On the Practical Principles of Deng Xiaoping’s Theory of Socialist Ideological Construction

The coordinated development of socialist material civilization and cultural-ethical progress is an important feature and practical requirement of Chinese-path modernization. At the beginning of reform and opening up, Deng Xiaoping attached great importance to the coordinated development of the “two civilizations”: “While building a high level of material civilization, we must raise the scientific and cultural level of the whole nation, develop a rich and varied cultural life of a high standard, and build a high level of socialist cultural-ethical progress.” Viewed from the practical process of more than 40 years of reform and opening up, China’s socialist cultural-ethical progress and material civilization have been able to achieve coordinated development; socialist cultural-ethical progress has made great achievements and greatly promoted the progress of material civilization. At the same time, we should also see that the coordinated development of the “two civilizations” is a process of contradictory movement, which is often accompanied by conflicts and struggles between the advanced and the backward, between progress and reaction. The contradictions and struggles in the ideological sphere are often concrete manifestations of such conflicts and struggles. Therefore, for the coordinated development of socialist material civilization and cultural-ethical progress, and to better advance Chinese-path modernization, we must always attach importance to and strengthen socialist ideological construction, and must wage struggle against all erroneous ideas that hinder the coordinated development of the “two civilizations” and obstruct the construction of Chinese-path modernization. Deng Xiaoping emphatically pointed out that in the ideological sphere, we must “wage a long-term and effective struggle against all kinds of ideas and habits that hinder the four modernizations. We must criticize the influence of exploiting-class ideology and the narrow-minded, conservative mentality of small-scale production, criticize anarchism and extreme individualism, and overcome bureaucracy.” The importance of Deng Xiaoping’s theory of ideological construction is embodied not only in its clear political stance but also in its concrete and effective practical principles. Grasping the practical principles of Deng Xiaoping’s theory of ideological construction — “grasping the fundamentals,” “being vigilant in times of peace,” and “firming up convictions” — has important practical significance for doing a good job of socialist ideological work in the New Era, building a socialist ideology with strong guiding force and cohesion, and effectively promoting the coordinated development of the “two civilizations.”

社会主义物质文明与精神文明协调发展，是中国式现代化的重要特征和实践要求。在改革开放初，邓小平就高度重视“两个文明”协调发展问题，“我们要在建设高度物质文明的同时，提高全民族的科学文化水平，发展高尚的丰富多彩的文化生活，建设高度的社会主义精神文明。”从改革开放40多年的实践进程看，我国的社会主义精神文明与物质文明是能够实现协调发展的，社会主义精神文明取得了巨大成就并极大推动了物质文明的进步。与此同时，我们也应看到，“两个文明”协调发展是一个矛盾运动过程，这一矛盾运动过程常常伴随着先进与落后、进步与反动的冲突与较量，意识形态领域的矛盾与斗争往往是这种冲突与较量的具体表现。因此，为了社会主义物质文明与精神文明协调发展，为了更好地推进中国式现代化，必须始终重视和加强社会主义意识形态建设，必须同各种妨碍“两个文明”协调发展、阻碍中国式现代化建设的错误思想进行斗争。邓小平强调指出，在意识形态领域，必须“同各种妨害四个现代化的思想习惯进行长期的、有效的斗争。要批判剥削阶级思想和小生产守旧狭隘心理的影响，批判无政府主义、极端个人主义，克服官僚主义。”邓小平意识形态建设理论的重要性，既体现在鲜明的政治立场上，又体现在具体管用的实践原则上。把握好邓小平意识形态建设理论“抓住根本”“居安思危”“坚定信念”的实践原则，对于做好新时代社会主义意识形态工作，建设具有强大引领力和凝聚力的社会主义意识形态，有效促进“两个文明”协调发展，有着重要的现实意义。

I. Grasping the Fundamentals: “Without Adhering to the Four Cardinal Principles, There Is No Root”

一、抓住根本：“离开坚持四项基本原则，就没有根”

What is called grasping the fundamentals means grasping the principal contradiction and the principal aspect of the contradiction, that is, grasping the essence of things and the substance of problems. Grasping the fundamentals is an important manifestation and practical requirement of the Marxist worldview and methodology, and is a methodological principle by which Chinese Communists have continuously succeeded in adapting Marxism to the Chinese context. Deng Xiaoping pointed out: “Chinese-style modernization must proceed from China’s characteristics.” “China’s characteristics” include many aspects; adhering to the Four Cardinal Principles is the most important political characteristic, and Chinese-path modernization must proceed from this most important political characteristic. Deng Xiaoping emphasized: “To realize the four modernizations in China, we must adhere to the Four Cardinal Principles in the political and ideological spheres. This is the fundamental prerequisite for realizing the four modernizations.” [1]1 Deng Xiaoping, “Uphold the Four Cardinal Principles,” March 30, 1979. The proposal of the Four Cardinal Principles established the fundamental political principles and provided a solid political guarantee for reform and opening up and socialist modernization. Their great significance has been proven by the great practice of more than 40 years of reform and opening up.

所谓抓住根本，就是抓住主要矛盾和矛盾的主要方面，就是抓住事物的本质和问题的实质。抓住根本是马克思主义世界观和方法论的重要体现和实践要求，是中国共产党人不断成功推进马克思主义中国化的方法论原则。邓小平指出：“中国式的现代化，必须从中国的特点出发。”“中国的特点”包括许多方面，坚持四项基本原则是最重要的政治特点，中国式现代化必须从这个最重要的政治特点出发。邓小平强调，“我们要在中国实现四个现代化，必须在思想政治上坚持四项基本原则。这是实现四个现代化的根本前提”四项基本原则的提出为改革开放和社会主义现代化建设确立了根本政治原则、提供了坚实政治保证，它的重大意义已经为改革开放40多年的伟大实践所证明。

The Four Cardinal Principles are the foundation for building the country. Deng Xiaoping once emphatically pointed out: “The basic line must be upheld for a hundred years, without wavering.” [2]2 Deng Xiaoping, “Concerning Problems with the Ideological Line,” March 1981. Huang Kecheng (1902–1986) was a senior general of the People’s Liberation Army and a leading Party official. Xi Jinping has repeatedly emphasized the importance of upholding and adhering to the Party’s basic line: “The Party’s basic line is the lifeline of the country and the line of happiness for the people. We must unswervingly take economic construction as the central task, take the Four Cardinal Principles as the foundation for building the country, and take reform and opening up as the path to national strength, without the slightest wavering.” [3]3 Deng Xiaoping, “Uphold the Four Cardinal Principles,” March 30, 1979. As one of the basic points of the basic line, adhering to the Four Cardinal Principles is the political pillar of the great practice of socialism with Chinese characteristics. The Four Cardinal Principles encompass the fundamental path, the state system of the country, the leading core, and the guiding ideology. These four aspects are indispensable and form a complete political system. At the same time, the four adherences are an interconnected, interpenetrating, and mutually supporting top-level design. Therefore, it is necessary to fully and accurately grasp the scientific connotation and organic unity of the Four Cardinal Principles. Any phenomenon that severs or negates the four adherences is extremely erroneous. Deng Xiaoping pointed out: “At the beginning of reform and opening up, we proposed the ‘four adherences.’ Without these ‘four adherences,’ especially Party leadership, nothing can be done well, and problems will arise. If problems arise, they will not be small problems. Where does the superiority of the socialist market economy lie? It lies in the four adherences. The four adherences are concentrated in Party leadership. This issue can be discussed openly. That speech [4]4 Deng Xiaoping, “Uphold the Four Cardinal Principles,” March 30, 1979. contained nothing unreasonable, nothing that could not be made public. At that time, what I called the dictatorship of the proletariat was the people’s democratic dictatorship. Speaking of the people’s democratic dictatorship makes it easier for people to accept. Now that the economy is developing so fast, without the four adherences, what kind of situation would it be? Proposing the four adherences, and then how to implement them, there is still much to be done, there are still many things that have not been clarified. Party leadership is a superiority. Without the people’s democratic dictatorship, how can Party leadership be realized? The four adherences are a ‘complete set of equipment.’” [5]5 Deng Xiaoping, “The Current Situation and Tasks,” January 16, 1980. The theory of the people’s democratic dictatorship emphasized here by Deng Xiaoping

四项基本原则是立国之本。邓小平曾经强调指出，“基本路线要管一百年，动摇不得。”习近平多次强调坚持和维护党的基本路线的重要性，“党的基本路线是国家的生命线、人民的幸福线，我们要坚持把以经济建设为中心作为兴国之要、把四项基本原则作为立国之本、把改革开放作为强国之路，不能有丝毫动摇。”作为基本路线的一个基本点，坚持四项基本原则是中国特色社会主义伟大实践的政治支柱，四项基本原则包含了根本道路、国家国体、领导核心和指导思想，这四个方面缺一不可，是一个完整的政治系统。同时，四个坚持又是相互联系、相互贯通、相互支持的顶层设计。因此，要完整准确把握四项基本原则的科学内涵和有机统一，任何割裂、否定四个坚持的现象都是极其错误的。邓小平指出，“我们在改革开放初期就提出‘四个坚持’。没有这‘四个坚持’，特别是党的领导，什么事情也搞不好，会出问题。出问题就不是小问题。社会主义市场经济优越性在哪里？就在四个坚持。四个坚持集中表现在党的领导。这个问题可以敞开来说，那个讲话没有什么输理的地方，没有什么见不得人的地方。当时我讲的无产阶级专政，就是人民民主专政，讲人民民主专政，比较容易为人所接受。现在经济发展这么快，没有四个坚持，究竟会是个什么局面？提出四个坚持，以后怎么做，还有文章，还有一大堆的事情，还有没有理清楚的东西。党的领导是个优越性。没有人民民主专政，党的领导怎么实现啊？四个坚持是‘成套设备’。”邓小平在这里强调的人民民主专政理论被一些人肆意歪曲，将专政说成是反民主和反法治的，人为制造专政与民主、专政与法治的对立，从而达到否定人民民主专政、进而否定四项基本原则的目的。改革开放40多年来，四项基本原则这个“成套设备”始终发挥着中国特色社会主义事业发展的稳定器、压舱石的重要功能，有了四项基本原则保驾护航，中国特色社会主义伟大事业才能够始终沿着正确的方向不断发展进步。

Upholding the Four Cardinal Principles is the fundamental political guarantee for advancing the continuous development and progress of the socialist cause. Deng Xiaoping emphasized that the Four Cardinal Principles constitute a "complete set of equipment," meaning that they must be grasped as an integrated whole, and their strategic position and practical significance in the entire development of the socialist cause must be understood holistically. Deng Xiaoping pointed out that in order to achieve the Four Modernizations, it is necessary to repeatedly stress upholding the Four Cardinal Principles, "because certain people (even if only a tiny minority) attempt to shake these basic principles. This is absolutely impermissible. Every Communist Party member, let alone every Party ideological and theoretical worker, must never allow the slightest wavering on this fundamental stance. If any one of these Four Cardinal Principles is shaken, then the entire socialist cause and the entire modernization drive will be shaken." Deng Xiaoping always viewed the prerequisite, foundational, and safeguarding role of upholding the Four Cardinal Principles from the perspective of the success or failure of the cause, emphasizing that failure to uphold the Four Cardinal Principles would inevitably lead to the failure of the reform and opening up cause and the socialist cause. Deng Xiaoping stressed that the Party's various basic policies in the new period of reform and opening up would not change, and the Four Cardinal Principles, as the foundation of these policies, would certainly not change or waver; "otherwise, our society would be a chaotic society, there would be no stability and unity, and any talk of construction, reform, or revitalizing China would become empty words."

坚持四项基本原则是推进社会主义事业不断发展进步的根本政治保障。邓小平强调四个坚持是“成套设备”，就是强调四项基本原则是一个整体，要从整体上把握坚持四项基本原则在整个社会主义事业发展中的战略地位和实践意义。邓小平指出，为了实现四个现代化，必须反复强调坚持四项基本原则，“因为某些人（哪怕只是极少数人）企图动摇这些基本原则。这是决不许可的。每个共产党员，更不必说每个党的思想理论工作者，决不允许在这个根本立场上有丝毫动摇。如果动摇了这四项基本原则中的任何一项，那就动摇了整个社会主义事业，整个现代化建设事业。”邓小平总是从事业成败的高度看待坚持四项基本原则的前提性、基础性和保障性作用，强调不坚持四项基本原则，就必然导致改革开放事业、社会主义事业的失败。邓小平强调，党在改革开放新时期的各项基本政策不会改变，作为这些政策基础的四项基本原则更是不会改变、不会动摇的，“不然的话，我们的社会就将是一个乱的社会，就谈不上安定团结，什么建设改革、振兴中华，都将成为空话。”

Adhering to the Four Cardinal Principles is the fundamental political prerequisite for correcting erroneous tendencies. Both “Left” and Right errors can disrupt and undermine the development of the Party’s cause; only by promptly correcting “Left” and Right errors can the Party’s cause advance smoothly. In the new period of reform and opening up, there were also “Left” and Right erroneous tendencies. Deng Xiaoping established a fundamental political prerequisite for correcting “Left” and Right erroneous tendencies, and this fundamental political prerequisite is the necessity of adhering to the Four Cardinal Principles. Deng Xiaoping emphatically pointed out, “If we do not adhere to these Four Cardinal Principles, correcting ultra-Leftism will turn into ‘correcting’ Marxism-Leninism and ‘correcting’ socialism.” [1]1 Deng Xiaoping, “Uphold the Four Cardinal Principles,” March 30, 1979. Some people label adherence to Party leadership, adherence to Marxism-Leninism and Mao Zedong Thought, adherence to socialism, and adherence to the people’s democratic dictatorship all as “Left,” which fundamentally violates the Four Cardinal Principles. Proceeding from the erroneous premise of violating the Four Cardinal Principles, correcting “Left” becomes opposing Party leadership, Marxism, socialism, and the people’s democratic dictatorship. Therefore, only by starting from the fundamental political prerequisite of adhering to the Four Cardinal Principles can “Left” and Right erroneous tendencies be correctly corrected. Deng Xiaoping integrated adherence to the Four Cardinal Principles with adherence to the ideological line of seeking truth from facts, preventing idealist and metaphysical errors on the issues of “Left” and Right. Deng Xiaoping emphasized that both “Left” and Right should be subjected to concrete analysis: “Comrade Huang Kecheng said, if there is ‘Left,’ oppose ‘Left’; if there is Right, oppose Right. I agree with his opinion. Both ‘Left’ and Right should be subjected to concrete analysis.” [2]2 Deng Xiaoping, “Concerning Problems with the Ideological Line,” March 1981. Huang Kecheng (1902–1986) was a senior general of the People’s Liberation Army and a leading Party official. “Left” and Right damage the Four Cardinal Principles from two different directions; there is no question of “Left” being better than Right or Right being better than “Left.” Both “Left” and Right can ruin the socialist cause. Adhering to the Four Cardinal Principles is the prerequisite and guarantee for correctly understanding and effectively preventing the problems of “Left” and Right. Deng Xiaoping emphasized that both “Left” and Right fundamentally violate the interests and will of the overwhelming majority of the people.

坚持四项基本原则是纠正错误倾向的根本政治前提。“左”和右的错误都会干扰和破坏党的事业的发展，只有及时纠正“左”和右的错误，党的事业才能顺利向前推进。在改革开放新时期，也同样存在“左”和右的错误倾向。邓小平为纠正“左”和右的错误倾向确立了根本政治前提，这个根本政治前提就是必须坚持四项基本原则。邓小平强调指出，“如果不坚持这四项基本原则，纠正极左就会变成‘纠正’马列主义，‘纠正’社会主义。”有的人就是将坚持党的领导、坚持马列主义毛泽东思想、坚持社会主义、坚持人民民主专政都叫做“左”，这就从根本违背了四项基本原则。从违背四项基本原则的错误前提出发，纠正“左”就成了反对党的领导、马克思主义、社会主义和人民民主专政。所以，只有从坚持四项基本原则这个根本政治前提出发，才能正确纠正“左”和右的错误倾向。邓小平将坚持四项基本原则同坚持实事求是的思想路线统一起来，防止在“左”和右的问题上犯唯心主义和形而上学的错误。邓小平强调对“左”和右，都要做具体分析，“黄克诚同志讲，有‘左’就反‘左’，有右就反右。我赞成他的意见。对‘左’对右，都要做具体分析。”“左”和右是从两个不同的方向损害四项基本原则，不存在“左”比右好或右比“左”好的问题，“左”和右都可能葬送社会主义事业，坚持四项基本原则是正确认识、有效防止“左”和右问题的前提和保证。邓小平强调，不论是“左”，还是右，都从根本上违背了绝大多数人利益和意愿。

II. Thinking of Danger in Times of Safety: “A Few People Can Ruin Our Great Undertaking”

二、居安思危：“少数人可以破坏我们的大事业”

In the process of socialist development, forces that undermine and subvert the socialist cause have always existed. In this regard, at the beginning of reform and opening up, Deng Xiaoping maintained a high degree of vigilance: “There are currently some social trends of thought, especially among some young people, that require serious attention. … A few people can ruin our great undertaking.” [3]3 Deng Xiaoping, “Uphold the Four Cardinal Principles,” March 30, 1979. He reminded the entire Party to attach great importance to the destructive role and serious harm of a small minority: “There are a very few people in society who are spreading trends of thought that doubt or oppose these Four Cardinal Principles, and there are also individual comrades within the Party who not only fail to recognize the danger of these trends but even directly or indirectly support them to some extent. Although these people are a very small minority both inside and outside the Party, we cannot ignore their role because they are a tiny minority. Facts have proven that they can and already have caused great harm to our cause.” [4]4 Deng Xiaoping, “Uphold the Four Cardinal Principles,” March 30, 1979. This sober awareness and spirit of struggle of Deng Xiaoping played a huge role in the practice of reform and opening up. The great cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics was not destroyed by the historical countercurrent of the drastic changes in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. Socialism in China has continuously radiated new vitality and vigor, presenting new development prospects and strong vitality for world socialism.

在社会主义发展进程中，始终存在着破坏和颠覆社会主义事业的势力。对此，在改革开放初，邓小平就保持高度警惕，“现在有一些社会思潮，特别是一些年轻人中的思潮，需要认真注意。……少数人可以破坏我们的大事业。”他提醒全党要高度重视少数人的破坏作用和严重危害，“社会上有极少数人正在散布怀疑或反对这四项基本原则的思潮，而党内也有个别同志不但不承认这种思潮的危险，甚至直接间接地加以某种程度的支持。虽然这几种人在党内外都是极少数，但是不能因为他们是极少数而忽视他们的作用。事实证明，他们不但可以而且已经对我们的事业造成很大的危害。”邓小平的这种清醒意识和斗争精神在改革开放实践中发挥了巨大作用，中国特色社会主义伟大事业没有被苏东剧变这股历史逆流冲毁，社会主义在中国不断焕发新的生机活力，使世界社会主义呈现出新的发展前景和强大生命力。

The principle that China is led by the Communist Party cannot be shaken; if it is shaken, modernization cannot be achieved. Only by upholding Party leadership can the Chinese revolutionary cause and the socialist construction cause continuously achieve success. Therefore, any tendency to deny Party leadership is extremely erroneous. Deng Xiaoping pointed out that old China was always described as a sheet of loose sand; since the Communist Party of China became the ruling party and the core force uniting the whole country, the situation of fragmentation and each region lording it over its own territory came to an end. As long as the leadership of the Communist Party of China is correct, it can not only unite the strength of the entire Party but also gather the strength of the entire people to accomplish magnificent undertakings. After reform and opening up, some people blindly worshipped the multi-party system of capitalist countries and advocated replacing China’s political party system with a multi-party system, the essence of which was to abolish the leadership position of the Communist Party of China. In this regard, Deng Xiaoping profoundly pointed out, “The principle that China is led by the Communist Party and that China’s socialist modernization cause is led by the Communist Party cannot be shaken; if it is shaken, China will regress to division and chaos, and modernization cannot be achieved.” [5]5 Deng Xiaoping, “The Current Situation and Tasks,” January 16, 1980. No matter how various erroneous trends of thought confuse people, their key target of attack is the Party leadership system, implementing “wholesale Westernization,” and thereby fundamentally changing our country’s socialist system. On November 16, 2020, in his speech at the Central Conference on Work Related to Law-Based Governance, Xi Jinping emphatically refuted the trend of Western democratic constitutionalism: “The Fourth Plenary Session of the 18th Central Committee of the Party clearly stated that to adhere to law-based governance, we must first adhere to governance based on the Constitution; to adhere to law-based exercise of state power, we must first adhere to exercise of state power based on the Constitution. The governance based on the Constitution and exercise of state power based on the Constitution that we speak of are fundamentally different from the so-called ‘constitutionalism’ of the West; the two cannot be conflated. Adhering to governance based on the Constitution and exercise of state power based on the Constitution includes unwaveringly upholding the leadership position of the Communist Party of China as determined by the Constitution, and unwaveringly upholding the state system of the people’s democratic dictatorship and the political system of the People’s Congresses as determined by the Constitution.” [Xi Jinping: “Upholding and Improving the People’s Congress System to Ensure the People Are the Masters of the Country,” *Qiushi*, Issue 4, 2024.] The “Resolution” adopted at the Sixth Plenary Session of the 19th Central Committee of the Party emphatically pointed out, “We must be vigilant against and guard against the corrosive influence of Western political trends such as so-called ‘constitutionalism,’ multi-party rotation in government, and ‘separation of the three powers.’” [6]6 The “Resolution” refers to the “Resolution on the Major Achievements and Historical Experience of the Party’s Centenary Struggle,” adopted at the Sixth Plenary Session of the 19th Central Committee of the CPC in November 2021.

中国由共产党领导这个原则是不能动摇的，动摇了就不可能实现现代化。只有坚持党的领导，中国革命事业和社会主义建设事业才能不断取得成功。因此，任何否定党的领导的倾向都是极其错误的。邓小平指出，旧中国一向被称为一盘散沙，自从中国共产党成为执政党，成为全中国团结的核心力量，四分五裂、各霸一方的局面就结束了；只要中国共产党的领导是正确的，那就不仅能够把全党的力量，而且能够把全国人民的力量集合起来，干出轰轰烈烈的事业。改革开放以后，一些人盲目崇拜资本主义国家的多党制，主张要用多党制取代中国的政党制度，其实质是取消中国共产党的领导地位。对此，邓小平深刻指出，“中国由共产党领导，中国的社会主义现代化建设事业由共产党领导，这个原则是不能动摇的；动摇了中国就要倒退到分裂和混乱，就不可能实现现代化。”各种错误思潮不论它们如何混淆视听，其重点攻击目标是党的领导制度，实行“全盘西化”，进而根本改变我国社会主义制度。2020年11月16日，习近平在中央全面依法治国工作会议上的讲话中重点批驳了西方民主宪政思潮，“党的十八届四中全会明确提出，坚持依法治国首先要坚持依宪治国，坚持依法执政首先要坚持依宪执政。我们讲依宪治国、依宪执政，同西方所谓‘宪政’有着本质区别，不能把二者混为一谈。坚持依宪治国、依宪执政，就包括坚持宪法确定的中国共产党领导地位不动摇，坚持宪法确定的人民民主专政的国体和人民代表大会制度的政体不动摇。”[习近平：《坚持和完善人民代表大会制度 保障人民当家作主》，《求是》2024年第4期。]党的十九届六中全会通过的“决议”强调指出，“必须警惕和防范西方所谓‘宪政’、多党轮流执政、‘三权鼎立’等政治思潮的侵蚀影响。”

If socialism is abandoned, China will fall into chaos and lose everything. In the early period of reform and opening up, our country already saw the emergence of erroneous trends of thought centered on negating the Four Cardinal Principles. The rampant spread of these erroneous trends seriously poisoned our country’s cultural ecology and educational environment, producing extremely serious social harm. Deng Xiaoping pointed out that the serious crisis caused by the rampant spread of erroneous trends gave us a profound lesson, with extremely deep teachings; Chinese Communists cannot merely bury themselves in concrete affairs, indifferent to political dynamics and neglecting ideological work. If the Four Cardinal Principles are not upheld, the chaotic situation cannot be reversed, and the result “would be the outbreak of civil war. If civil war breaks out, victory will certainly be on our side, but who knows how many people will die, how many people’s feelings will be hurt; that would be a real bone-breaking and sinew-tearing affair!” [7]7 Deng Xiaoping, “Speech at the Enlarged Meeting of the Military Commission of the Central Committee of the CPC,” June 1981. Xi Jinping pointed out, “Comrade Deng Xiaoping said that with the founding of the People’s Republic of China, ‘China obtained a qualification: people dare not look down upon us.’ Therefore, the fruits of victory of the New Democratic Revolution must not be lost, the achievements of socialist revolution and construction must not be negated, and the direction of reform and opening up and socialist modernization must not be shaken. This is the qualification for the Party and the people to stand firm and move forward through wind and rain in today’s world. The entire history of modern China tells us that China’s affairs must be handled according to China’s characteristics and China’s actual conditions; this is the correct way to solve all of China’s problems.” [8]8 Xi Jinping, “Speech at the Ceremony Marking the 120th Anniversary of Comrade Deng Xiaoping’s Birth,” August 20, 2024. It can be said that without the Four Cardinal Principles, the Communist Party of China and the Chinese people would inevitably lose the minimum qualification for existence, development, and progress, and the historical process of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation would inevitably be reversed. To this day, some people have still not learned the lesson from the historical tragedy of the collapse of the Soviet Communist Party leading to the disintegration of the state and continuous war. Around the time of the disintegration of the Soviet Union, Deng Xiaoping viewed the future and destiny of socialism in China and the world with profound historical insight: “If socialism is abandoned, China will fall into chaos and lose everything.” [9]9 Deng Xiaoping, “We Must Maintain Social Stability and Ensure the Smooth Progress of Reform and Opening Up,” March 4, 1989. Deng Xiaoping pointed out that if civil war breaks out, it will be rivers of blood, each region lording it over its own territory, economic stagnation; then what “human rights” can be discussed? What development can be discussed?

放弃社会主义，中国就要乱，就丧失一切。改革开放初期，我国就出现了以否定四项基本原则为核心的错误思潮，错误思潮的泛滥严重毒化了我国的文化生态和教育环境，产生了极其严重的社会危害。邓小平指出，错误思潮严重泛滥引发的严重危机给我们上了一堂大课，教训极其深刻，中国共产党人不能只埋头于具体事务，对政治动态不关心，对思想工作不重视。如果不坚持四项基本原则，混乱局面就不能得到扭转，其结果“就要发生内战。内战要是打起来，胜利肯定是我们这一方，但不知要死多少人，伤害多少人的感情，那才是伤筋动骨呢！”习近平指出，“邓小平同志说过，中华人民共和国的成立，‘中国取得了一个资格：人们不敢轻视我们’。所以，新民主主义革命的胜利成果决不能丢失，社会主义革命和建设的成就决不能否定，改革开放和社会主义现代化建设的方向决不能动摇。这是党和人民在当今世界安身立命、风雨前行的资格。中国近代以来的全部历史告诉我们，中国的事情必须按照中国的特点、中国的实际来办，这是解决中国所有问题的正确之道。”可以说，如果没有了四项基本原则，中国共产党和中国人民必然丧失存在、发展和前行的起码资格，中华民族伟大复兴的历史进程必然被逆转。直到今天，一些人还没有从苏共垮台导致国家解体、战乱不断的历史悲剧中汲取教训。苏联解体前后，邓小平以深邃历史眼光看待中国和世界的社会主义前途命运，“放弃社会主义，中国就要乱，就丧失一切。”邓小平指出，如果内战打起来，就是血流成河，就是各霸一方，就是经济停滞，还谈什么“人权”？还谈什么发展？

To resolve the confusion in the ideological front, we must dare to struggle and be adept at struggle, and actively carry out criticism and self-criticism. In the practice of ideological struggle, there is also a tendency to shrink from struggle and shrink from criticism in the face of erroneous trends of thought, a tendency that objectively abets the spread of erroneous trends of thought, with some people brazenly advocating erroneous ideas. Deng Xiaoping pointed out seriously the main shortcomings in ideological work: first, there was a failure to actively, forthrightly, and persuasively propagate the Four Cardinal Principles, and a failure to wage a vigorous struggle against some serious erroneous trends of thought that opposed the Four Cardinal Principles; regarding incorrect views and erroneous trends of thought, and even some views that openly opposed the Party’s leadership and opposed socialism, very few people stepped forward in newspapers and periodicals, as well as within Party life, to conduct serious ideological struggle. Second, there was indeed confusion in the thinking of some comrades; for example, some people set upholding the Four Cardinal Principles in opposition to emancipating the mind, perfecting the socialist legal system in opposition to promoting socialist democracy, and criticizing erroneous ideas in opposition to adhering to the “Double Hundred” policy. This led to a tendency both inside and outside the Party to dare not uphold the Four Cardinal Principles forthrightly and dare not criticize erroneous ideas unequivocally.

解决思想战线混乱问题，要坚持敢于斗争、善于斗争，积极开展批评与自我批评。在意识形态斗争实践中，面对错误思潮，也存在不敢斗争、不敢批评的倾向，这种倾向客观上助长了错误思潮的泛滥，一些人“理直气壮”地鼓吹错误思潮。邓小平严肃指出了意识形态工作存在的主要缺点，一是没有积极主动、理直气壮而又有说服力地宣传四项基本原则，对一些反对四项基本原则的严重错误思潮没有进行有力的斗争，对于不正确的观点、错误的思潮，甚至对于一些明目张胆地反对党的领导、反对社会主义的观点，在报刊上以及党内生活中，都很少有人挺身而出进行严肃的思想斗争。二是在有些同志的思想中确实存在着混乱，比如有的人，将坚持四项基本原则与解放思想、健全社会主义法制与发扬社会主义民主、批判错误思想与坚持“双百”方针对立起来。这就导致党内外都存在不敢理直气壮地坚持四项基本原则、不敢旗帜鲜明地批评错误思想的倾向。

Deng Xiaoping also pointed out the abnormal and unhealthy phenomena in the practice of criticism and self-criticism on the ideological front, emphasizing that Marxists should step forward and speak out, and that Communist Party members on the ideological front must stand at the forefront of the struggle. “The main method for resolving the confusion on the ideological front remains to carry out criticism and self-criticism. We should acknowledge that in the theoretical and literary circles, some Marxist criticism has been directed at certain erroneous tendencies, but the effect has not been marked enough. For one thing, the quality and weight of the criticism itself are insufficient; for another, the momentum of resistance to criticism is very strong. There is not much criticism, yet it is often labeled a ‘siege’ or accused of ‘wielding the big stick.’ In fact, it is the critics who are besieged, while those being criticized often receive sympathy and protection. … No matter what kind of expert, scholar, writer, or artist one is, as long as one is a Party member, one is not allowed to consider oneself special, to think that one is politically superior to the Party, and to act as one pleases.” The abnormal phenomena Deng Xiaoping pointed out—such as “the momentum of resistance to criticism is very strong,” critics being besieged while those criticized receive sympathy and protection, and some people “thinking themselves politically superior to the Party”—are objectively existing. Overcoming these abnormal phenomena is an important task of ideological work under the conditions of reform and opening up. If these abnormal phenomena persist and develop over a long period, they will inevitably bring difficulties and challenges to the Party’s ideological construction and ideological work, and even lead to serious political security and cultural security problems. The reason the Soviet Communist Party collapsed was precisely because its ideology collapsed; the collapse of ideology left the Soviet Communist Party unable to establish itself as a party and the Soviet Union unable to establish itself as a state. In the 75 years since the birth of New China, and especially in the more than 40 years of reform and opening up, the danger of “peaceful evolution” and “color revolution” has always existed; we must at all times be vigilant in times of peace and sound the alarm. Under the strong leadership of the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, a comprehensive and fundamental transformation has taken place in China’s ideological sphere. “Through the revolutionary tempering of comprehensive and strict governance of the Party in the New Era, the long-standing chaos in ideology and values in some areas has been rectified and set right. The entire Party has consciously used the Party’s innovative theories to nourish its original aspiration and founding mission, enhance its political responsibility to share the Party’s concerns, contribute to the country, and seek well-being for the people, to stand firm in the trials of wind and waves, to steady its spirit in the face of temptation and ‘encirclement and hunting,’ and to maintain its political character in complex and severe struggles.”

邓小平还指出了思想战线上批评和自我批评实践中存在的不正常、不健康现象，强调马克思主义者应当站出来讲话，思想战线的共产党员必须站在斗争的前列，“解决思想战线混乱问题的主要方法，仍然是开展批评和自我批评。我们应当承认，在理论界和文艺界对一些错误倾向是进行了一些马克思主义的批评的，只是效果不够显著。一则批评本身的质量和分量不够，二则抵抗批评的气势很盛。批评不多，却常被称为‘围攻’，被说成是‘打棍子’。其实倒是批评者被围攻，而被批评者却往往受到同情和保护。……不管是什么专家、学者、作家、艺术家，只要是党员，都不允许自视特殊，认为自己在政治上比党高明，可以自行其是。”邓小平指出的“抵抗批评的气势很盛”、批评者被围攻而被批评者却受到同情和保护、一些人“认为自己在政治上比党高明”等不正常现象是客观存在的，克服这些不正常现象是改革开放条件下意识形态工作的重要任务。如果这些不正常现象长期存在和发展，必然给党的思想建设和意识形态工作带来困难和挑战，甚至带来严重的政治安全和文化安全问题。苏共之所以垮台，就是因为意识形态垮了，意识形态的垮塌使苏共无以立党、苏联无以立国。新中国诞生75年、特别是改革开放40多年来，“和平演变”“颜色革命”的危险始终是存在的，我们任何时候都要居安思危、警钟长鸣。在以习近平同志为核心的党中央坚强领导下，我国意识形态领域发生了全局性、根本性转变，“经过新时代全面从严治党的革命性锻造，一些领域长期存在的意识形态之乱、价值观之乱得以正本清源，全党自觉用党的创新理论滋养初心、引领使命，增强为党分忧、为国奉献、为民造福的政治担当，在风浪考验中立住脚，在诱惑‘围猎’前定住神，在复杂严峻斗争中保持了政治本色。”

III. Firm Conviction: “Having the conviction of Marxism and communism” is “our true advantage”

三、坚定信念：“有马克思主义和共产主义的信念”是“我们的真正优势”

Xi Jinping pointed out, “Firm conviction is the most prominent political character

习近平指出，“信念坚定，是邓小平同志一生最鲜明的政治品格，也永远是中国共产党人应该挺起的精神脊梁，”[《习近平著作选读》第1卷，人民出版社2023年版，第245页。]作为一位伟大的马克思主义者，邓小平一直以自己是一位马克思主义者、共产主义者为傲。1986年9月2日，他在接受记者采访时自豪地说，“我是个马克思主义者。我一直遵循马克思主义的基本原则。马克思主义，另一个词叫共产主义。我们过去干革命，打天下，建立中华人民共和国，就因为有这个信念，有这个理想。”在推进革命、建设、改革的伟大实践进程中，邓小平都始终强调马克思主义这个老祖宗不能丢，共产主义理想这个灵魂不能丢，丢了就会失去凝聚力和向心力，丢了就会失去前进的动力和方向。

Unite the people with firm convictions. Whether in the era of revolutionary war or in the period of peaceful construction, Chinese Communists have always relied on ideals and convictions to unite and lead the broad masses of the people in advancing their cause forward. On this, Deng Xiaoping had a profound understanding and personal experience: "Based on my long experience in political and military activities, I believe that the most important thing is the unity of the people, and to achieve unity there must be a common ideal and firm convictions. Our decades of arduous struggle in the past were precisely about using firm convictions to unite the people and fight for their own interests. Without such convictions, there is no cohesion. Without such convictions, there is nothing." [10]10 Deng Xiaoping, "Speech at the National Conference of the Chinese Communist Party," 23 September 1985, in *Selected Works of Deng Xiaoping*, vol. 3 (Beijing: People's Publishing House, 1993), p. 190. Why can ideals and convictions be used to unite the masses of the people? The most fundamental reason is that Chinese Communists, at different historical stages, have been able to concretize the lofty ideal of communism into a program of struggle representing the interests of the broadest masses of the people at that stage, and have been able to organically unify ideal and reality, theory and practice. Relying on this organic unity, Chinese Communists can unite and mobilize the broadest masses of the people. Deng Xiaoping emphasized that with such unity, there is no fear of any difficulty or setback. In the new period of reform and opening up, in response to problems in the sphere of cultural-ethical progress in our country, especially the loss of ideals and convictions among some Party members and cadres, Deng Xiaoping raised the question: without communist ideals and communist morality, how can socialism be built? The more we are under the conditions of reform and opening up, the more we develop the socialist market economy, the more Communist Party members, especially senior leading cadres, must attach great importance to and practice communist ideals and communist morality. Deng Xiaoping pointed out, "If we ourselves are spiritually disarmed, how can we educate the youth, how can we lead the country and the people in building socialism!" If we ourselves are spiritually disarmed, then building socialist cultural-ethical progress is out of the question; if the construction of cultural-ethical progress is not strengthened, the construction of material progress will inevitably be undermined. Therefore, Deng Xiaoping emphasized, "Relying solely on material conditions, our revolution and construction could not have succeeded. In the past, no matter how weak our Party was, no matter what difficulties it encountered, it always had strong combat effectiveness, because we had the conviction of Marxism and communism. With a common ideal, we also had iron discipline. Whether in the past, present, or future, this is our true advantage. Some comrades are no longer so clear about this truth. Thus, it is difficult for them to attach importance to the construction of cultural-ethical progress."

用坚定的信念把人民团结起来。不论是在革命战争年代，还是在和平建设时期，中国共产党人始终靠理想信念，团结带领广大人民群众不断将事业推向前进。对此，邓小平有深刻的理解和体会，“根据我长期从事政治和军事活动的经验，我认为，最重要的是人的团结，要团结就要有共同的理想和坚定的信念。我们过去几十年艰苦奋斗，就是靠用坚定的信念把人民团结起来，为人民自己的利益而奋斗。没有这样的信念，就没有凝聚力。没有这样的信念，就没有一切。”为什么可以用理想信念将人民群众团结起来？最根本的原因是中国共产党人在不同历史阶段，都能够将共产主义远大理想具体化为代表那个阶段最广大人民利益的奋斗纲领，能够将理想与现实、理论与实践有机统一起来。依靠这种有机统一，中国共产党人才能团结、动员最广大人民群众。邓小平强调，有了这样的团结，就不惧怕任何困难和挫折。在改革开放新时期，针对我国精神文明领域存在的问题，特别是一些党员干部丧失理想信念的问题，邓小平提出，如果没有共产主义思想和共产主义道德，怎么能建设社会主义？越是在改革开放条件下，越是发展社会主义市场经济，共产党员尤其是党的高级负责干部，就越是要高度重视、愈要身体力行共产主义思想和共产主义道德。邓小平指出，“我们自己在精神上解除了武装，还怎么能教育青年，还怎么能领导国家和人民建设社会主义！”如果我们自己解除了精神武装，就谈不上建设社会主义精神文明；精神文明建设得不到加强，物质文明建设也必然要受到破坏。因此，邓小平强调，“光靠物质条件，我们的革命和建设都不可能胜利。过去我们党无论怎样弱小，无论遇到什么困难，一直有强大的战斗力，因为我们有马克思主义和共产主义的信念。有了共同的理想，也就有了铁的纪律。无论过去、现在和将来，这都是我们的真正优势。这个真理，有些同志已经不那么清楚了。这样，也就很难重视精神文明的建设。”

Vigorously develop the productive forces, creating a material foundation for demonstrating the superiority of socialism, consolidating the socialist system, and realizing the communist ideal. As early as the founding of New China, Deng Xiaoping recognized the importance of developing the social productive forces, emphasizing that failure to promote the development of the productive forces would harm the organic unity of the productive forces and the relations of production, the economic base and the superstructure, and would violate Marxist theory. In the new period of reform and opening up, Deng Xiaoping placed even greater

大力发展生产力，为体现社会主义优越性、巩固社会主义制度和实现共产主义理想创造物质基础。早在新中国建立之初，邓小平就认识到发展社会生产力的重要性，强调如果不能推动生产力发展，就会有损于生产力与生产关系、经济基础与上层建筑的有机统一，就违背了马克思主义理论。在改革开放新时期，邓小平更加强调要大力发展生产力，并将发展生产力与社会主义本质联系起来。邓小平关于发展生产力的一系列重要论述，极大推动了我国社会主义物质文明的发展，为社会主义现代化建设，作出了重要贡献。邓小平强调要大力发展生产力，不是仅仅为了发展生产力本身，而是强调发展生产力主要是为体现社会主义优越性、巩固社会主义制度和实现共产主义理想创造坚实的物质基础。第一，只有大力发展生产力，才能体现社会主义优越性。邓小平指出，“根据我们自己的经验，讲社会主义，首先就要使生产力发展，这是主要的。只有这样，才能表明社会主义的优越性。社会主义经济政策对不对，归根到底要看生产力是否发展，人民收入是否增加。这是压倒一切的标准。空讲社会主义不行，人民不相信。”邓小平强调，作为一个社会主义国家，我国社会主义制度优越性的根本表现，就在于我们的社会生产力能够以旧社会所没有的速度迅速发展，使广大人民群众的物质文化生活需求能够逐步得到满足。如果在很长的历史时期内，社会主义国家生产力发展速度比资本主义国家慢，就谈不上什么优越性。第二，只有大力发展生产力，才能更好地巩固社会主义制度。邓小平指出，如果我们不搞现代化，不能提高科学技术水平，不能大力发展生产力，社会主义国家的综合实力就得不到加强，广大人民群众的物质文化生活水平就得不到提高，我国社会主义政治制度和经济制度就不可能充分巩固，国家的安全就不可能有可靠的保障。因此，邓小平强调，“我们的农业、工业、国防和科学技术越是现代化，我们同破坏社会主义的势力作斗争就越加有力量，我们的社会主义制度就越加得到人民的拥护。把我们的国家建设成为社会主义的现代化强国，才能更有效地巩固社会主义制度，对付外国侵略者的侵略和颠覆。”第三，只有大力发展生产力，才能为实现共产主义不断创造和积累坚实的物质基础。邓小平指出，共产党人的理想信念就是为了实现共产主义，即使在最困难、最艰苦的条件下，共产主义理想信念始终是共产党人不断坚持斗争、不断努力前行的精神支柱。邓小平强调，要实现共产主义，就要完成社会主义阶段的历史任务，“社会主义的任务很多，但根本一条就是发展生产力，在发展生产力的基础上体现出优于资本主义，为实现共产主义创造物质基础。”

Only by firmly establishing ideals and convictions can ideals and convictions be realized in practice. Communist ideals and convictions are grounded in the scientific truth of Marxism and in the continuous development of the socialist cause. Therefore, Deng Xiaoping emphasized that Communists must never lose their ideals and convictions under any circumstances. First, they must not lose their ideals and convictions because of the long duration of history. Realizing communism is a long historical process. For Communists, communist ideals and convictions have never been illusory; rather, they involve continuously and resolutely advancing the development of the socialist and communist causes, turning ideals and convictions into actual history through struggle. Second, they must not lose their ideals and convictions because errors have occurred in work. Deng Xiaoping pointed out that we have made some mistakes in practical work, but we must not therefore lose our ideals and aspirations, seeing every rope as a snake. [11]11 A Chinese idiom meaning that when one is overly fearful or suspicious, one mistakes harmless things for threats. Deng Xiaoping proposed that a kind of “ghost” called loss of confidence must be prevented; Communists have the confidence and ability to overcome shortcomings and correct mistakes. Third, they must not lose their ideals and convictions because the socialist cause has encountered major setbacks. The socialist always develops forward amid twists and turns, and the world socialist cause has even suffered major setbacks such as the drastic changes in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. [12]12 The collapse of communist regimes in the Soviet Union and Eastern European countries between 1989 and 1991, leading to the dissolution of the USSR and the end of the Cold War. In the face of such major setbacks, some people have lost their ideals and convictions as well as their original aspiration and founding mission. Deng Xiaoping regarded the drastic changes in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe as a kind of restoration of an old system; such restoration phenomena are not uncommon in the course of human historical development, but the direction of historical progress will not change. Therefore, the reason some people lose their ideals and convictions in the face of major setbacks is often that they have not laid a solid theoretical foundation in Marxism, especially a solid foundation in dialectical materialism and historical materialism. The continuously developing cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics constantly infuses the world socialist movement with new vitality and dynamism, and constantly demonstrates the scientific truth and strong vitality of Marxism. “The continuous success of adapting Marxism to the Chinese context and the needs of the times has presented Marxism to the world in a brand-new image, and has brought about a major shift favorable to socialism in the historical evolution and contest between the two ideologies and two social systems of socialism and capitalism worldwide.” This major shift has not come easily; it is the result of the Chinese Communists and all progressive forces always firmly upholding their ideals and convictions and always making unremitting efforts. This major shift is also an important component of the changes unseen in a century in the world, and to a great extent determines the nature and direction of these changes unseen in a century.

只有坚定理想信念，才能在实践中实现理想信念。共产主义理想信念建立在马克思主义科学真理基础上，建立在社会主义事业不断发展基础上。因此，邓小平强调，共产党人在任何情况下，都不能丧失理想信念。第一，不能因历史漫长而丧失理想信念。实现共产主义是一个长期的历史过程，对于共产党人来说，共产主义理想信念从来都不是虚无飘渺的，而是不断坚定地推进社会主义、共产主义事业发展，用奋斗将理想信念变为现实历史。第二，不能因工作中出现了错误而丧失理想信念。邓小平指出，我们在实际工作中犯了一些错误，但不能因此就丧失理想、志气，就看到绳子都是蛇了。邓小平提出，要防止一种叫丧失信心的“鬼”，共产党人有信心、有能力克服缺点、改正错误。第三，不能因社会主义事业遭遇重大挫折而丧失理想信念。社会主义事业总是在曲折中向前发展的，世界社会主义事业还遭遇苏东剧变这样的重大挫折。在这样的重大挫折面前，有的人丧失了理想信念和初心使命。邓小平将苏东剧变看成是一种旧制度的复辟，这种复辟现象在人类历史发展进程中并不少见，但历史前进的方向不会改变。因此，有些人在重大挫折面前丧失理想信念，往往是因为没有打牢马克思主义理论基础，特别是没有打牢辩证唯物主义和历史唯物主义基础。不断发展着的中国特色社会主义事业，使世界社会主义不断焕发新的生机与活力，使马克思主义的科学真理性和强大生命力不断得到彰显，“马克思主义中国化时代化不断取得成功，使马克思主义以崭新形象展现在世界上，使世界范围内社会主义和资本主义两种意识形态、两种社会制度的历史演进及其较量发生了有利于社会主义的重大转变。”这一重大转变来之不易，是中国共产党人和一切进步力量始终坚定理想信念、始终不懈奋斗的结果；这一重大转变也是世界百年未有之变局的重要组成部分，在很大程度上决定着百年变局的性质和方向。

(Author’s bio: Jiang Yingchun, Professor, School of Philosophy, Nanjing University)

（作者简介：姜迎春，南京大学哲学学院教授）

Online editor: Tongxin

网络编辑：同心