Basic perspectives in the study, creative application, and development of Ho Chi Minh Thought

ASSOC. PROF., DR. BUI DINH PHONG
Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics

1. Introduction
Ho Chi Minh Thought is the result of steadfastly adhering to, applying, and creatively developing Marxism - Leninism in the specific conditions of our country, while inheriting and advancing the traditional values of the nation and absorbing the essence of human culture. It is an immensely valuable and precious spiritual asset of our Party and nation, leaving an imprint on the development process of humanity in the pursuit of peace, national independence, democracy, progress, and development, forever lighting the way for our people’s revolutionary cause towards victory.

The 7th National Party Congress affirmed that, along with Marxism - Leninism, Ho Chi Minh Thought is the ideological foundation and guiding principle for the Party’s actions and the Vietnamese revolution. Thereby, our Party has continued to research, creatively apply and develop his thought. Learning and following Ho Chi Minh’s style of steadfastly adhering to and creative applying and developing Marxism - Leninism, we really must thoroughly grasp these views in the current situation.

2. Comprehensive and systematic study of Ho Chi Minh Thought
Ho Chi Minh always reminded us that in the process of building the country, there are four issues that must be given equal attention: politics, economics, society, and culture. He said: “No matter one’s class, position, or profession, a person’s activities in society can be divided into 3 aspects: 1. Self-reflection. 2. Relations with others. 3. Relations with work”(1). This means that while considering and solving the problems of the country and the revolution, we must pay attention to all aspects comprehensively.

In considering and evaluating objects, phenomena, society or people, Ho Chi Minh instructed that they must be consider “completely”, comprehensively: past, present, future; tradition and revolution; nation - class - humanity; national and international; individual - community; citizens, officials, party members, leaders; time - context - power; favorable weather - heaven’s will - geographical advantage; virtue and talent; emotions and reason; perception and action; theory and practice; talk and action; study and practice; one task and many tasks; inside and outside; etc. Even in the field of ethics, he also reminded us to consider diligence, frugality, integrity, righteousness, public-mindedness, and impartiality in all aspects of ethical consciousness, ethical behavior and ethical relationships, among others.

The comprehensiveness and systemic nature of Ho Chi Minh Thought can also be seen in his ultimate desire, “to achieve complete independence for our country, complete freedom for our people, and for all compatriots to have enough food and clothing and receive education”(2). His ultimate wish was “to build a peaceful, unified, independent, democratic and strong Vietnam, and make a worthy contribution to the world revolutionary cause”(3).

With time and the great achievements of the renovation process, our understanding of Ho Chi Minh Thought has made important progress. His thought is not only “a comprehensive and profound system of views on the basic issues of the Vietnamese revolution”(4), but also “contributes to the development of Marxism - Leninism on many important issues, especially the theory of revolution for national liberation and advancement to socialism in colonial and dependent countries”(5). Assessing his great contributions, our Party affirms: “He left us an extremely valuable legacy. That is the HO CHI MINH era, the most brilliant era in the nation’s glorious history. It was the era of independence and freedom of the Fatherland, the era of socialism in our country”(6).

Speaking at the 130th Birth Anniversary of President Ho Chi Minh (May 19, 1890 - May 19, 2020) on May 18, 2020, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong affirmed: “Ho Chi Minh Thought and his extremely rich and great revolutionary career are not only priceless assets of the Vietnamese people, the ideological foundation and guiding principle of the Vietnamese revolution, but also his valuable contribution into the revolutionary cause of the oppressed peoples around the world, and to the development of humanity’s finest ideas and culture”(7).

Ho Chi Minh Thought not only reflects the rules of the Vietnamese revolution from a colonial country fighting for national independence, building a people’s democratic regime, and advancing to socialism, but also portrays him as an outstanding symbol of the determination of an entire nation, who devoted his entire life to the cause of national liberation for the Vietnamese people, contributing to the common struggle of all nations for peace, national independence, democracy, and social progress”(8). President Ho Chi Minh “will be remembered not only as a liberator of the Fatherland and its colonized people, but also as a modern sage bringing a new perspective and hope to those who were combatting uncompromisingly to eliminate injustice and inequality from this earth”(9).

With Ho Chi Minh’s life, career, thought, and the above-mentioned records and assessments, the research on Ho Chi Minh must thoroughly grasp the comprehensive and systematic perspective with the core being Independence - Freedom - Happiness. Happiness and national independence are associated with socialism, avoiding subjective, one-sided, and narrow research. Separating independence from freedom and happiness means not properly understanding Ho Chi Minh Thought. Separating national independence from socialism, a nation from humanity means moving away from Ho Chi Minh Thought. Isolating any element, or viewpoint from the system will lead to a misunderstanding of Ho Chi Minh Thought.

3. Theoretical perspectives are tied to practice
Ho Chi Minh pointed out, “unity between theory and practice is a basic principle of Marxism - Leninism”(10), which has become the Party’s guiding principle. According to him, “the Party’s motto is: Marxist - Leninist theory is consistent with the reality of the Vietnamese revolution”(11). “Talking about Marxism - Leninism in Vietnam is talking about the Party’s guidelines and policies”(12).

In line with V.I.Lenin’s teachings: “Revolutionary theory is not a dogma, it is a guideline for revolutionary action; and theory is not something rigid, it is full of creativity; Theory always needs to be supplemented with new conclusions drawn from living practice. Communists of all countries must concretize Marxism - Leninism to suit the conditions and circumstances of each time and place”(13), President Ho Chi Minh pointed out that “in general, humanity develops according to certain rules. But depending on the circumstances, nations develop along different paths”(14).

When discussing the study of theory, Ho Chi Minh emphasized: “We must uphold the style of independent thinking and freedom of thought. When reading documents, you must think deeply and understand them carefully. Do not blindly believe every single sentence in the book. If there are issues that are not clear, then boldly raise them and discuss them until they are clearly identified. For any problem, you must ask the question “Why?”, you must think carefully to see if it is consistent with reality, is it really reasonable. We should not blindly follow books without critical thinking. We must think carefully”(15).

When talking about scientific socialism, understanding and transforming the world to achieve human liberation, and bringing real happiness and true freedom to the people, we are talking about Marxism - Leninism. However, each nation must study and apply Marxism - Leninism differently depending on their circumstances. For the Vietnamese people, “studying Marxism - Leninism is not about parroting slogans like ‘Workers of the world, unite!’ but about uniting Marxism - Leninism with the practical realities of Vietnam, etc.. Marxism - Leninism teaches people to know how to enlighten and educate the masses to lead them to fight for practical rights every day. Marxism - Leninism doesn’t mean that everywhere people must establish communist regimes or Soviets”(16).

Theory connected to practice, means that while studying theory, one must study practical work to gain experience from it. Only then can one find the right political direction to perform well. That is a practical and useful theory. Otherwise, theory becomes empty and useless. For example, “hearing others talk about class struggle, we also raise the slogan of class struggle without examining our country’s conditions to apply it correctly”(17).

Practice needs to be understood both in the Vietnamese and global context, both in practical work and the personal thoughts of individuals. It includes the problems that the revolution sets out to solve, the contradictions of things, the Party’s historical experience, etc.. President Ho Chi Minh clearly pointed out: “We make revolution for the purpose of transforming the world, and creating a society. If we want to improve the world and society, we must first improve ourselves. Therefore, first of all, we must connect theory with the reality of our work and thoughts, to re-educate ourselves and improve our cultivation of the positions, perspectives, and methods of Marxism - Leninism”(18).

In reality, there is another very important issue that includes the thoughts, aspirations, and demands of people from all walks of life. Comrade Pham Van Dong once said: “If we separate from practice, separate from life, separate from the trend of renewal in our country and the developments of the times, especially separating from the feelings, aspirations, and demands of the people, then theory becomes merely utopian”(19).

The 13th National Party Congress forecasted that the world and country’s situation in the coming years will be “a mix of advantages, opportunities, and intertwined difficulties and challenges, presenting many new issues and more demanding and complex requirements for the task of building and defending the Fatherland. This necessitates that the entire Party continue to strongly innovate its thinking”(20).

Therefore, to protect the revolutionary achievements already attained and move the country forward with rapid and sustainable development, it is essential to implement a comprehensive set of solutions to be carried out synchronously. Among these, the foremost, consistent, and coherent requirement is to deeply and fully understand Ho Chi Minh Thought, which serves as a “magical handbook,” guiding principle, and sun that illuminates the path to socialism in Vietnam. His thought must be connected with new circumstances to address the issues arising from practical realities.

Unifying theory and practice are closely tied with unifying the scientific nature with the revolutionary nature of Marxism - Leninism and Ho Chi Minh Thought. It is scientific because Ho Chi Minh Thought belongs to the system of Marxist - Leninist ideology and theory, which is “The science of the laws of development of nature and society; the science of revolution of the oppressed and exploited masses”(21). Science also involves correctly presenting and analyzing historical events, not “whitewashing”, “blacking out” or “exaggerating history”. The essence of revolution is to “destroy the old to create the new, destroy the bad to create the good”(22). It is the struggle for national independence leading to socialism; the fight to eliminate individualism which hinders the path to victory of socialism. Thus, studying Ho Chi Minh Thought requires using a system of viewpoints, especially the materialist dialectical method of Marxism - Leninism to light the way to reach the new, the good, and the success of renovation process.

Along with the motto of unifying theory with practice, it is necessary to firmly grasp a practical perspective to answer the problems posed by the current reality of the renovation process. The success of the national liberation revolution and the initial construction of socialism can be attributed to many factors, but it is essential to emphasize that Ho Chi Minh mastered and effectively applied the Marxist methodology of revolution as creative, truth as concrete, and practice as the measure of truth.

It must be affirmed that if we do not thoroughly grasp and correctly practice the practical viewpoint of Marxism - Leninism as V.I.Lenin pointed out, especially in relation to the tasks of Eastern revolutionaries, “when the peasants are the basic masses and when the task is not struggling against capitalism, but against the ruins of feudalism”(23), the Vietnamese revolution would not have the victories it has today. Ho Chi Minh pointed out that the struggle in Vietnam did not take place like it did in the West. Vietnam was a colonial country, and the primary contradiction was a national one (the entire Vietnamese nation against the colonialists, imperial invaders, and feudal collaborators). The nature of the Vietnamese revolution was that of nation liberated through the path of proletarian revolution. The first purpose of the national liberation revolution is to gain national independence. To achieve victory, the Communist Party must organize and build a great national unity bloc, connected with international solidarity, combining national strength with the strength of the times.

The universality and particularity of Marxism - Leninism illuminates the struggle of the world’s people as President Ho Chi Minh analyzed the general laws of humanity and the different paths of development depending on circumstances. He wrote: “We cannot be exactly like the Soviet Union, because the Soviet Union has different customs and traditions, a different geographical history, etc. We can take another path to advance to socialism”(24).

By firmly grasping and effectively implementing practical perspectives, not only in the struggle for national independence but also in building socialism, Vietnam has gained great achievements. Assessing 10 years of building socialism, he said: “In the past 10 years, the North has made unprecedented strides in the history of the nation. The country, society, and people have all been renewed”(25).

Conversely, there were also periods when the country fell into a state of serious socio-economic crisis. While the situation had its objective causes, the primary reason was due to subjective causes, “the disease of subjectivity and voluntarism, simplistic thinking, impatience, and pursuing subjective desires”(26), does did stem from reality, and did not follow an objective laws. Ten years after the liberation of the South and reunification of the country, our Party acknowledged: “We have paid a high price to gain the knowledge and experience we have today, and we have taken steps to mature ourselves”(27).

After nearly 40 years of renovation, our Party has taken steps to mature, the country has developed in many areas, and its fortune, potential, position, and international reputation are increasing. The tremendous and historically significant achievements of the renovation process show that thoroughly grasping, mastering and implementing a practical perspective is of great significance. We have “created a socialist society with Vietnamese characteristics, deeply imprinted with the genius and character of the nation, in its goals and motivations, in its path, steps, and methods... Socialism with Vietnamese characteristics is the victorious culmination of the historical journey that Ho Chi Minh outlined at the beginning of the century, the complete fulfillment of his Will, and the pinnacle of the revolutionary cause of Vietnam’s three phases of liberation”(28).

Therefore, studying Ho Chi Minh Thought must deeply grasp and follow his instructions from a practical perspective. We must promote patriotism, national spirit, self-reliance, the strength of great national unity, cultural values, aspirations, and the strength of the Vietnamese people.

From the practical experience of the renovation process, our Party as drawn the lesson that we must: “respect objective laws, start from reality, closely follow reality, value practical summary, theoretical research, and focus on promptly and effectively solving problems posed by practice”(29). In the context of global realities, it is necessary to “enhance the will to be independent, self-reliant, proactive, actively integrate and improve the effectiveness of international cooperation, maximize internal resources, take advantage of foreign resources, with endogenous resources, especially human resources, being the most important”(30). Thus, building a socialist society in Vietnam must consistently and continuously start from Vietnam’s reality, combining the national strength with the strength of the times.

4. Be steadfast, creatively applying and developing Ho Chi Minh Thought
Ho Chi Minh was absolutely loyal to Marxism - Leninism. He clearly pointed out that Marxism - Leninism is a magical handbook, the sun that illuminates our path to victory; is an irreplaceable weapon. According to him, among many theories and ideologies, only Marxism - Leninism is “the most genuine, the most certain, the most revolutionary”(31).

In his work of training, studying, and fighting, Ho Chi Minh advised that we must be steadfast in Marxism - Leninism, using the doctrine as the foundation and core, “we must follow Marxism and Leninism”(32). He also pointed out that “Marxism - Leninism is the guideline for action, not scripture”(33). Loyalty to Marxism - Leninism means loyalty to principled stances and views, steadfast goals, and socialist ideals; it is measured by the effectiveness of the work entrusted by the Party, the State, and the people, and by serving the nation and the people. It does not mean memorizing every word, nor “training people who can recite Marx said this, Lenin said that, but when assigned to clean the house, they leave it full of trash”(34).

The current global and domestic context, many emerging problems have arisen that require clear theoretical solutions. We must improve our cultivation of Ho Chi Minh Thought, using his spirit, stance, principles, viewpoints, methods, and logical development to think and find solutions, summarize the experiences of our Party, properly analyze the characteristics of our country according to the motto “responding to the unchanging with the ever-changing”, to discover the rules of the renovation process.

Loyalty to Ho Chi Minh Thought means steadfastness in the unchangeable goal of national independence and socialism, but it must be flexible and adaptable. We must both inherit and develop his thought creatively to suit the current reality, context and conditions of our country. Development is one of the best ways to express loyalty and inheritance of Ho Chi Minh Thought; inheriting Ho Chi Minh Thought means being loyal, developing and always being creative.

5. Conclusion
Steadfastness, application, and creative development of Ho Chi Minh Thought aim to create a socialist society with the characteristics, identity, and national character of Vietnam. This spirit is reflected in the article by General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong: “The scientific and thoroughly revolutionary nature of Marxism - Leninism and Ho Chi Minh Thought are enduing values that have been pursued and implemented by revolutionaries. It will continue to develop and thrive in revolutionary practice as well as in the practice of scientific development. We need to selectively absorb and supplement, in the spirit of criticism and creativity, the latest achievements in thought and science so that our ideology and doctrine remain fresh, continually revitalized, and imbued with the spirit of the times, avoiding rigidity, stagnation, and falling behind life”(35).

In studying Ho Chi Minh Thought today, we must thoroughly grasp the comprehensive and systematic perspective; practical and theoretical perspectives associated with practice; and steadfastness, creatively applying and developing his thought to suit the situation in the world and the country. Only in this way can we protect and develop Ho Chi Minh Thought, breathe new life into it, and, together with Marxism - Leninism, form a solid ideological foundation for our Party and the renovation process.

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Received: March 15, 2024; Revised: April 13, 2024; Approved for publication: April 22, 2024.

(1), (11), (12), (16) Ho Chi Minh: Complete works, vol.6, National Political Publishing House, Hanoi, 2011, pp.129, 368, 368, 368–369.
(2) Ho Chi Minh: Complete works, vol.4, ibid., p.187.
(3), (6), (34) Ho Chi Minh: Complete works, vol.15, ibid., pp.614, 630, 668.
(4) CPV: Platform for building the country in the transition period to socialism (supplemented and developed in 2011), National Political Publishing House, Hanoi, 2011, p.32.
(5) CPV: Resolution No. 09-NQ/TW dated February 18, 1995 of the Politburo (term VII) on some major directions in current ideological work.
(7), (35) Nguyen Phu Trong: Some theoretical and practical issues about socialism and the path to socialism in Vietnam, National Political Publishing House, Hanoi, 2022, pp.236, 37–38.
(8), (9) National Center for Social Sciences and Humanities - Vietnam National UNESCO Committee: President Ho Chi Minh – Hero of national liberation, great cultural figure, Social Sciences Publishing House Association, Hanoi, 1995, pp.5, 29.
(10), (13), (15), (18), (21) Ho Chi Minh: Complete works, vol.11, ibid., pp.95, 95, 98–99, 96–97, 96.
(14) Ho Chi Minh: Complete works, vol.8, ibid., p.293.
(17) Ho Chi Minh: Complete works, vol.5, ibid., p.312.
(19), (28) Pham Van Dong: Ho Chi Minh’s quintessence and mettle of the nation, National Political Publishing House, Hanoi, 2012, pp.479, 219–220.
(20), (30) CPV: Documents of the 13th National Party Congress, vol.I, National Political Publishing House, Hanoi, 2021, pp.109, 110–111.
(22), (31), (32) Ho Chi Minh: Complete works, vol.2, ibid., pp.284, 289, 304.
(23) Ho Chi Minh: Complete Works, vol.9, ibid., p.411.
(24) Ho Chi Minh: Complete Works, vol.10, ibid., p.391.
(25) Ho Chi Minh: Complete works, vol.14, ibid., p.275.
(26), (27) CPV: Documents of the 6th National Party Congress, National Political Publishing House, Hanoi, 1997, pp.86, 9.
(29) CPV: Documents of the 12th National Party Congress, Party Central Committee Office, Hanoi, 2016, p.69.
(33) Ho Chi Minh: Complete works, vol.7, ibid., p.120.