Spinoza also put forward a well-known idea that mind and spirit is the source of desire, and if people don't want to be controlled by desire, they need strong and healthy bodies rather than rational mediation.  In the same way, if we want to stop the misbehaviors and fighting among people driven by their desires, we can't depend on the laws of God. Spinoza said, "Nationalize the natural rights to revenge and judge, and give the rights to society.  Then society will get the power to regulate the activities of people within it.  I don't mean laws and rationality here, because the effective implement of laws have to rely on penalty rather than rationality.   Society that established on the solid power of self-preservation is nation, and people under the protection of nation is citizen."

In my opinion, Mao became a Marxist through learning the philosophy of Spinoza rather than Lenin.  And most biographies of Mao in the world incline to agree with the later.

When he was twenty six years old，Mao Zedong published his first academic paper in the magazine "New Youth", the title of which is "A Study of Physical Education."  In the paper, he put forward the idea "Strengthen the physique and civilize the spirit".  At that time, advanced people in China are all studying the issue of mind and spirit, such as the national spirit of the Chinese, but Mao insisted that mind and spirit is only a part of the body, and only strong and healthy body can help people overcome their desires.  Of course, he learned the philosophy from Spinoza.

Mao didn't just talk, but really lived up to it.  In his youth, Mao and his two classmates read and exercised beside the Xiang River during summer vacation.  Stripped to the waist, they stood in violent storms, heavy rains and burning sun，and Mao called it "a shower in the rain""a shower in the sun".  He wrote in his diary then "If you struggle together with nature, the joy is endless. If you struggle together with the earth, the joy is endless.  If you struggle together with people, the joy is endless, too."

Mao Zedong said later that only with a strong and healthy body was he able to finish the Long March.

When he was seventy years old, Mao Zedong swam in the Yangtze river again.  He called on the communists to walk into the violent storms and waves to get rid of the dirt and decay in their bodies.

Spinoza said, "It's impossible for people to be separated from nature and violate the common order of nature." Spinoza and Mao Zedong provided a kind of outlook of nature which was quite different from that of Darwin.  From the standpoint of Darwin, the resource is limited, so people can only obtain most resources through brutal competitions. But in Mao's opinion, this view of nature only provide a pretext for the social policy under the principle of "Every man for himself, and the devil takes the hindmost."

From the view of Mao Zedong, the relationship between all things in nature is stimulation, devotion and cooperation. Freedom means cooperation rather than competition. In his youth, he wrote in the poetry" Eagles cleave the air, Fish glide under the shallow water; Under freezing skies a million creatures contend in freedom". In his mind, people can benefit most from the behavior they help others. He also wrote, "The destination of humans is self-actualization. And self-actualization means to give full play to their physical and mental potentials. We can only achieve this through activities, and the activities rely on all kinds of social organizations. "

Mao Zedong is 1.84m tall, and he is higher than his contemporaries in china.  But according to the standard of the Dutch, he is of medium height. In his later years, Mao told Kissinger, "I want to swim in the Mississippi river, just to swim as a tourist. "  If Mao was still alive, I couldn't imagine what he would feel when he knew a book about him was published in the Netherlands.  But I believe he must like the Netherlands very much.  It's not only because he is a loyal reader of Spinoza, but also because what he love most is wind, ocean and violent storms.  He loved to swim and navigate in the violent storms all his life.

Mao Zedong wrote in his youth, "Strong storms sweep the sea, great waves unfold on a magnificent scale. People who board on the boat take it as great sight. The waves of life and death is greater, isn't it? "

In his later years, when Mao met with Japan premier Tanaka Kakuei, he said "I'm going to meet Marx" ,which frightened Tanaka Kakuei. He knew Mao hinted that he was going to die.  Tanaka Kakuei didn't know how to answer it, so he said, "It's impossible."  Mao answered with a smile on his face, "Yes, Marx is going to hold a academic meeting to discuss about the future of humans. I received his invitation card and will attend the meeting there."

I guess may be at that time Spinoza's words came to his mind, "A free man thinks of nothing less than of death; and his wisdom is a meditation not of death, but of life."

And what is life?  In my mind, life means to bravely confront the unknown world.  Life means to grow up in the violent storms and waves.

Thank you!