Mao Zedong's Famous Sayings and Stories

Author: Du Zhongming
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-09-01
Features: Many of Mao Zedong’s historic articles, powerful poems, widely recognized slogans, and soul-stirring maxims have long been deeply ingrained in people’s hearts, becoming our motto, our catchphrases, our guide for action, and even a part of our thoughts, transforming into our behavior. Many of Mao Zedong’s works are instructive, easy to understand, drawing from both ancient and modern, domestic and foreign, with extensive references. However, the core idea of each article, its key phrases, are often just a couple of sentences. It is precisely these brilliant sentences that elevate the entire article’s thought, making monumental works resonate deeply with people. These shining lines of language are like precious fragments from Mao Zedong’s works, radiating brilliant light. Mao Zedong’s Quotations and Stories was born under such circumstances. I have carefully selected these quotations from Mao Zedong’s works and strung them together, like linking pearls in the night, allowing them to shine even brighter. Each sentence is a highly condensed essence of Mao Zedong’s thought, capturing its core. Although each piece contains only one sentence, its capacity is immense. It records an era, a nation, and a segment of China’s history. By remembering these quotes, their powerful and carefully crafted words, we come to understand an era, a nation, and a period of China’s history.
To compile this book, I thoroughly read many of Mao Zedong’s works. Many of his works are highly targeted, striving for simplicity and clarity, using vivid stories to touch hearts, with little dry preaching. Some are humorous and witty, leaving readers in stitches; others present facts and (reasons), being approachable and enlightening; still others are righteous and confrontational, delivering powerful critiques that leave readers cheering. This is the charm of Mao Zedong, the charm of his language, and the charm of his thought.
Mao Zedong’s works are vast and profound, like a rich treasure trove. Every visit to this hallowed hall of wisdom leaves us laden with treasures and in awe. Yet, precisely because it is vast and profound, due to differences in personal knowledge, level, and cultivation, many people often find Mao Zedong’s works overwhelming. Even if we have the ability and level to study them, our individual (energy) is limited. Even if we devote our entire lives to mining them, we may never reach the end of this glorious hall.
Mao Zedong’s works are truly magnificent: Selected Works of Mao Zedong (4 volumes), Collected Works of Mao Zedong (8 volumes), Poetry of Mao Zedong (1 volume), Correspondence of Mao Zedong (1 volume), and Selected Calligraphy of Mao Zedong (over a dozen volumes). For each of us, truly understanding and completing these works is no easy task. Mao Zedong’s Quotations and Stories serves as a guide, helping you understand these works and providing an entry point to Mao Zedong’s life experiences. With this in mind, I strived to make every sentence in Mao Zedong’s Quotations and Stories deeply impactful, highly relatable, profoundly influential, and practically motivating, making it an indispensable book.
The Mao Zedong’s Quotations and Stories selected in this book mainly comes from the following sources:
1. Selected Works of Mao Zedong, Collected Works of Mao Zedong, Early Writings of Mao Zedong, and Selected Correspondence of Mao Zedong.
2. Poetry of Mao Zedong, Couplets of Mao Zedong, Selected Slogans of Mao Zedong, and Selected Calligraphy of Mao Zedong.
3. Recollections written by others, including Mao Zedong’s everyday remarks, his speeches during inspections in various places, and his conversations with foreign guests.
For reading convenience, the book provides explanations for the origins of some quotations and stories to facilitate reference. Due to my limited knowledge, my research on Mao Zedong’s works has not yet reached the expected level, so it is inevitable that some quotations may be omitted or included due to my partial understanding. This is unavoidable, and I hope for your understanding.
During the compilation process, some of Mao Zedong’s slogans were excluded because some of their content was too specific and lacked deeper philosophy. For example, “Learn from Lei Feng.”
Mao Zedong’s poetry is a gem in every word and a masterpiece in every piece. However, we cannot include all of it as quotations in this book, so we have only selected the most familiar and memorable lines. I hope you can understand this.
May this book honor our great leader, Mao Zedong!