What are the characteristics of the Juche idea?
The characteristic of the Juche idea that is fundamentally different from all kinds of the preceding ideas, in a word, is that this idea is a man-centered philosophical thought.
General Secretary Kim Jong Il said.
“The Juche idea is a new philosophical thought which centres on man.”
That the Juche idea is a man-centred philosophical thought means that this idea newly raised the fundamental question of philosophy by regarding man as the main factor, and showed the viewpoint and attitude to the world by focusing on man.
Until now, there existed a number of trends of philosophy in the human history of philosophical thoughts. But all of them were idealistic world outlooks centering on a mysterious being like “God” and spirit or matter-centered materialistic world outlooks. Of course, there were various types of “human philosophy” that advocated placing stress on man among the previous philosophical thoughts. However, they were nothing but philosophies of life dealing with what is a human being and what is a man’s life.
The Juche idea, first, newly raises the relationship between the world and man, and man’s position and role in the world, as the fundamental question of philosophy, and clarifies the fundamental principle that man is the master of everything and that he decides everything.
The question of man’s position and role in the world is not a pure question of human being, but a question of world outlook putting man in the centre of philosophical consideration. That is why the principle answering this question becomes the principle of man-centered world outlook, and at the same time becomes the principle of shaping man’s destiny.
By focusing on man, the Juche idea, also, gives a new view of the world that the world is dominated and transformed by man and that it develops by man’s active action and role, in the direction of serving man and in keeping with the development of man. And on the basis of the Juche view of the world, the Juche idea shows a new viewpoint and attitude to the world that the world must be approached from the viewpoint of man’s interests and on the basis of man’s activity.
Like this, the characteristics of the Juche idea that is fundamentally different from all of the former philosophical thoughts is that this idea newly raises the fundamental question of philosophy by focusing on man and shows the viewpoint and attitude to the world by regarding man as the main factor.
The Juche idea is a man-centered philosophical thought. For this reason, it is a thorough revolutionary philosophy, political philosophy.
As the Juche idea is an idea which was created in an arduous struggle as the reflection of the demand of revolutionary practice and developed and enriched in the course of giving answers to the ideological and theoretical questions arising in the revolutionary practice, it is a powerful ideological and mental weapon to highlight an absolutely correct way of revolutionary struggle.
The Juche idea was evolved through the reflection of the masses’ demand and the generalization of their struggle experience, proceeding from the viewpoint and attitude that the popular masses are the masters of everything and decide everything, Therefore, the Juche idea becomes an absolute truth which meets the people’s desire for independence and which the masses easily understand regarding it as the weapon of their struggle.
This is the reason why the Juche idea is a thorough revolutionary philosophy.
The Juche idea is not only a revolutionary philosophy but also a political philosophy that clarifies the basic principle of politics.
The destiny of the masses is shaped through the development of society, which is guided by politics. So only a philosophical ideology clarifying the basic principles of politics in a scientific way can make a real contribution to the shaping of the masses’ destiny.
The principles of man-centred philosophical world outlook and socio-historical outlook and the principles of outlook on the revolution that are elucidated by the Juche idea, are not only the most scientific principles of world outlook but also the basic principles of politics that lead social development in a straight way. In this sense, the Juche idea is called a political philosophy.
The characteristics of the Juche idea as a philosophical thought are that this idea is not only a man-centred philosophical thought but also a thorough revolutionary philosophy and political philosophy.
