Comment on «Empiricism or Marxism-Leninism?»

#PUBLICATION NOTE

This edition of Comment on «Empiricism or Marxism-Leninism?» has been prepared and revised for digital publication by the Institute of Marxism-Leninism-Maoism under the Central Committee of the Communist Party in Switzerland on the basis of the following edition: Foreword to «Empiricism or Marxism-Leninism», in Chinese Law and Government, Vol. 1, No. 4 (Winter 1968-69).

#INTRODUCTION NOTE

This is a comment written by Comrade Mao Zedong on a chapter of the Soviet Shorter Dictionary of Philosophy at Mount Lu, Jiujiang, Jiangxi, China on the 15th of August, 1959 in refutation of the anti-Party Peng Dehuai clique during the First Mount Lu Meeting.

The First Mount Lu Meeting refers to the Enlarged Meeting of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, held at Mount Lu, Jiujiang, Jiangxi, China between the 2nd of July and 1st of August, 1959, and to the subsequent Eighth Plenary Session of the Eighth Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, held in the same place between the 2nd and 16th of August, 1959.

#Workers and oppressed people of the world, unite!

#COMMENT ON EMPIRICISM OR MARXISM-LENINISM?

#Mao Zedong

#15th of August, 1959

#★

Comrades:

I propose that you study two books. The first is the Shorter Dictionary of Philosophy (Third Edition), and the other is the textbook Political Economy (Third Edition). Both books should be studied within the next two years. I am here referring to the Third Edition of the Shorter Dictionary of Philosophy, because the First and Second Editions contain too many errors; the Third Edition is much better. In my opinion, there are still some shortcomings and errors in the Third Edition, but we can always analyse and distinguish them when we read it. Like Political Economy, it is fundamentally a good book. We must study philosophy for the purpose of criticizing empiricism theoretically. In the past, we have criticized dogmatism from the theoretical standpoint, but not empiricism. At present, the main danger is empiricism. A section of the Shorter Dictionary of Philosophy, entitled Empiricism or Marxism-Leninism?, is here reprinted in order to stimulate the interest of the public in studying philosophy. Subsequently, one may read the entire book. As to studying the history of philosophy, it may be postponed to a later time. We must now wage a struggle against the anti-Party, anti-Marxist-Leninist ideological tide in three spheres: ideology, politics, and economics. Ideology here also means theory. I propose that we proceed from philosophy and economics, and then branch into other disciplines.