习气，没有“利益”主义，自始至终都迸发出积极参与社会主义国家建设的满腔热情。

V. The Contemporary Implications of Lenin’s Thought on State Governance for Advancing the Modernization of China’s State Governance

五、列宁国家治理思想对推进我国国家治理现代化的当代启示

Lenin’s reflections on socialist state governance inherited and innovated the theoretical logic of the relevant doctrines of Marx and Engels, and exhibited the practical logic targeting the Soviet state. The combination of these two provides rich theoretical reference and practical inspiration for China’s state governance. Lenin enlightens us that, although China has made significant progress in the modernization of its state governance system and governance capacity, compared with the people’s needs for a better life, their expectations for the continued stable development of the national economy and society and for common prosperity, as well as the risks and challenges of coping with the complex international situation, the modernization of China’s state governance system and governance capacity still faces some shortcomings and challenges. To achieve the goal of modernizing the state governance system and governance capacity as soon as possible

列宁对社会主义国家治理的思考，继承创新了马克思恩格斯相关学说的理论逻辑，展现了以苏维埃国家为对象的实践逻辑，这二者的结合为我国国家治理提供了丰富的理论借鉴与现实启示。列宁启示我们，虽然我国国家治理体系和治理能力现代化建设已经取得重大进展，但相较于人民对美好生活的需求、对国家经济社会继续稳定发展、共同富裕的期盼渴望，以及应对复杂国际局势的风险挑战等，我国国家治理体系与治理能力现代化建设还面临着一些不足与挑战。为了早日实现国家治理体系和治理能力现代化目标，我国还应在以下方面继续发力、久久为功，不断推进国家治理体系和治理能力现代化建设进程。

(1) Always uphold the comprehensive leadership of the Communist Party of China, making the Party the strong leading core of national governance.

(一)始终坚持中国共产党的全面领导，使党成为国家治理的坚强领导核心

Lenin’s exploration of the thought on the Party’s overall leadership was not only a summation of the experience gained from state governance activities such as the Soviet revolution and construction, but also proved that the general leadership of the proletarian party is the fundamental political guarantee for the stability of state power, the people being the masters of the country, and the continuous advancement of the socialist construction cause. The tragedy of the dissolution of the Soviet Communist Party also proves to the world that if the ruling party loses its leadership over economic, political, social, cultural and other undertakings, it will suffer a subversive disaster concerning the survival or extinction of the state and the success or failure of the socialist cause. At present, China faces a severe and complex international situation. While China is increasingly stepping onto the center of the world stage and continuously contributing Chinese strength to world economic development, Western capitalist countries are besieging and intercepting China, curbing China’s development, and other problems emerge one after another; domestically, problems such as a severe epidemic prevention and control situation and weak economic recovery also urgently need to be solved. These risks and tests pose higher requirements for governance for the Communist Party of China, which is at the moment of leading the entire nation to realize the Chinese Dream of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.

列宁关于党的全面领导思想探索既是对苏联革命和建设等国家治理活动的经验总结，也证明了无产阶级政党总的领导是国家政权稳定、人民当家作主、社会主义建设事业始终推进的根本政治保证。苏共亡党的悲剧也向世人证明，执政党如果丧失对经济、政治、社会、文化等各项事业的领导权，将发生事关国家生死存亡、社会主义事业兴衰成败的颠覆性灾难。当前我国面临严峻复杂的国际形势，西方资本主义国家在我国日益走进世界舞台中央、为世界经济发展不断贡献中国力量之际对我国进行围追堵截、遏制我国发展等问题层出不穷；国内疫情防控形势严峻、经济恢复乏力等问题也亟待解决。这些风险考验，对处于带领全国人民实现中华民族伟大复兴中国梦之际的中国共产党来说，提出了治国理政的更高要求。

The success of the cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics has already demonstrated that “the leadership of the Communist Party of China is the most essential feature of socialism with Chinese characteristics” and “the key to running China’s affairs well lies in the Party.” [31]31 “The leadership of the Communist Party of China is the most essential feature of socialism with Chinese characteristics” is a formulation from Xi Jinping’s report to the To achieve victory in the second centenary goal and realize the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, China must always uphold and strengthen the Party’s overall leadership. [32] First, uphold and strengthen the Party’s political leadership to form a strong political guarantee for state governance. Always resolutely uphold the authority of the Party Central Committee and its centralized, unified leadership, ensure that the Party’s line, principles, and policies are implemented, and ensure that the modernization of the state governance system and governance capacity is continuously advanced along the socialist path. Second, uphold and strengthen the Party’s ideological leadership to cultivate and promote the Chinese spirit of the people participating in state governance and realizing the Chinese Dream. The realization of the Chinese Dream requires the convergence of Chinese strength, and the exertion of Chinese strength requires the promotion of the Chinese spirit. The Party’s ideological leadership over the entire nation is precisely the “lifeline” for uniting people of all ethnic groups to jointly participate in state governance. Only by always gathering people’s hearts and increasing their confidence through ideological leadership can we truly condense the mighty force of the people to participate in state governance and jointly build the Chinese Dream. Third, firmly grasp the Party’s organizational leadership to form an effective organizational guarantee for state governance. Clarify the working mechanisms and leadership systems of Party organizations at all levels, and form a scientific organizational system to ensure that various policies and measures for state governance are unimpeded and implemented. Do a good job in the education, training, and management of Party members, and form a state governance team with solid theory, superb professional skills, a strong work style, strict discipline, and a good relationship between the Party and the masses.

中国特色社会主义事业的成功，已然表征了“中国共产党的领导是中国特色社会主义最本质的特征”,“办好中国的事情，关键在党”,当前我国要取得第二个百年奋斗目标的胜利、实现中华民族伟大复兴，必须始终坚持和强化党的全面领导。一是坚持和强化党的政治领导，形成国家治理的坚强政治保证。始终坚决维护党中央权威和集中统一领导，保证党的路线、方针、政策得以贯彻，确保国家治理体系和治理能力现代化建设在社会主义道路中持续推进。二是坚持和强化党的思想领导，培育弘扬人民参与国家治理实现中国梦的中国精神。中国梦的实现需要汇聚中国力量，中国力量的发挥需要弘扬中国精神。党对全国人民的思想领导正是团结各族人民共同参与国家治理的“生命线”,只有通过思想领导始终做到聚民心、增信心，才能真正凝聚起人民参与国家治理、共筑中国梦的磅礴力量。三是抓实党的组织领导，形成国家治理的有效组织保障。明确党的各级组织工作机制、领导体制，形成科学的组织体系保障国家治理的各项政策措施政令畅通、落地落实。抓好党员队伍的教育培训管理，形成理论扎实、业务精湛、作风过硬、纪律严密、党群关系优良的国家治理队伍。

(II) Adhere to the people-centered stance, and use whole-process democracy to deeply advance the social governance pattern of joint contribution, joint governance and shared benefits

(二)坚持人民中心立场，以全过程民主纵深推进共建共治共享的社会治理格局

Lenin’s practice of exploring socialist state governance proved that the fundamental difference in the nature of the ruling party determines the completely different source of strength for advancing the modernization of state governance. Existing research has pointed out that “‘establishing new forms of democracy’ and ‘new institutions with new conditions for applying democracy’ are Lenin’s clear propositions.” [33] This new form of democracy is socialist whole-process people’s democracy. “Whole-process people’s democracy provides institutional guarantees for the realization of people’s sovereignty, reshapes the relationship between democracy and governance that has been destroyed by Western democracy, and reshapes the substantive content system of democracy by specifically solving the problem of ‘electocracy’ replacing democracy.” [34] Only by giving full play to the people’s subjectivity and encouraging and supporting the people’s extensive participation in state governance can the superiority of the socialist system be fully demonstrated. It also proves that the proletarian party can achieve continuous success in socialist state governance only by continuously gathering the governance strength of the masses and drawing governance wisdom from the masses. Entering the New Era, the theoretical condensation and practical exploration of state governance by the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core have further scientifically proven that giving play to the people’s subjectivity in state governance must adhere to the people-centered value stance. With the development of the country and the progress of society, the people’s political awareness, participation awareness, and interest demands have become stronger and more diverse. The people generally demand broader participation in various affairs related to their own interests.

列宁探索社会主义国家治理的实践，证明了执政党性质的根本差异决定着推进国家治理现代化的力量源泉完全不同，已有研究指出，“‘建立新的民主形式’‘运用民主的新条件的新机构’,是列宁的明确主张”,这种新的民主形式，就是社会主义全过程人民民主。“全过程人民民主为人民主权的实现提供了制度性的保障，重塑了被西方民主所破坏的民主与治理的关系，通过针对性地解决‘选主’取代民主的问题重塑了实质性的民主内容体系。”只有充分发挥人民的主体性、鼓励支持人民广泛参与国家治理，才能充分彰显社会主义制度的优越性，也证明了无产阶级政党只有不断汇聚人民群众的治理力量、从人民群众中汲取治理智慧才能取得社会主义国家治理的不断成功。进入新时代，以习近平同志为核心的党中央对国家治理的理论凝结与实践探索，更进一步科学证明了发挥人民在国家治理中的主体性必须坚持以人民为中心的价值立场。随着国家的发展、社会的进步，人民群众的政治意识、参与意识、利益诉求等更加强烈、更加多元，人民普遍要求更广泛地参与到与自己利益相关的各项事务中来。

General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: “The entire Party must remember that the question of ‘for whom’ is the touchstone for testing the nature of a political party and a political power.” [35] That is to say, in state governance, it is necessary to implement the people-centered principle through the realization of whole-process democracy, and grasp the most direct and realistic interests that the people care about most. This means that, on the one hand, it is necessary to give full play to the people’s main role in state governance, allow the people to fully participate in all aspects and links of state governance through whole-process people’s democracy, and let democratic elections, democratic consultations, democratic decision-making, democratic management, and democratic supervision run through the entire process of state governance, so that the people can voice their opinions, put forward their demands, and express their views. Only in this way can the people’s participation in state governance be truly implemented. On the other hand, it is necessary to fully demonstrate the people-centered value stance. The modernization of the state governance system and governance capacity, as a people’s livelihood project concerning the vital interests of the masses, can only unswervingly blaze a path of socialist state governance modernization with Chinese characteristics that is different from the Western “capital logic” and aims at the free and comprehensive development of the individual, by always adhering to the value orientation of “everything for the people” and the people’s standpoint of “everything starting from the people” in the practical approach. This requires our Party to always take “what the people hope for, I will surely do” as its fundamental guideline in state governance practice, focus on people’s livelihood issues such as education, medical care, housing, and social security that are generally concerned by the people and involve their vital interests, allow the people’s opinions and demands to be fully expressed, and let all the people jointly enjoy the fruits of peaceful, stable social governance. Only in this way can we rely on the people to create great history, create a better life, and create a human miracle of socialism with Chinese characteristics in the New Era, and continuously advance the social governance pattern of joint contribution, joint governance and shared benefits.

习近平总书记指出：“全党必须牢记，为什么人的问题，是检验一个政党、一个政权性质的试金石。”也就是说，在国家治理中，需要通过全过程民主的实现将坚持以人民为中心落到实处，抓住人民最关心最直接最现实的利益问题。这意味着一方面要充分发挥人民在国家治理中的主体作用，通过全过程人民民主让人民充分参与国家治理的各个方面各个环节，让民主选举、民主协商、民主决策、民主管理、民主监督畅通国家治理全过程，让人民发出自己的声音、提出人民的诉求、表达人民的观点，才能使人民参与国家治理真正落到实处；另一方面要充分彰显以人民为中心的价值立场，国家治理体系和治理能力现代化建设作为一项事关人民群众切身利益的民心工程，在实践进路中只有始终坚持“一切为了人民”的价值取向、坚持“一切从人民出发”的人民立场，才能坚定不移地走出一条与西方“资本逻辑”不同的、具有中国特色的、为实现人的自由全面发展的中国特色社会主义国家治理现代化道路。这就要求我们党在国家治理实践中始终以“民之所盼、我必行之”为根本遵循，聚焦人民普遍关心的涉及人民切身利益的教育、医疗、住房、社会保障等民生问题，让人民的意见诉求充分表达，让全体人民共同享受和平发展稳定的社会治理成果。只有这样才能依靠人民创造伟大的历史、创造美好的生活、创造新时代中国特色社会主义的人间奇迹，将共建共治共享的社会治理格局不断向前推进。

(III) Advance the rule of law in state governance through legal construction, and transform the advantages of the legal system into advantages in governance effectiveness

(三)以法治建设推进实现国家治理法治化，将法制优势转变为治理效能优势

Legal construction and the rule of law in state governance are consistent propositions of Lenin regarding socialist state governance. He put forward socialist rule-of-law ideas such as establishing a socialist constitution to guarantee people’s sovereignty, having the people supervise the operation of state power, maintaining the unity of the state legal system, and governing according to law. These provided a model of rule of law in state governance for later socialist countries, and also provided a useful reference for the rule of law in contemporary Chinese state governance.

法治建设与国家治理法治化是列宁关于社会主义国家治理的一贯主张，他提出建立社会主义宪法保障人民主权、人民监督国家权力运行、维护国家法制统一、依法执政等社会主义法治思想，为后来的社会主义国家提供了一个国家治理法治化的样板，也为当代中国国家治理的法治化提供了有益借鉴。

First, strengthen legal construction to form a complete legal system with the constitution and a series of legal systems as its core. The rule of law in state governance needs to rely on scientific and democratic legal systems. Therefore, it is necessary to formulate legal systems that reflect the Party’s leadership, the people’s will, and the people’s rights, which are necessary and urgently needed for state governance, while also improving legislation in key and emerging areas such as risk prevention and control, foreign-related rule of law, and online ideological security, to form a complete socialist legal system with Chinese characteristics. Second, improve the socialist rule-of-law system with Chinese characteristics to form a law-based political party, government, and society. “Comprehensively advancing law-based governance involves many aspects. In practical work, there must be a general grasp that oversees the overall situation and guides all parties. This general grasp is to build a socialist rule-of-law system with Chinese characteristics.” [36] On the basis of the rule of law, advancing the modernization of the state governance system and governance capacity requires transforming the advantages of the rule of law into advantages in governance effectiveness. This requires that the subjects and participants of state governance become conscious practitioners of the rule of law in state governance, adhering to the principles of legal thinking and the spirit of the law, forming a law-based situation where governance entities at all levels exercise power according to law, strictly enforce the law, and administer justice impartially, and the masses consciously abide by the law, observe the law, and participate in state governance according to law. Third, cultivate a high-quality team of legal talents, focusing on cultivating a team of legal talents guided by Marxist ideology, loyal to the Party, the country, and the people, with legal awareness, legal concepts, and the spirit of the rule of law, so that the rule of law in state governance is implemented with measure and strength.

一是要加强法治建设，形成以宪法和一系列法律制度为内核的完备法律体系。国家治理的法治化需要科学化、民主化的法律制度为依托，因而需要制定体现党的领导、人民意志、人民权利的国家治理必备且急需的法律制度，同时完善风险防控、涉外法治、网络意识形态安全等重点领域、新兴领域的立法工作，形成完备的中国特色社会主义法律体系。二是要完善中国特色社会主义法治体系，形成法治化的政党、政府和社会。“全面推进依法治国涉及很多方面，在实际工作中必须有一个总揽全局、牵引各方的总抓手，这个总抓手就是建设中国特色社会主义法治体系。”在法治基础上国家治理体系和治理能力现代化建设的推进需要将法治化优势转变为治理效能优势，这就要求国家治理的主体和参与者均成为以法制思维、法制精神为原则的自觉的国家治理法治化践行者，形成各级各类治理主体依法行政、严格执法、公正司法，人民群众自觉遵法、守法、依法参与国家治理的法治化局面。三是培养高素质的法治人才队伍，着力培养一支以马克思主义意识形态为指导的忠于党、忠于国家、忠于人民的、具有法律意识、法治观念、法治精神的法治人才队伍，使国家治理的法治化执行有度、落实有力。

(4) Upholding the Party’s leadership over ideological work, forming a strong cohesive force and appeal for state governance

(四)坚持党对意识形态工作的领导，形成国家治理的强大凝聚力与吸引力

When Lenin considered the question of the spiritual guidance and mobilization of the Soviet people by proletarian culture and morality for socialist revolution and construction, he believed that the Party’s leadership over ideological work was of utmost importance. This concerned not only the success of the proletarian revolution but also whether socialist construction could proceed smoothly. Before the October Revolution, Lenin emphasized that the proletariat must receive Marxist education; after the October Revolution, in order to crush the bourgeoisie’s offensive in the ideological sphere, Lenin stressed even more that the Bolshevik Party must firmly grasp cultural leadership and establish the leading position of Marxism in culture. However, in the late 1980s, General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, Gorbachev, carried out “glasnost” and “pluralistic” reforms in the Soviet Union, actively abandoning the guiding position of Marxism in the ideological sphere and the Party’s leadership over ideological work, ultimately leading to the demise of the CPSU and the dissolution of the Soviet Union. The lesson is not far off; currently, the ideological sphere in our country is not calm. Some Western countries, with a Cold War mentality resurging, use various pretexts to suppress and slander the CPC and the socialist system with Chinese characteristics, attempting to carry out “color revolutions” against our country on issues such as “Hong Kong independence,” “Xinjiang independence,”

当列宁思考无产阶级文化道德对苏俄人民进行社会主义革命与建设的精神引领与号召这一问题时，列宁认为党对意识形态工作的领导权至关重要。这不仅关涉到无产阶级革命的成功，也事关社会主义建设能否顺利推进。十月革命前，列宁便强调无产阶级要接受马克思主义教育；十月革命后，为粉碎资产阶级在意识形态领域的进攻，列宁更加强调布尔什维克党要牢牢掌握文化领导权、确立马克思主义在文化中的领导地位。然而，20世纪80年代末，苏联共产党中央委员会总书记、苏联最高苏维埃主席团主席戈尔巴乔夫在苏联进行“公开性”“多元化”改革，主动放弃了马克思主义在意识形态领域的指导地位、放弃了党对意识形态工作的领导权，最终导致苏共亡党、苏联解体。殷鉴不远，当前我国意识形态领域并非风平浪静，一些西方国家冷战思维抬头，借各种由头打压污蔑中国共产党和中国特色社会主义制度，妄图以“港独”“疆独”“人权”等问题对我国搞“颜色革命”,历史虚无主义等各种错误思潮不断兴风作浪，凡此种种意识形态领域的风险挑战，无不警醒着我们必须时刻保持清醒头脑，增强忧患意识，提升甄别力，切实防范和化解西方资本主义国家对我国的意识形态攻势。

First, always uphold the Party’s leadership over ideological work and keep the socialist direction of state governance steady. At present, China is striving to achieve the Second Centenary Goal [32] and the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. Only by always firmly grasping the leadership of ideology can we ensure that the Party-spirit principle in the ideological sphere and the people’s position in participating in state governance work in the same direction, forming a systematic synergy for socialist state governance, ensuring that the political course of the “Chinese ship” does not deviate and that the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics does not change its nature. At the same time, taking the Party’s leadership over ideological work as the fundamental guideline, we must safeguard the security of China’s mainstream ideology and crush the attempts of Western capitalist countries, led by the United States, to infiltrate China ideologically. Second, strengthen Marxist ideological education, fostering a situation across society where various erroneous ideological trends such as “vilifying” and “diluting” socialist ideology are consciously resisted. History and reality have proven that capitalist countries have never given up slandering, attacking, and defaming socialist ideology; capitalist countries have always been committed to subverting socialist state power, and capitalist ideologues tirelessly create supra-class ideological discourses such as the “end of history” thesis and the “convergence thesis,” attempting to dilute Marxist ideology in China and propagate bourgeois ideologies such as “neoliberalism” and “universal values” on Chinese soil, in a vain attempt to continuously erode China’s mainstream ideology. Faced with the impact and influence of various erroneous ideological trends, we need to continuously strengthen socialist ideological education with Marxism as its content, enabling all the people to fully recognize the scientific nature, positivity, and guiding role of socialist ideology in state governance and socialist construction, thereby enhancing their discernment, consciously resisting the enticement of various erroneous ideological trends, and forming cohesion and centripetal force for participating in state governance with socialist ideology as the spiritual guide.

一是始终坚持党对意识形态工作的领导，把稳国家治理的社会主义方向。当前我国正在为实现第二个百年奋斗目标、实现中华民族伟大复兴而努力，只有始终牢牢掌握意识形态领导权，才能保证意识形态领域的党性原则与人民参与国家治理的人民立场同向发力，形成社会主义国家治理的系统合力，保证“中国号”巨轮的政治航向不偏航、中国特色社会主义制度不变质。同时以党对意识形态工作的领导为根本遵循，维护我国主流意识形态安全，粉碎以美国为首的西方资本主义国家对我国的意识形态渗透图谋。二是加强马克思主义意识形态教育，在全社会形成自觉抵制“丑化”“淡化”社会主义意识形态等各种错误思潮的局面。历史和现实已经证明，资本主义国家从未放弃对社会主义意识形态的诋毁、攻击、污蔑，资本主义国家始终致力于颠覆社会主义国家政权，资本主义的意识形态家们也乐此不疲地创设诸如“历史终结论”“趋同论”等超阶级意识形态论调，企图在中国淡化马克思主义意识形态，在中国大地上宣扬“新自由主义”“普世价值”等资产阶级意识形态，妄图不断消溶我国主流意识形态。面对各种错误思潮的冲击和影响，我们需要不断强化以马克思主义为内容的社会主义意识形态教育，使全体人民充分认识社会主义意识形态在国家治理、社会主义建设中的科学性、积极性、引领性，以此提升甄别力，自觉抵制各种错误思潮的蛊惑，形成以社会主义意识形态为精神引领参与国家治理的凝聚力与向心力。

Lenin’s rich thought and enlightenment on the exploration of socialist state governance extend far beyond this. For example, the “War Communism” policy formulated and implemented by Lenin safeguarded the fruits of the October Revolution, defended the dictatorship of the proletariat, preserved and developed the productive forces needed for socialist construction, and repaired and developed industry severely damaged by war, preparing conditions for the subsequent socialist construction of the Soviet Union and forming the governance achievements of the first stage of socialist state governance centered on revolutionary discourse. The New Economic Policy enabled the Soviets to smoothly enter the preparatory period for socialist construction, established the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, formulated the first socialist state constitution, and finally enabled the first socialist state to gain a firm foothold in the world. The governance practice of this period realized the logical shift of state governance discourse from revolution to construction, laying a solid foundation for the subsequent socialist construction of the Soviet Union and also providing a reference for the construction and governance of other socialist countries. However, after the death of Lenin, the great mentor of the proletarian revolution, the Soviet Union gradually lost the Party’s comprehensive leadership over state affairs in the decades-long development of the socialist cause, experienced economic stagnation, ideological collapse, and the people lost confidence in Soviet socialism, and so on. These mistakes and lessons all demonstrate that socialist state governance is an unprecedented, complex, and arduous great undertaking. The problems that need to be solved in China’s current state governance have

列宁对社会主义国家治理探索的丰富思想及启示远不止此，如列宁制定实施的“战时共产主义”政策保卫了十月革命的胜利成果、捍卫了无产阶级专政政权、保全发展了社会主义建设所需的生产力、修复发展了饱受战争破坏的工业，为后来苏联的社会主义建设准备了条件，形成了社会主义国家治理第一阶段以革命话语为重点的治理成果。新经济政策使苏维埃顺利进入社会主义建设的准备时期，成立了苏维埃社会主义共和国联盟，制定了第一部社会主义国家宪法，第一个社会主义国家终于在世界上站稳了脚跟。这一时期的治理实践实现了国家治理话语从革命到建设的逻辑转向，为后来的苏联社会主义建设打牢了基础，也为其他社会主义国家建设与治理提供了借鉴。然而当无产阶级革命的伟大导师列宁逝世后，苏联在几十年的社会主义事业发展中逐渐丧失了党对国家事务的全面领导、经济停滞、意识形态崩塌、人民丧失对苏联社会主义的信心，等等。这些失误与教训，无不说明社会主义国家治理是一项前无古人且复杂艰巨的伟大事业。当前我国国家治理需要解决的问题已然超越了列宁所处的时代，不仅面临着更加错综复杂的国际国内形势，党的治国理政也面临着更加艰巨的风险考验，如何避免重蹈苏联国家治理失误的覆辙，跳出西方资本主义国家治理的“西方之乱”陷阱，成为我国国家治理体系与治理能力现代化急需破解的难题。再析列宁对社会主义国家治理的探索，他的国家治理思想依然闪耀着灿烂的理论光辉，只要始终坚持马克思主义立场，科学对待列宁留下的关于社会主义国家治理的丰富思考，就一定能从中不断获得启迪。

Online editor: Paul

网络编辑：保罗