Creation and Dogma

Chairman Kim Jong Il said:

"It is a dogmatic attitude to mechanically approach the propositions in the Marxist-Leninist classics regardless of the changes and development of the times and specific conditions of each country. Marxism-Leninism is not a dogma but a creative doctrine. A creative attitude is necessary also in studying the Marxist-Leninist classics."

One day in April, Juche 51 (1962), a seminar on the course of political economy was held at the Faculty of Economics of Kim Il Sung University.

Chairman Kim Jong Il was also present at the seminar.

The students' presentations were almost entirely repetition of the content learned in the lectures, and were not so interesting.

Toward the end of the seminar a student jumped up and went out to the table.

He was quite a bookworm, and everyone expected a great deal from him.

They thought that his substantial presentation would end the seminar with credit.

However passionate his presentation was, the content was almost replica of the propositions from the classics.

In the end, he forced the education system of factory colleges, originally developed by our Party, to conform to the classic propositions about the vocational schools and technical schools which are not even remotely comparable.

Listening to his speech, some students admired that he knew a great deal of classics, and others said that he seemed to know a lot, but they did not get what he was saying.

No one thought more.

Only Kim Jong Il wearing solemn expression, listened to his speech and then writing on a sheet of white paper "creation and dogma" with a red pencil he was in deep thought; it was not once or twice that the party emphasized that one should have the right viewpoint on the classics, but it clearly shows how severe the idolization about classics is that they are making vain effort to find out the original ideology created by our Party amidst socialist construction in a book written 100 years ago, if they are crammed up with the classics, they will be reduced to a fool who is unaware of the policy of their Party and has no sense of national pride, no, it's not the mere question of telling them to get rid of "classic disease" but the matter of enlightening about more important foundation.

After the seminar, he summoned some students quietly.

He said that the shortcomings revealed in the presentation were not simply due to the wrong studying method.

He continued that hearing the discussion in the seminar, he thought of the study attitude of our students who had to hold President Kim Il Sung in high esteem and remain loyal to him, that the great leader was the greatest genius of the revolution whom mankind had ever seen, that we should regard it as our greatest honour to hold the great leader in high esteem with loyalty and make his revolutionary idea a firm world outlook, that we should take the lead in the struggle with a higher level of ideological consciousness than anybody else to accomplish the revolutionary cause of Juche pioneered by the great leader, and that only then could we study and discuss about the subjects as desired by him and remain loyal to him.

He concluded that was the attitude they should have.

All the students, who could not repress their emotion and excitement, stood up, looking up to him with reverence.

Chairman Kim Jong Il, who did not spare any effort to lead our students along the road of loyalty!

He solved all the problems that they had not found a basic measure even through a long discussion.

He taught the great truth that implanting the seed of loyalty to President Kim Il Sung in the students' hearts is the basic guarantee for the correct Juche-oriented viewpoint in their study.

The eyes of the students, who were filled with respect and reverence, were filled with hot dew.

True to his instructions, the students put an end to "classical disease" and prepared themselves to be revolutionary talents of Juche type by thoroughly establishing Juche in studying.