Seek truth from facts

"Seek truth from facts" (Chinese: 实事求是, pinyin: shí shì qiú shì) is a slogan in the People's Republic of China referring to pragmatism. Beginning in the late 1970s, it was promoted by Deng Xiaoping and is a part of the official ideology of Socialism with Chinese characteristics. The phrase means to look for economic and political solutions that have practical application rather than those based on political ideology (such as that of Mao Zedong).

The term has a very long heritage and was first invoked by the Evidential school of scholars during the 17th century.