Historical Lessons from the Establishment and Re-establishment of the Party’s Ideological Line of Seeking Truth from Facts

Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping, as the cores of the Party’s first and second generations of central leadership, erected two peaks in the history of the development of the Party’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts: Comrade Mao Zedong was the great founder of the Party’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts, making pioneering contributions to its formation and establishment; Comrade Deng Xiaoping was the great defender of the Party’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts, making trailblazing contributions to its restoration and re-establishment. From Mao Zedong to Deng Xiaoping, the Party’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts underwent a developmental process from establishment to re-establishment. Although the historical contexts, objectives and tasks, and forms of expression were not entirely the same, its essential connotations and basic principles remained consistent. Carefully reviewing the historic contributions of these two comrades to the development of the Party’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts, and profoundly summarizing the historical experience of its establishment and re-establishment, is of great significance for our scientific grasp and comprehensive implementation of the Party’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts, and for advancing the great cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics in the New Era.

毛泽东与邓小平作为党的第一代和第二代中央领导集体的核心，构筑了党的实事求是思想路线发展史上的两座高峰：毛泽东同志是党的实事求是思想路线的伟大奠基者，为党的实事求是思想路线的形成和确立作出了开创性贡献；邓小平同志是党的实事求是思想路线的伟大捍卫者，为党的实事求是思想路线的恢复和重新确立作出了开拓性贡献。从毛泽东到邓小平，党的实事求是思想路线经过了从确立到重新确立的发展历程，尽管时代背景、目标任务、表现形态不尽相同，但其本质内涵和基本原则是一致的。认真回顾两位同志为党的实事求是思想路线发展作出的历史性贡献，深刻总结党的实事求是思想路线从确立到重新确立的历史经验，对于我们科学把握和全面贯彻党的实事求是思想路线，推进新时代中国特色社会主义伟大事业具有重要意义。

The establishment of the Party’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts was arduous; upholding and safeguarding it is even more difficult. This is a fundamental issue that Party building must take seriously.

党的实事求是思想路线创立艰难，坚守和维护更是艰难，这是党的建设需要高度重视的一个根本性问题

The establishment of the Party’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts underwent a long and tortuous process. Comrade Mao Zedong first used the term “ideological line” in his June 1929 letter to Lin Biao [1]1 The Gutian Congress (December 1929) was the Ninth Party Congress of the Fourth Red Army, held in Gutian, Fujian Province. Its resolution addressed issues of Party building and the military, emphasizing the Party’s absolute leadership over the army., and in his May 1930 work “Investigation Work” [2]2 *Rural Surveys* is a collection of Mao Zedong’s investigation reports from the late 1920s and early 1930s, with the preface and postscript written in 1937 and 1941 respectively. he explicitly raised the issue of the Communist’s “ideological line.” At the Sixth Plenary Session of the Sixth Central Committee of the Party [3]3 Lin Biao was a former Vice Chairman of the CPC who died in a plane crash in 1971 after an alleged coup attempt. The “Gang of Four” was a radical faction led by Jiang Qing (Mao’s wife) that was purged in 1976 after Mao’s death., Comrade Mao Zedong first employed the term “seeking truth from facts.” In May 1941, he published “Reform Our Study” [4]4 “Three falls and three rises” refers to Deng Xiaoping, and the most important historical contribution of the subsequent Yan’an Rectification Movement [5]5 The Yan’an Rectification Movement (1942–1944) was a Party-wide campaign to correct dogmatism and establish Mao Zedong Thought as the guiding ideology. was to make the concept of seeking truth from facts begin to take root in people’s hearts. However, after the Third Plenary Session of the Eighth Central Committee of the Party [6]6 The Third Plenary Session of the Eighth Central Committee (1957) marked a shift toward emphasizing class struggle, leading to later deviations., due to the Party’s excessively intense estimation of the situation of class struggle, the ideological line of seeking truth from facts began to deviate to varying degrees, ultimately leading to the outbreak of the “Cultural Revolution” [7]7 The. Upholding truth is harder than discovering it. After Comrade Deng Xiaoping returned to work, he chose to criticize the “Two Whatevers” [8] as a breakthrough, supported the great discussion on the criterion of truth [9], and greatly liberated people’s rigidified thinking. The Third Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee of the Party [10] decided to shift the focus of the Party’s work to socialist modernization, re-establishing the Party’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts. The formation and establishment of the Party’s ideological line took twenty-four years, from the founding of the Party in 1921 to the Seventh National Congress of the Party in 1945; from the Seventh National Congress to the Third Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee in 1978, thirty-three years of upholding and safeguarding were full of twists and turns. The twenty-one years from the Third Plenary Session of the Eighth Central Committee in 1957 to the Third Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee in 1978 were a period of deviation from the ideological line. As Comrade Deng Xiaoping said in a conversation in May 1988: “In the thirty-nine years since the founding of our country, the first eight years were good, the last ten years were also good, but the years in between were disturbed by ‘Left’ errors, and the situation was not very good.” [11] The Party’s history teaches us: The issue of the ideological line is a matter concerning the future and destiny of the Party and the country; it is a fundamental and overall issue for Party building that requires the high attention of the entire Party. On the new journey of the New Era, we must carefully cherish and doubly value the ideological line of seeking truth from facts.

党的实事求是思想路线的确立经历了一个漫长而曲折的过程。毛泽东同志在1929年6月《给林彪的信》中首次使用“思想路线”一词，在1930年5月撰写的《调查工作》中明确地提出了共产党人“思想路线”问题。在党的六届六中全会上，毛泽东同志首次运用“实事求是”一词。1941年5月，他发表《改造我们的学习》，在此之后的延安整风运动最重要的历史贡献是使实事求是的观念开始深入人心。但是，党的八届三中全会之后，由于党对阶级斗争的形势作了过分激烈的估计，实事求是思想路线开始出现不同程度的偏离，最终导致“文化大革命”发生。坚持真理比发现真理更难。邓小平同志复出后，选择以批判“两个凡是”作为突破口，支持开展真理标准问题的大讨论，极大地解放了人们僵化的思想。党的十一届三中全会确定了把全党工作的重点转移到社会主义现代化建设上来，重新确立了党的实事求是思想路线。党的思想路线形成和确立，从1921年党的成立到1945年党的七大经历了二十四年；从党的七大到1978年党的十一届三中全会，三十三年的坚守和维护充满坎坷。从1957年党的八届三中全会到党的十一届三中全会这二十一年间是思想路线的偏离时期，正如1988年5月邓小平同志在谈话中所说：“我们建国三十九年，头八年好，后十年也好，当中那些年受到‘左’的干扰，情况不大好。”党的历史启示我们：思想路线问题是关系到党和国家前途命运的问题，是党的建设一个根本性、全局性的问题，需要引起全党的高度重视。新时代新征程，我们要用心呵护、倍加珍惜实事求是的思想路线。

The essence of the Party’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts is a philosophical proposition; both its establishment and re-establishment depend on raising the Party’s level of Marxist theory.

党的实事求是思想路线本质是一个哲学命题，确立与重新确立都有赖于提高党的马克思主义理论水平

Marxism is the theoretical cornerstone for understanding, correcting, and adhering to the ideological line. In his article “Oppose Book Worship” [12], Comrade Mao Zedong emphasized, “We need ‘books,’ but we must correct the book worship that divorces itself from reality”; in his 1937 works “On Practice” and “On Contradiction” [13], he provided a philosophical demonstration for the ideological line of seeking truth from facts from the perspectives of Marxist epistemology and dialectics; during the Yan’an period, he issued a call to the entire Party to launch a learning competition in Marxism. Comrade Deng Xiaoping used the great discussion on the philosophical proposition that “practice is the sole criterion for testing truth” as the theoretical precursor for restoring and re-establishing the Party’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts. In his speech at the All-Army Conference on Political Work in 1978 [14], he emphasized that whether to adhere to seeking truth from facts or to “copy verbatim the original words of Marx, Lenin, and Comrade Mao Zedong” – “the question they raised is not a small one; it concerns how to view Marxism-Leninism and Mao Zedong Thought.” The Party’s history teaches us: We must correct or avoid the Right and “Left” errors that have occurred in the Party’s history. In his speech at the 80th Anniversary Celebration of the Central Party School and the Opening Ceremony of the Spring Semester 2013 [15], General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out, “First of all, we must seriously study Marxist theory; this is our fundamental skill for doing all work well.” On the new journey of the New Era, we must persist in arming the entire Party with Marxist theory, achieving constant cultivation and refinement, and continuously nourishing the Party’s ideological line with Marxist theory.

马克思主义是理解思想路线、端正思想路线和坚持思想路线的理论基石。毛泽东同志在《反对本本主义》一文中强调，“我们需要‘本本’，但是一定要纠正脱离实际情况的本本主义”；在1937年发表的《实践论》和《矛盾论》中，他从马克思主义认识论和辩证法方面为实事求是思想路线作了哲学论证；延安时期，他向全党发出了开展马克思主义学习竞赛的号召。邓小平同志以“实践是检验真理的唯一标准”这一哲学命题的大讨论作为恢复和重新确立党的实事求是思想路线的理论先导。他在1978年全军政治工作会议上的讲话中强调，是坚持实事求是还是“照抄马克思、列宁、毛泽东同志的原话”“他们提出的这个问题不是小问题，而是涉及到怎么看待马列主义、毛泽东思想的问题”。党的历史启示我们：要纠正或者避免党的历史上曾经犯过右的和“左”的错误。习近平总书记在中央党校建校八十周年庆祝大会暨2013年春季学期开学典礼上的讲话中指出，“首先要认真学习马克思主义理论，这是我们做好一切工作的看家本领”。新时代新征程，我们要坚持用马克思主义理论武装全党，做到常修常炼，不断用马克思主义理论滋养党的思想路线。

The opposite of the Party’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts is subjectivism. A dogmatic interpretation of certain viewpoints of the classical Marxist writers easily leads to absolutization and sanctification; recognizing and correcting it both require a historical process.

党的实事求是思想路线的对立面是主观主义，基于对马克思主义经典作家某些观点的教条式理解，容易走向绝对化、神圣化，认识它、纠正它都有一个历史过程

Comrade Mao Zedong’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts was gradually formed and established in a long-term struggle against subjectivism. In response to problems such as mechanically and dogmatically copying the Russian “theory of one revolution” [16] and blindly insisting on the “theory of the urban center” [17], Comrade Mao Zedong, while criticizing subjectivism, systematically expounded the theory of the new Chinese revolutionary path of “armed independent regimes of workers and peasants” [18]. In his article “Reform Our Study,” he pointed out: “This anti-scientific, anti-Marxist-Leninist method of subjectivism is a great enemy of the Communist Party, a great enemy of the working class, a great enemy of the people, a great enemy of the nation, and a manifestation of impure Party spirit.” [19] The ideological line of seeking truth from facts founded by Comrade Mao Zedong was adhered to for most of the time during his leadership of China’s revolution and construction, but in his later years “it was indeed not so consistent in thought” [20], mainly because the Party leadership still regarded issues that no longer belonged to class struggle as class struggle. Comrade Deng Xiaoping restored and re-established the Party’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts, focusing his efforts on how to break superstition, objectively evaluate Comrade Mao Zedong, and how to treat Mao Zedong Thought, emphasizing that “we must have a complete and accurate understanding of Mao Zedong Thought, and be good at learning, mastering, and using the system of Mao Zedong Thought to guide our various tasks.” [21] The “Resolution on Certain Historical Issues of the Party Since the Founding of the People’s Republic of China” [22] adopted at the Sixth Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee distinguished Comrade Mao Zedong’s errors in his later years from Mao Zedong Thought as a scientific system that had been proven correct through the test of practice. This marked the re-establishment of the Party’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts. The Party’s history teaches us: The key to overcoming subjectivism within the Party lies in making efforts to scientifically understand and grasp China’s national conditions. On the new journey of national rejuvenation, we must adhere to still being in the primary stage of socialism as the “general basis,” firmly grasp this basic national condition, firmly base ourselves on this greatest reality, firmly adhere to the Party’s basic line without wavering, and explore a new path of Chinese-path modernization.

毛泽东同志实事求是思想路线是在与主观主义长期斗争中逐渐形成和确立的。针对机械教条照搬俄国“一次革命论”、盲目坚持“城市中心论”等问题，毛泽东同志在批判主观主义同时，系统论述了“工农武装割据”中国革命新道路的理论。在《改造我们的学习》一文中，他指出：“这种反科学的反马克思列宁主义的主观主义的方法，是共产党的大敌，是工人阶级的大敌，是人民的大敌，是民族的大敌，是党性不纯的一种表现。”毛泽东同志创立的实事求是思想路线，在他领导中国革命和建设的大部分时间内是坚持的，但到晚年“确实是思想不那么一贯了”，主要是党的领导把已经不属于阶级斗争的问题仍然看作阶级斗争。邓小平同志恢复和重新确立党的实事求是思想路线，把着力点放在怎样破除迷信、客观评价毛泽东同志和怎样对待毛泽东思想上，强调“要对毛泽东思想有一个完整的准确的认识，要善于学习、掌握和运用毛泽东思想的体系来指导我们各项工作”。党的十一届六中全会《关于建国以来党的若干历史问题的决议》，把毛泽东同志晚年的错误同经过实践检验证明是正确的作为科学体系的毛泽东思想区别开来。至此，标志着党的实事求是思想路线得以重新确立。党的历史启示我们：克服党内的主观主义，关键是在科学认识和掌握中国国情上下功夫。在民族复兴新征程上，我们要坚持以仍处于社会主义初级阶段为“总依据”，牢牢把握这个基本国情，牢牢立足这个最大实际，牢牢坚持党的基本路线不动摇，探索一条中国式现代化新道路。

In practicing the Party’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts, the cognition of the subject is key; the methods and pathways of the subject’s cognition are crucial to the cognitive outcome.

践行党的实事求是思想路线，主体认知是关键，主体认知方法和途径对认知结果至关重要

When Comrade Mao Zedong elucidated the scientific connotation of “seeking truth from facts,” he interpreted the character “seek” (求) as investigation and study, which is a scientific method “put into practice.” Investigation and study occupied an extremely important position in the formation and establishment of Comrade Mao Zedong’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts. In the *Resolution of the Gutian Congress* [1]1 The Gutian Congress (December 1929) was the Ninth Party Congress of the Fourth Red Army, held in Gutian, Fujian Province. Its resolution addressed issues of Party building and the military, emphasizing the Party’s absolute leadership over the army., he pointed out that “without investigation of actual conditions, one falls into the pit of utopianism and blind action”; in the *Preface and Postscript to “Rural Surveys”* [2]2 *Rural Surveys* is a collection of Mao Zedong’s investigation reports from the late 1920s and early 1930s, with the preface and postscript written in 1937 and 1941 respectively., he stated that “no investigation, no right to speak,” emphasizing that investigation and study are the fundamental way to achieve seeking truth from facts: “the only way to understand conditions is to make social investigations.” After the “Cultural Revolution” ended, when Comrade Deng Xiaoping restored the Party’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts, the key point still lay in the character “seek.” Only by changing the thinking and mental state of those who “seek” could order be restored out of chaos. He pointed out: “To emancipate the mind means to make thought conform to reality and the subjective conform to the objective; that is seeking truth from facts.” He called on the entire Party to “break mental rigidity,” to liberate themselves from the “shackles of fake Marxism” of Lin Biao and the “Gang of Four” [3]3 Lin Biao was a former Vice Chairman of the CPC who died in a plane crash in 1971 after an alleged coup attempt. The “Gang of Four” was a radical faction led by Jiang Qing (Mao’s wife) that was purged in 1976 after Mao’s death., to liberate themselves from the bureaucratic “control, check, and suppress,” and to liberate themselves from “book worship” and “personality cults.” The Party’s history teaches us: Comrade Mao Zedong advocated investigation and study, and Comrade Deng Xiaoping advocated emancipating the mind; their essence is both to advocate the Marxist style of study. On the new journey of the New Era, we must more consciously promote the Marxist style of study, providing a continuous source of theoretical nourishment and a reserve of cadres for upholding and maintaining the Party’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts, and creating a healthy ideological and public opinion environment for implementing the Party’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts.

毛泽东同志在阐释“实事求是”科学内涵时，将“求”字解释为调查研究，调查研究是“见诸实践”的科学方法。调查研究在毛泽东同志实事求是思想路线的形成和确立的过程中占有极其重要的地位，在《古田会议决议》中指出“离开了实际情况的调查，就要堕入空想和盲动的深坑”；在《〈农村调查〉的序言和跋》中指出“没有调查就没有发言权”，他强调调查研究是做到实事求是的根本途径，“要了解情况，唯一的方法是向社会作调查”。“文化大革命”结束后，邓小平同志恢复党的实事求是思想路线，关键点仍然在于一个“求”字。只有改变“求”者的思想和精神状态，才能实现拨乱反正。他指出：“解放思想，就是使思想和实际相符合，使主观和客观相符合，就是实事求是。”他号召全党“打破思想僵化”，从林彪、“四人帮”的“假马克思主义的禁锢圈”内解放出来，从官僚主义的“管、卡、压”中解放出来，从“本本主义”和“个人迷信”中解放出来。党的历史启示我们：毛泽东同志倡导调查研究，邓小平同志倡导解放思想，其本质都是倡导马克思主义的学风。新时代新征程，我们要更加自觉地发扬马克思主义学风，为坚持和维护党的实事求是思想路线提供源源不断的理论滋养和干部储备，为贯彻党的实事求是思想路线创造健康的思想舆论环境。

Thinkers drive society forward; in the process of the establishment and re-establishment of the Party’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts, the unique role of great figures cannot be ignored.

思想家是推动社会前进的，在党的实事求是思想路线确立与重新确立过程中，不可忽视伟大人物的独特作用

The two great figures, Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping, experienced many ups and downs in their revolutionary careers. Through several rises and falls, they both, with their noble moral character, outstanding political wisdom, and superb skill in struggle, played a unique role in the establishment and re-establishment of the Party’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts. In his early revolutionary practice, Comrade Mao Zedong suffered multiple intra-Party disciplinary sanctions for insisting on seeking truth from facts. Faced with unfair treatment, he took the overall situation into account, endured for the sake of the Party, and always adhered to the principle of seeking truth from facts. Comrade Deng Xiaoping said: “Without Mao Zedong Thought, there would be no Chinese Communist Party today,” and “without Chairman Mao, at least we Chinese people would have groped in the dark for much longer.” This is the conclusion of practice and the public verdict of history. Comrade Deng Xiaoping also had the tortuous experience of “three falls and three rises” [4]4 “Three falls and three rises” refers to Deng Xiaoping for insisting on seeking truth from facts, and displayed extraordinary boldness and courage in restoring and re-establishing the Party’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts. In his speech at the symposium commemorating the 120th anniversary of Comrade Deng Xiaoping’s birth, General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: “Comrade Deng Xiaoping’s historical achievements are all-round and pioneering, and their impact on China and the world is profound and long-lasting.” The Party’s history teaches us: Strengthening Party spirit training and cultivation among Party members is the basic condition and important guarantee for upholding and maintaining the Party’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts. On the new journey of the New Era, Communists must consciously strengthen Party spirit cultivation, vigorously promote the spirit of seeking truth from facts, temper Party spirit in the test of major issues of principle and in the struggle against phenomena that violate seeking truth from facts, and always put the Party’s principles first, the Party’s cause first, and the people’s interests first.

毛泽东、邓小平两位伟人在革命生涯中历经坎坷，几次潮起潮落，都以高尚的人格风范、卓越的政治智慧、高超的斗争本领，为党的实事求是思想路线确立与重新确立发挥了独特作用。毛泽东同志在早期革命实践中曾因坚持实事求是受到过多次党内纪律处分。面对不公正待遇，他顾全大局、相忍为党，始终坚持实事求是原则不变。邓小平同志说：“没有毛泽东思想，就没有今天的中国共产党”，“没有毛主席，至少我们中国人民还要在黑暗中摸索更长的时间”。这是实践的结论，也是历史的公论。邓小平同志因坚持实事求是也有着“三落三起”的坎坷经历，在恢复和重新确立党的实事求是思想路线中表现出了非凡的胆略和勇气。习近平总书记在纪念邓小平同志诞辰一百二十周年座谈会上的讲话中指出：“邓小平同志的历史功勋是全方位的、开创性的，对中国和世界的影响是深刻的、长远的。”党的历史启示我们：加强党员党性锻炼和党性修养，是坚持和维护党的实事求是思想路线的基础条件和重要保障。新时代新征程，共产党人必须自觉加强党性修养，大力弘扬实事求是精神，在大是大非考验中、在与违背实事求是现象的斗争中锤炼党性，始终做到党的原则第一、党的事业第一、人民的利益第一。

The ideological line of seeking truth from facts is the lifeline of our Party. To keep it vibrant and prevent it from deviating, it is also necessary to continuously improve and perfect the guarantee conditions and mechanisms.

实事求是思想路线是我们党的生命线，要永葆其活力、防范其发生偏离，还须不断完善和健全保障条件与机制

In the process of forming and establishing the Party’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts, Comrade Mao Zedong was adept at using the power of democratic centralism. At the Gutian Congress, he opposed the tendency towards ultra-democracy and established the basic proposition of “strictly enforcing democratic life under centralized guidance”; at the Zunyi Conference [5]5 The Yan’an Rectification Movement (1942–1944) was a Party-wide campaign to correct dogmatism and establish Mao Zedong Thought as the guiding ideology., he used the legitimacy of the majority to veto the reports of a minority of leading comrades within the Party; at the Sixth Plenary Session of the Sixth Central Committee [6]6 The Third Plenary Session of the Eighth Central Committee (1957) marked a shift toward emphasizing class struggle, leading to later deviations., he emphasized for the first time the principle of “four submissions” [7]7 The, providing an important guarantee for the final establishment of the Party’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts. Comrade Deng Xiaoping regarded upholding democratic centralism as an important condition for restoring and re-establishing the Party’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts, pointing out: “We must institutionalize and legalize democracy, so that such institutions and laws do not change with the change of leaders, nor with the change of leaders’ views and focus of attention.” The Party’s history teaches us: To uphold the Party’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts, we must also continuously improve and perfect democratic centralism, the Party’s fundamental organizational system and leadership system. On the new journey of the New Era, we must organically unify democracy and centralism, deeply understand the decisive significance of the Two Establishments, achieve the Two Upholds, and truly turn the advantages of democratic centralism into our Party’s political advantages, organizational advantages, institutional advantages, and operational advantages.

毛泽东同志在党的实事求是思想路线形成和确立的过程中善于运用民主集中制的力量。古田会议中，他反对极端民主化倾向，确立了“厉行集中指导下的民主生活”的基本主张；遵义会议上，以多数的正当性否决了党内少数领导同志的报告；党的六届六中全会上，首次强调了“四个服从”原则，为党的实事求是思想路线最终确立提供了重要保障。邓小平同志把坚持民主集中制作为恢复和重新确立党的实事求是思想路线的重要条件，指出：“必须使民主制度化、法律化，使这种制度和法律不因领导人的改变而改变，不因领导人的看法和注意力的改变而改变。”党的历史启示我们：坚持党的实事求是思想路线，还要不断健全和完善民主集中制这个党的根本组织制度和领导制度。新时代新征程，我们要把民主和集中有机统一起来，深刻领悟“两个确立”的决定性意义，做到“两个维护”，真正把民主集中制的优势变成我们党的政治优势、组织优势、制度优势、工作优势。

The tree of practice is evergreen; the connotation and practical requirements of the Party’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts are continuously deepened and expanded with the process of adapting Marxism to the Chinese context and the needs of the times.

实践之树常青，党的实事求是思想路线的内涵意义与实践要求随着马克思主义中国化时代化的进程不断深化拓展

From the Party’s history, the connotation and practical requirements of the Party’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts are not immutable, but are continuously deepened and expanded with the process of adapting Marxism to the Chinese context and the needs of the times. While proposing the concept of “seeking truth from facts” in his report to the Sixth Plenary Session of the Sixth Central Committee, Comrade Mao Zedong also put forward the proposition of “adapting Marxism to the Chinese context.” In his article *Reform Our Study* [8], he pointed out: “‘Facts’ are all things that exist objectively, ‘truth’ is the internal connection of objective things, that is, the law, and ‘seeking’ means we study them.” This is the expression of Marxist dialectical materialism in the Chinese context. In the exploration of socialist revolution and construction, he also put forward viewpoints such as “social practice is the sole criterion for testing truth,” further perfecting the basic connotation of the Party’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts. Comrade Deng Xiaoping organically combined “seeking truth from facts” with the Party’s “ideological line,” and for the first time made a clear and complete scientific summary of the Party’s ideological line with seeking truth from facts as the core, taking “emancipating the mind” as the practical requirement and condition for implementing the Party’s ideological line of seeking truth from facts. The Party’s history teaches us: On the new journey of the New Era, we must continuously deepen our understanding of the laws of adapting Marxism to the Chinese context and the needs of the times, deeply grasp the worldview and methodology of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, uphold and apply the standpoints, viewpoints, and methods that run through it, and continuously open up new horizons for adapting Marxism to the Chinese context and the needs of the times in the great practice of the New Era.

从党的历史来看，党的实事求是思想路线的内涵意义和实践要求并不是一成不变的，而是随着马克思主义中国化时代化的进程不断深化拓展。毛泽东同志在党的六届六中全会报告中提出“实事求是”概念的同时，还提出了“马克思主义中国化”命题。他在《改造我们的学习》一文中指出：“‘实事’就是客观存在着的一切事物，‘是’就是客观事物的内部联系，即规律性，‘求’就是我们去研究。”这是马克思主义唯物辩证法的中国语境表达。在社会主义革命和建设探索中，他又提出“社会实践是检验真理的唯一标准”等观点，进一步完善了党的实事求是思想路线的基本内涵。邓小平同志把“实事求是”和党的“思想路线”二者有机地结合起来，并以实事求是为核心第一次对党的思想路线作了明确完整的科学概括，把“解放思想”作为贯彻党的实事求是思想路线的实践要求和条件。党的历史启示我们：新时代新征程，我们要不断深化对马克思主义中国化时代化的规律性认识，深刻把握习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想的世界观和方法论，坚持好、运用好贯穿其中的立场观点方法，在新时代伟大实践中不断开辟马克思主义中国化时代化新境界。

(Author Hu Zhenrong, Director of the Party History Research Institute of the Hunan Provincial Committee of the CPC, President of the Hunan Provincial Society for the History of the CPC)

（作者胡振荣，系中共湖南省委党史研究院院长、湖南省中共党史学会会长）

Online Editor: Huihui

网络编辑：慧慧