【Chairman Mao's Comment on the Mozi of the Pre-Qin Dynasties】
Mozi was the founder of the Mojia School in the Spring and Autumn Period, and creatively put forward the views of "simultaneous love", "non-attack", "Shangxian", "thrifty use" and so on, and was once called "Xianxue" together with Confucianism, and was called "non-Confucian that is, ink".
After Mozi's death, his disciples compiled the book "Mozi" based on his life deeds and what he said and thought, which had a great influence on future generations.
Modern scholar Yang Xiangkui commented: "Mozi's achievements in natural science are by no means inferior to those of the scientists and philosophers of ancient Greece, or even higher than them. His personal achievements were equal to that of all of Greece. ”
Chairman Mao was familiar with the history of the Scriptures since childhood, and had a deep understanding of the pre-Qin sons, especially for Mozi, he had a persistent preference, and was deeply influenced by Mozi's thought, and even spoke highly of Mozi, saying: "He is a sage who is more intelligent than Confucius. ”
In early February 1939, Chen Boda wrote a "Philosophical Thought of Mozi", which was a series of papers written by Chen Boda in response to Chairman Mao's call to "study ancient cultural heritage".
Chen Boda put a lot of effort into this paper, made a high evaluation of Mozi, and sent it to Chairman Mao for review and asked Chairman Mao for advice.
After reading through the whole article, Chairman Mao thought that the professional standard of this article was very high, and he was very happy, so he wrote back to Chen Boda, saying: "I have read Mozi's Philosophical Thoughts, and this is a great credit to you, and it is here to find Out Heraclitus in China. ”
However, while affirming this article, Chairman Mao believed that the title of the paper was somewhat mediocre and did not reflect the manifestation of Mozi's merits, so he suggested that Chen Boda change the title of the thesis to "Ancient Dialectical Materialism -- Mozi's Philosophical Thought" or "Mozi's Materialistic Philosophy".
Two months later, Chairman Mao was invited to attend the preliminary summing-up meeting of the anti-large-scale production movement, and made an impromptu speech at the meeting, saying: "The historical King Yu, he was an official, but he also cultivated the land. Mozi was a laborer, he was not an official, but he was a sage who was smarter than Confucius. Confucius did not cultivate the land, and Mozi made his own tables and chairs. In history, officials have not cultivated the fields for thousands of years, and those who study books have not cultivated the fields, and if the whole country's party, government, and military studies, party-run, and officials have all worked, is it not a new China? ”
Moreover, Chairman Mao also combined Marxism with the theory of Mozi, who once said: "Those who rely on their strength are born, and those who do not rely on their strength are not born." This means that labor is the essence of man, and productive labor is a very important activity of human beings. Chairman Mao creatively integrated this idea with Marxism, saying: "There are thousands of articles in Marxism, and one of the central ones is that no laborer can eat." ”
In fact, this idea also deeply influenced Chairman Mao, whether before or after the founding of the People's Republic of China, Chairman Mao attached great importance to the working people, and personally commended the model workers, such as the famous dung digger Shi Chuanxiang, who was deeply respected by Chairman Mao, often took him to his home for dinner, and invited him to Tiananmen Square to participate in the ceremony on National Day.
Mencius once spoke highly of Mozi: "Mozi is also in love, and the top of the mo is good for the world." ”
This "simultaneous love" is a very important idea of Mozi, which refers to Mozi's hope that the whole society will not distinguish between nobles and lows, and hopes that society will achieve the ideal state of "the strong do not rob the weak, the nobles are not arrogant, and the deceitful do not deceive".
This idea had a profound influence on Chairman Mao, and when he read the Principles of Ethics, he commented: "Mozi's love and mutual assistance are not the abandonment of my great interests and the small interests of others, but the benefit of others at the expense of oneself and the benefit of others." ”
"Putting the top of the mod to benefit the world, for it" means that as long as it is beneficial to the people of the world, it is not afraid to grind yourself into powder from head to toe, emphasizing the spirit of sacrifice for the people. This spirit is also what Chairman Mao pursued all his life.
Chairman Mao stressed more than once: "People should have some spirit. This spirit is the spirit of taking the world as its own responsibility, and this spirit has the symbolic significance of struggle in the era of deep suffering of the Chinese nation.
Chairman Mao's lifelong dedication to China's revolutionary cause is the embodiment of "putting the roof on the top to benefit the world and doing it for it," and it is also his original intention of caring for the people and sacrificing everything for the people's happiness.
Mozi also has an important idea, that is, "thrifty use", when discussing the way to govern the country with the Yue King, Mozi said: "All are dressed in brown, and the mats are tied up for food." This means that as long as the Yue king can be like the common people, have clothes to wear and can eat, the country will certainly be able to govern well."
Chairman Mao also attached great importance to Mozi's idea of "thriftiness", and he lived a simple life all his life, and advocated that everyone practice it.
In 1956, Chairman Mao spoke of the issue of frugality at the second session of the Eighth Central Committee, stressing: "We must be diligent and thrifty in building the country, oppose extravagance and waste, advocate hardship and simplicity, and share weal and woe." ”
In February 1957, Chairman Mao, in his speech "On the Question of Correctly Handling Contradictions Among the People," again touched on the issue of frugality, stressing: "It is a great contradiction to make all cadres and all the people always think that our country is a big socialist country, but it is also an economically backward and poor country. To make our country rich and strong, it will take decades of hard work, including the implementation of the principle of strict economy and opposition to waste, which is a thrifty and thrifty nation-building. ”
Chairman Mao's requirements for himself are also very strict, he has been very frugal all his life, a pajama has been worn for a lifetime, there are 73 patches, a towel quilt also has 54 patches, this simple and frugal feeling, and Mozi's thoughts are in the same line.
It can be said that Chairman Mao's advocacy of thrift and diligence in building the country is what he preaches.
Mozi's "Shangxian" thought is the most prominent point in his political propositions, emphasizing that in the process of governing the country, talent is very important, as an emperor, the most important means is to appoint meritocracy, emphasizing that "Shangxian is the foundation of government."
Mozi believes that to appoint talents, you must adhere to all corners of the world, regardless of whether you are noble or lowly, and treat all people equally, as long as you have talent and ability, you should be put in the corresponding post. At the same time, Mozi also stressed that the power of the people is infinite, and the creativity of the people is also infinite.
Chairman Mao also very much agreed with this ideological viewpoint, and he also said a well-known saying: "The people, and only the people, are the driving force for creating world history." ”
Chairman Mao wrote in his article "The Position of the Communist Party of China in the National War": "Our national history has always had two opposing lines: one is the line of 'meritocracy' and the other is the line of 'nepotism'. The former is a decent line, the latter is an unorthodox line. ”
For this reason, Chairman Mao warned the whole party: "In the rules and regulations of our Communist Party, we must not engage in nepotism like Chiang Kai-shek and them, and if a person becomes an official, anyone who is related to the deceased can be promoted to an official and get rich." If that continues, it will be divorced from the masses and, like Chiang Kai-shek, will sooner or later collapse. ”
It can be seen that Mozi's thought still has a lot of practical significance today, and many of the ideas advocated by Chairman Mao are also in the same vein as Mozi's thought.
(References: "Mao Zedong Pin Guoxue", "Historian Mao Zedong", "Mozi", "Old News and New Knowledge")
【Chairman Mao's Comments on the Sons of the Pre-Qin Dynasty】Published Articles ——
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