Professor Hoang Chi Bao finds the meaning of life in Uncle Ho's thoughts

The series of articles “Resolutely protecting the scientific, revolutionary and humanistic nature of Ho Chi Minh's thought” by Professor, Dr. Hoang Chi Bao won first prize in the second writing contest “Protecting the Party's ideological foundation” organized by the People's Army Newspaper in collaboration with the Vietnam Journalists Association and the Military Commercial Joint Stock Bank (MB).

The series of 4 articles has clarified the scientific , revolutionary and humane nature of his thoughts, thereby affirming that President Ho Chi Minh's thoughts and legacy are invaluable spiritual assets of our Party, nation and people. On this occasion, a reporter from the People's Army Newspaper had a conversation with Professor, Dr. Hoang Chi Bao to better understand his passion for researching Ho Chi Minh 's ideology.

PV : Dear Professor, Dr. Hoang Chi Bao! Where did your passion for researching Ho Chi Minh's ideology come from?

Professor, Dr. Hoang Chi Bao: A very important sign that I consider a turning point in ideology was when Uncle Ho passed away, I was able to attend his funeral in Ba Dinh Square. It was after that event that I told myself to study Ho Chi Minh's ideology so that I could find in his legacy a lesson, a reason for living about humanity. And that has followed me until now.

Studying and spreading the ideology, morality and style of President Ho Chi Minh has given me a great spiritual motivation to carry out his teachings. Although I have spent many years researching and telling stories about Uncle Ho, I still feel a lot of pressure before each presentation. Because telling the same story about Uncle Ho but at different times, to different audiences and different circumstances, there are very clear differences. Therefore, it requires the storyteller to make an effort, overcome that pressure, with true understanding and emotions, and convince himself in order to gain the sympathy of the listener.

PV: As a researcher on Ho Chi Minh's ideology, what do you see in his scientific, revolutionary, and humanistic thoughts?

Professor, Dr. Hoang Chi Bao: Scientific, revolutionary, and humane qualities are a complete system of characteristics and values in Ho Chi Minh's thought and legacy. His thought is consistent and creative, deeply imbued with Marxism-Leninism, scientific socialism, and theoretical and practical issues of the Vietnamese revolution, in line with the development trend of Vietnam and the times. This is both a classic issue and a current theoretical and practical issue in Vietnam in the process of comprehensive renovation. Ho Chi Minh's thought demonstrates the mettle and intelligence of the great creative Marxist thinker of the Vietnamese revolution in the 20th century.

Resolutely protecting the scientific, revolutionary and humane nature of Ho Chi Minh's thought is not only an attitude of respecting historical truth, protecting truth and morality, maintaining scientific faith, striving to cultivate pure revolutionary ethics and training steadfast political will, but also a command of life, an urge and urging from the heart of each of us.

Ho Chi Minh's thought is a comprehensive and profound system of viewpoints on fundamental issues of the Vietnamese revolution, the result of the creative application and development of Marxism-Leninism to the specific conditions of our country, inheriting and developing the fine traditional values of the nation, absorbing the cultural quintessence of humanity, is an extremely great and valuable spiritual asset of our Party and nation, forever illuminating the path for the revolutionary cause of our people to victory.

PV: So how is the scientific nature expressed in Ho Chi Minh's thought ?

Professor, Dr. Hoang Chi Bao: The scientific nature of Ho Chi Minh's ideology helped him find the most correct answer when approaching Lenin's genius ideology on the right to self-determination of nations and discovering the inevitable law of the Vietnamese revolution in the transitional period from capitalism to socialism. National independence associated with socialism became the red thread, covering and running through his ideological system. For Vietnam, the requirement of national liberation was placed first on the working class's standpoint. And Vietnamese socialism is the transition from skipping capitalism to socialism, which is a historical necessity determined by the times. Ho Chi Minh emphasized that this is the greatest characteristic of Vietnam on the path to socialism. Moreover, the revolution must first have a Party, and the Party must have an ideology as its core. A Party without an ideology is like a person without intelligence, like a ship without a compass. The ideology that He chose was Leninism, Marxism-Leninism, which is the most genuine and revolutionary ideology.

The scientific nature of Ho Chi Minh's thought is also clearly shown in the development perspective, the innovation perspective associated with international integration. He had the idea of innovation and integration very early. He sent a message to the international community and the world: "Vietnam wishes to be a friend of democratic countries, Vietnam will not hold grudges against anyone", making the most of international support, making more friends and fewer enemies, creating a peaceful environment for development. In 1947, when the resistance war against the French colonialists returned, in Viet Bac, at the Safe Zone (ATK), he wrote two important works "New Life" and "Reforming the Way of Working". “New Life” resolves the dialectical relationship between the old and the new, upholds the revolutionary ethics of diligence, thrift, integrity, and uprightness in the daily life of each person, builds a new lifestyle, a new culture... “Reforming the way of working” is the first work to mention the idea of innovation in the condition that the Party is in power, identifying the key aspects and links, first of all, innovating the way of working of the Party. Today, we call it innovating the leadership method of the Party.

In Ho Chi Minh's thought, the scientific nature is especially prominent when he talks about "building and rectifying the Party", about "practicing democracy, building a democratic-rule-of-law-humane state" of the people, by the people, for the people, implementing and promoting the people's real mastery; about front work, practicing great solidarity, practicing thrift, fighting bureaucracy, waste, and embezzlement.

PV: Please tell us about the revolutionary characteristics in Ho Chi Minh's thought . expressed on what aspects?

Professor, Dr. Hoang Chi Bao: Scientific intelligence, revolutionary ethics, loyalty to the country, filial piety to the people, skillful combination of strategy with tactics and methods, imbued with revolutionary optimism, grasping and clearly forecasting historical trends... are the qualities and factors that make up the revolutionary character in Ho Chi Minh's thought.

The revolutionary character in Ho Chi Minh's thought is also prominent in the ethical aspect. Revolutionaries and revolutionary parties must cultivate diligence, thrift, integrity, impartiality, and lifelong resistance to individualism. To successfully build socialism, individualism must be defeated. Socialist ideology is the opposite of individualism. A truly revolutionary party must be exemplary in ethics and culture. "Our Party is ethical and civilized." In his theory of the ruling Communist Party, he deeply planned to attach special importance to building the Party in terms of ethics and culture. Ho Chi Minh's guidance is illuminating our Party and people in the work of building and rectifying the Party and a comprehensively clean and strong political system today.

The revolutionary character in Ho Chi Minh's thought is also clearly expressed through the courage of self-criticism and criticism of revolutionaries and revolutionary parties on shortcomings and mistakes that have been made, having an objective and scientific attitude in analyzing and evaluating the current situation, carefully examining the causes and circumstances leading to those shortcomings and mistakes in order to resolutely correct them and promote the revolutionary movement forward. These are the noble and courageous qualities of true revolutionaries and revolutionary parties. President Ho Chi Minh repeatedly emphasized that self-criticism and criticism are the best way to make the Party progress continuously, become a strong and healthy Party like a person without illness, to make each cadre and party member preserve and promote revolutionary character, exemplary vanguard character, gain the trust and support of the masses, maintain faith in the Party and tighten the flesh-and-blood ties between the Party and the masses.

The revolutionary character in Ho Chi Minh's thought that we must imbibe and resolutely protect is also the infinite loyalty to the communist ideal and goal, directly expressed in the steadfastness of the revolutionary stance and viewpoint, the steadfastness of the path to "national independence associated with socialism" of Vietnam to go to the end of that path, bringing independence, freedom, and happiness to the Fatherland, the nation and the people of Vietnam. That was his strong, lifelong ambition and aspiration.

PV: Humanism is considered the source of light that creates the stature of Ho Chi Minh's ideology . Could you please tell us more about this characteristic in his ideology?

Professor, Dr. Hoang Chi Bao: The humanism in Ho Chi Minh's thought permeates his life, lifestyle, and personality, notably his simplicity, sacrifice, and even his personal life to care for the happiness of the entire nation and the people.

Humanity means culture, a system of values of truth - goodness - beauty, in which people are the highest value. Humanity in Ho Chi Minh's thought is the crystallization of his intelligence, emotions, ethics, and lifestyle, from perception to action, emanating from his personality, life, and career, expressed in his actions and behaviors through relationships, everywhere, at all times, among people, extremely rich, diverse, and expressive.

A distinctive feature of the humanism in Ho Chi Minh's thought is to wholeheartedly cherish human values, freedom and human dignity, to believe that the good things in people will flourish and be perfected through education and self-education. In life, people are ordinary people, no one is a saint. "No one is perfect", everyone has good and bad things, good and bad things. We must make the good and the good things bloom like spring flowers, the bad and the bad things will gradually disappear. We must awaken people, have the desire to live, to reach for the good. We must have sympathy, sharing, encouragement, help, have great tolerance and generosity. Being strict with oneself, being tolerant with others, that is the noble humanistic attitude of President Ho Chi Minh.

The humanism in Ho Chi Minh's thought is the attitude towards the people, the mass viewpoint, being close to the people all his life, learning from the people, asking the people, understanding the people to wholeheartedly serve the people. President Ho Chi Minh is the leader of the Party, and at the same time the leader of the nation, of the people. He taught the army officers and soldiers to be "Loyal to the Party, filial to the people", "Loyal to the country, filial to the people", "coming from the people, fighting for the people", from generals to soldiers must understand that the people are the foundation of the army, the people are the parents of the army, the army and the people are like fish and water...

The humanism in Ho Chi Minh's thought is the crystallization and radiance of his scientific and revolutionary characteristics, converging into President Ho Chi Minh's culture, President Ho Chi Minh's humanism, harmoniously combining his ideology, morality, and style.

PV: Thank you very much, professor!

NGUYEN THUC

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