The Historic Significance of the Juche Idea – On the Juche Idea (treatise, 1982)

The Juche idea is exerting a great influence on the ideological life of humanity and on the revolutionary changes of the world. It is gaining strong sympathy from people all over the world and giving a powerful impetus to the contemporary historic movement which is aspiring to independence.

The Juche idea has become an accepted contemporary thought, and its attraction and importance in affecting changes increase with the progress of history.

It gives us a genuinely revolutionary world outlook of our time, the Juche age. This constitutes a major historic contribution made by the Juche idea to the development of humanity’s thinking and to the cause of liberation of mankind.

People’s notions of the world and their views on and approach towards it have developed down through long history.

The history of the world outlook was a history of struggle between two conflicting philosophical currents, that is, between materialism and idealism, between dialectics and metaphysics. In this struggle Marxism signalled the victory of materialism and dialectics. The emergence of the Marxist materialistic dialectical world outlook was a reflection of the contemporary requirements. The appearance of the working class on the arena of history ushered in a new era in human history. The new historical conditions under which the revolution against capital had started, urgently demanded a revolutionary idea which would bring home the inevitability of the downfall of capitalism and the triumph of socialism to the working class who had risen up in struggle. The most important question in this was to vanquish the idealism and metaphysics which had sanctified the domination of reactionary capital and preached its eternity, and to elaborate a scientific world outlook of the working class. The materialistic dialectical world outlook came into being as a reflection of this requirement of the times.

The progress of the times is accompanied by the development of the world outlook. The steady expansion and development of the revolution which started with the emergence of the working class, gave birth to a new age when the working masses who had so far been the object of history appeared as its masters. The new age that witnessed the appearance of the working class and other working masses as a great force controlling the world, demanded the evolvement of a new world outlook which would enable them to become masters of their own destiny, shaping it in an independent and creative way, and to realize successfully the historic cause of national liberation, class emancipation and human freedom. This historic task was brilliantly accomplished with the evolution of the Juche idea.

The Juche idea which elucidates the world outlook of a new age is fresh and unique in its philosophical principle that forms its foundation.

In the past the relations between substance and consciousness, between being and thinking were regarded as the basic question of philosophy. The Marxist materialistic principle concerning the priority of substance and being gave a scientific solution to this question.

Since the question of the world’s origin had been made clear by the materialistic viewpoint, the Juche idea raised a new problem concerning the position and role of man in the world as the basic question of philosophy and gave an answer to the question of who is the master of the world. The philosophical principle of the Juche idea which clarifies the position and role of man as master of the world is based on a new elucidation of man. The question on man had been also discussed a great deal by preceding philosophies, but it was confined mostly to abstract views on pure man, to the exclusion of social relations. The question of man’s substance in social relations was raised and made clear by Marxism.

Considering man in social relations the Juche idea cast a new light on his essential features. It expounded that man is a social being with independence, creativity and consciousness, and thus gave a perfect philosophical elucidation of man. The clarification by the Juche idea of the philosophical principle that man is the master of everything and decides everything, on the basis of the scientific explanation of man as a social being, was a philosophical discovery which brought about a new change in the world outlook.

The idea that man is the master of everything and decides everything, in other words, the idea that man is the master of the world and his own destiny and is the transformer of the world and the shaper of his destiny, is fundamentally opposed to idealism and metaphysics. Idealism leads to mystical theory that the world and man’s destiny are controlled by the supernatural “might,” while metaphysics leads to the fatalistic belief that everything in the world is immutable and, accordingly, man must be obedient to his predetermined destiny. The idea that man is the master of the world and his own destiny and is able to transform the world and shape his destiny, is based on the premise of the materialistic and dialectical viewpoint which denies mysticism and fatalism.

The Juche idea uniquely defined the domination of the world by man who is the highest-developed product in the material world, as well as the principles of its transformation and progress, thus shedding a new light on the foundation of the world outlook. The world outlook based on the philosophical principle of Juche is a world outlook which is centred on man.

There have been various types of world outlook in history, but there was none that clearly indicated the viewpoint and stand on the world placing man at the centre. Even the materialists who in the past had regarded the world as a material object, to say nothing of the idealists who considered it as a world of ideas or spirit, could not put forward the viewpoint and approach towards the world with man at the centre.

The Juche idea defined man as the master who dominates the world, not merely as part of it, and thus established a new world outlook which, unlike preceding ones, regards the world and its changes and progress with man, its master, at the centre. The Juche viewpoint and stand on the world with man in the central place provide a sure guarantee for the independent and creative cognitional activities and practice of man who transforms the world and shapes his destiny.

The Juche idea which clearly showed the man-centred viewpoint and stand towards the world provided a new view of social history. In the years prior to Marxism, even those who had advocated materialism or dialectics adhered to the idealistic stand towards social history. Marxism made it clear that, like nature, society belongs to the material world and changes and develops in accordance with the general laws that govern the development of this world. In this way it disproved the idealistic view on social history.

While admitting the general laws of the progress of the material world which affect social history, the Juche idea expounded the laws which are peculiar to social history. Therein lies a great service the Juche idea rendered in perfecting the working-class outlook on social history.

The principle of social history that the subject of history is the masses of the people, that socio-historical movements are their independent and creative movements and that their consciousness of independence plays the decisive role in the revolutionary struggle, forms the basic content of the Juche- based view of history. This provides a new elucidation on the essence, character and motive force of socio-historical movement, the movement of the subject.

The Juche idea established the new viewpoint and stand which see historical development and social revolution with the popular masses, the subject, at the centre.

The Juche idea which clearly indicated the man-centred world outlook and the view of social history brought about a great change in the development of world outlook. The revolutionary world outlook of the working class had been established by Marxism for the first time, and it was developed by the Juche idea onto a new, higher plane for its perfection.

The Juche idea, the revolutionary world outlook representing a new era in history, the Juche age, is rightly leading the onward movement of mankind aspiring to independence and sovereignty, socialism and communism, while sweeping away all the reactionary and counterrevolutionary currents of thoughts.

It marked a new, higher stage in the development of the working-class revolutionary theory. Therein lies another historic contribution of the Juche idea to the revolutionary cause of the working class and the cause of liberation of humanity.

An age had passed and the revolutionary movement had gone a long way since the birth of the revolutionary theory of the working class. Revolutionary practice in the new era demanded that the revolutionary theory be developed in a way which was suitable to new historic conditions. The Juche idea propounded the basic principle of revolution that the masses of the people are masters and the motive force of the revolution and construction and, on this basis, rendered it possible to evolve new revolutionary theories required by our time.

The Juche idea is the sound basis on which to develop the revolutionary theory of the Juche age. Developing revolutionary theory on the basis of this idea means expounding the principles and laws of revolutionary movements with the working masses, the masters of revolution and construction, at the centre.

Developing a revolutionary theory with the working people at the centre is a requirement of revolutionary movements in the Juche age. In our time when the working masses have established themselves as the masters of the world and when revolutionary struggles are being waged with a far-reaching scope on the strength of their consciousness of independence and creativeness, the principles and laws of revolutionary movements can be elucidated correctly only by developing a revolutionary theory with the working people at the centre. By this method the Juche idea has made it possible to fully elaborate on the revolutionary theory aimed at realizing independence for the working masses; and it has consummated the revolutionary theories of the working class to include those on national liberation, class emancipation and human freedom, and to be a perfect communist theory of social and natural transformation and human remoulding.

Placing the working masses at the centre in the development of a revolutionary theory is a sure guarantee for evolving the revolutionary theory and strategy and tactics in accordance with the true characteristic of the revolutionary movement.

Every revolutionary movement is an undertaking for and by the working people. Therefore, a revolutionary theory and strategy and tactics should naturally champion their interests and enhance their role. It can be said that the value of a theory depends on how well it advocates the interests of the popular masses, and that the effectiveness of strategy and tactics depends on how well they enhance the role of the masses. By basing itself on the independence, creativity and consciousness of the masses, the Juche idea made it possible to evolve the theory, strategy and tactics which would champion their basic interests and provide the proper way to give rein to their high revolutionary zeal and inexhaustible creativeness. This is how the revolutionary theory of the working class has become most powerful and able to champion the interests of the working masses thoroughly and enhance their role to the utmost.

The Juche idea serves as a guideline which shows a correct approach to the preceding revolutionary theories. These working-class theories were advanced on the premise of the conditions and tasks of the past times which were different from today, but they have a community of class idea and mission with the revolutionary theory based on the Juche idea. By laying down the principle of creatively approaching the existing theories and experiences, the Juche idea makes it possible to apply and develop the preceding revolutionary theories to suit the requirements of revolutionary practice in our time. In particular, it maintains the position of firmly defending and realizing the independence of the working class and other working masses, and thus makes it possible to accurately identify and eliminate all kinds of opportunism, including revisionism which gives up the cause of revolution halfway or denies class struggle, and uphold the class principle and the spirit of uninterrupted revolution in the revolutionary theories of the working class.

The Juche revolutionary theory is the genuinely revolutionary theory of the working class in the Juche era and is the undying communist revolutionary theory which will be ever-victorious along with the struggle for the independence of the working masses.

A great idea gives rise to great practice. The great Juche idea which throws a new light on the philosophical principle and on the laws of socio-historical movement, the revolutionary movement, and gives scientific elucidation of the guiding principles of revolution and construction, has brought about a tremendous change in revolutionary practice.

The Juche idea has been brilliantly applied, above all, to the Korean revolution and has won a great victory. The Korean revolution is guided by the Juche idea, and all its victories would be inconceivable without this idea. Under the banner of the Juche idea, the Korean revolution could get rid of its birth-pains caused by flunkeyism and dogmatism and has been able to triumphantly advance on the arduous road of struggle, getting over various difficulties and trials.

The Juche idea has led the revolution and construction straight along the new road which had never been trodden by others before. The Korean revolution has paved an absolutely correct path for national liberation in a colony and opened a short cut to socialism. It has created a best socialist new life which the world’s people call a “model of socialism,” and is successfully pioneering the untrodden path to socialism and communism. Because the Juche idea illuminates the way, we have been able to advance along the shortest route and thus achieve in a brief period of time a great victory in the struggle for independence, sovereignty and socialism, a success which is amazing to the world.

The Juche idea has become a solemn reality in our country. The history-making changes and great creations worked out by our people are precious fruit of this idea. Very proud and honoured by the brilliant victory and results attained under the banner of the Juche idea, our people are now struggling for the historic cause of transforming the whole society in accordance with this idea.

Because it reflects the common aspiration of the world’s people to independence, the Juche idea is exerting a great influence on the contemporary revolutionary movements to build a new world of independence.

It has opened up a new revolutionary road, a broad avenue along which to advance the revolution in an independent and creative manner.

Our era, when the revolutionary movement is making progress through diverse forms with the national state as one unit, demands that the people of each country properly play the role of masters with a high degree of awareness that they are the masters of revolution. This is more urgent since there is the influence of wrong ideologies such as worship of great powers and dogmatism. By clearly showing how to stage a revolution in an independent and creative manner, the Juche idea has enabled the people of each country to have a strong sense of responsibility as the masters of the revolution, ridding themselves of the fetters of all outdated thoughts hampering independent progress; and it has also helped them to work out a policy which is suitable to the actual conditions in their country, according to their own views and belief, and to exploit their own creativeness to push ahead with the revolution. The opening up of the way to stage a revolution in an independent and creative manner has encouraged the people in different conditions of history and at different stages of development to carry on, confident of victory, the vigorous struggle to achieve national liberation and class emancipation and build socialism and communism.

The Juche idea has paved a new road of the international communist movement advancing on the basis of independence, and has brought about a new era of progress in international relations.

The communist movement is an independent movement of the party and people in every country aimed at doing away with all types of subjugation and inequality and becoming the true masters of their destiny. So there should be neither superior-subordinate relations nor master-servant relations in this movement. Independence is the life and soul for every country and people, and no relations of domination and submission, order and obedience could be permitted between them. The Juche idea defined independence as the fundamental principle of the relations between parties and between countries, and thus helped towards a change in the international communist movement and the development of international relations. Today the principle of independence is displaying still greater vitality as a steadfast principle that guarantees the international communist movement and determines the relationship between the Communist and Workers’ Parties. It also serves as a recognized principle of development of state relations among newly-independent countries and many countries of the world with different social systems and as a powerful weapon against the imperialists who subjugate other nations and impose inequality upon them.

Indeed, the Juche idea is an immortal banner of struggle, a banner of victory, for the popular masses in their endeavour to create a new world and shape their own destiny.