A cognitive base built on Mao Zedong's On Contradiction (《矛盾论》) that shifts AI agent reasoning from seeking correct answers to identifying contradiction networks, locating the principal contradiction, and synthesizing beyond opposition. Works with any LLM agent — Claude, GPT, Gemini, or custom frameworks.
基于毛泽东《矛盾论》构建的认知底座，将 AI agent 的推理方式从"寻找正确答案"转变为"识别矛盾网络、定位主要矛盾、在对立中综合"。适用于任何 LLM agent — Claude、GPT、Gemini 或自定义框架。
Most AI agents treat problems as optimization puzzles — list the factors, weigh trade-offs, pick the best option. Dialectical Thinking adds a reasoning layer that sees every situation as a network of contradictions, finds the one that matters most, and determines whether to resolve, transform, or let it drive development.
大多数 AI agent 把问题当作优化题——列出因素、权衡利弊、选择最优。矛盾论增加了一个推理层——把每个局面看作矛盾网络，找到最重要的那个矛盾，判断应该化解、转化还是让它推动发展。
"We need both speed and quality in our engineering team."
"Here are 5 best practices to balance speed and quality: automated testing, code reviews, CI/CD, clear acceptance criteria, technical debt budgets..."
"Speed vs quality is a secondary contradiction. Your principal contradiction is that your architecture couples deployment to the entire system — so every change is high-risk, which forces slowness. Decouple deployment (modular boundaries, feature flags), and speed and quality stop being opposed. They were never truly contradictory — they were symptoms of an architectural contradiction."
From: Find the correct answer To: Identify the contradiction network, locate the principal contradiction, synthesize beyond opposition
从"寻找正确答案"到"识别矛盾网络、定位主要矛盾、在对立之上综合"
Six dialectical operations applied to every reasoning task:
六个辩证操作，应用于每一个推理任务：
| Default mode | Dialectical mode |
|---|---|
| List factors and weigh them 列出因素并权衡 | Map opposing forces as contradictions 将对立力量映射为矛盾 |
| Treat all issues as equal 所有问题同等对待 | Locate the principal contradiction 定位主要矛盾 |
| Seek balance and compromise 寻求平衡与妥协 | Judge nature: reconcile or resolve decisively 判断性质：调和还是决断 |
| Analyze once, then execute 分析一次后执行 | Monitor transformation — re-map when conditions change 监控转化——条件变化时重新定位 |
| Dismiss the opposing view 忽视对立观点 | Steel-man the opposition before synthesizing 综合之前先强化对立面 |
| Apply proven frameworks 套用成熟框架 | Concrete analysis of concrete conditions 具体情况具体分析 |
Six anti-patterns that catch fake dialectical reasoning:
六个反模式，捕捉伪辩证推理：
| Anti-pattern 反模式 | Description 描述 |
|---|---|
| Pseudo-synthesis 伪综合 | Appears to combine both sides but actually just picks one 看似综合对立面，实则只选了一方 |
| Contradiction avoidance 矛盾回避 | Treating contradictions as "factors to balance" 把矛盾当作"需要平衡的因素" |
| Template application 模板套用 | Applying one analysis to all situations, ignoring particularity 用一套分析套所有情况，忽视特殊性 |
| Principal-secondary confusion 主次混淆 | Spending energy on secondary contradictions 在次要矛盾上消耗精力 |
| Nature misjudgment 性质误判 | Using negotiation on irreconcilable contradictions 对不可调和的矛盾搞调和 |
| Static analysis 静态分析 | Treating contradictions as fixed instead of transforming 把矛盾当作固定不变的 |
Primary source — Mao Zedong's dialectical works:
- 《矛盾论》(On Contradiction, 1937): Principal vs secondary contradictions, universality and particularity of contradiction, contradiction as the engine of all development, concrete analysis of concrete conditions
- 《关于正确处理人民内部矛盾的问题》(On the Correct Handling of Contradictions Among the People, 1957): Distinguishing antagonistic from non-antagonistic contradictions — the nature of contradiction determines the method of resolution
- 《论十大关系》(On the Ten Major Relationships, 1956): Managing multiple contradictions simultaneously, "walking on two legs," the art of handling a contradiction network rather than a single contradiction
Western complements:
- Hegel: thesis-antithesis-synthesis as the logic of development; contradiction as the root of all movement
- Socratic method: systematic questioning to expose contradictions in beliefs (tool for generating antithesis)
- Steel-manning: build the strongest version of the opposing view before attempting synthesis
Applied frameworks:
- TRIZ: "every invention problem is a resolvable contradiction" — engineering operationalization
- Kahneman framing effects + Lakoff: contradictions may be frame-dependent, not fact-dependent
- I Ching yin-yang: some oppositions are permanent co-generation, not contradiction-driven synthesis
- Deng Xiaoping's "One Country Two Systems": engineering frameworks where contradictions productively coexist
The cognitive protocol strips all theory and translates these ideas into executable instructions for any reasoning agent.
认知协议剥离了所有理论，将这些思想转译为任何推理 agent 可执行的指令。
cp cognitive-protocol.md ~/.claude/dialectical-thinking.md
echo '@~/.claude/dialectical-thinking.md' >> ~/.claude/CLAUDE.mdcat cognitive-protocol.md >> AGENTS.mdPaste cognitive-protocol.md into system_instruction.
将 cognitive-protocol.md 内容粘贴到 system_instruction 中。
cat cognitive-protocol.md >> .cursorrulesInject cognitive-protocol.md (~30 lines) into the system prompt. See install/generic.md for details.
将 cognitive-protocol.md（约 30 行）注入系统提示词。详见 install/generic.md。
dialectical-thinking/
├── README.md ← You are here / 你在这里
├── cognitive-protocol.md ← Core rules (~30 lines, always-on) / 核心规则（约 30 行，始终激活）
├── SKILL.md ← Full framework reference / 完整框架参考
├── anti-patterns.md ← Detailed anti-pattern guide / 反模式详解
├── examples.md ← Before/after scenarios / 前后对比示例
├── install/
│ ├── claude-code.md ← Claude Code installation / Claude Code 安装指南
│ ├── codex.md ← Codex installation / Codex 安装指南
│ ├── gemini.md ← Gemini installation / Gemini 安装指南
│ └── generic.md ← Universal guide / 通用安装指南
└── LICENSE ← MIT
Dialectical Thinking is a cognitive base — it changes how the agent frames problems, not what it produces. It stacks cleanly with any domain skill (coding, design, writing, analysis) because it operates at a different layer.
矛盾论是一个认知底座——它改变 agent 的问题框架方式，而非产出内容。它与任何领域技能无冲突地叠加，因为它运行在不同的层级。
| Layer 层级 | What it governs 管辖范围 | Example 示例 |
|---|---|---|
| First Principles 第一性原理 | What you build ON — verifying foundations 在什么之上建构——验证基础 | "Audit assumptions before solving" 先审计假设 |
| Dialectical Thinking 矛盾论 | What you build THROUGH — navigating contradictions 通过什么来建构——驾驭矛盾 | "Locate the principal contradiction" 定位主要矛盾 |
| Systems Thinking 系统思维 | What you build WITHIN — understanding feedback loops 在什么之中建构——理解反馈回路 | "Trace second-order effects" 追踪二阶效应 |
All three load as always-on cognitive protocols. No conflicts. Combined: reason from verified foundations (FP), through contradiction dynamics (DT), within systemic feedback (ST).
三者同时加载，始终激活，互不冲突。组合效果：从经过验证的基础出发（第一性原理），通过矛盾的动态（矛盾论），在系统反馈中推进（系统思维）。
Cognitive bases are meta-cognitive instruction sets that change HOW an agent thinks, not WHAT it does. Each one targets a different cognitive axis. Mix and match.
| Cognitive Base | What it changes |
|---|---|
| First Principles | Reason from verified foundations, not inherited conventions |
| Results-Driven | Require evidence for completion, not just activity |
| Tacit Knowledge | Think like an experienced practitioner |
| Attention Allocation | Find and concentrate on the ONE binding constraint |
| Bayesian Reasoning | Calibrated probability thinking, not binary judgments |
| Constraint as Catalyst | Turn constraints into innovation catalysts |
| Conviction Override | Override rational caution when obstacles are convention, not physics |
| Cross-Domain Connector | Detect structural isomorphisms across disciplines |
| Double-Loop Learning | Question the assumptions that produce errors |
| Frame Auditing | Detect and transcend invisible analytical frames |
| Interactive Cognition | Model others' cognition and manage information flow |
| Inversion Thinking | Map failure modes first, then avoid them |
| Motivation Audit | Audit motivational drivers before analysis (正心诚意) |
| Non-Attachment | Radical cognitive freedom — use frameworks without fusing |
| Principled Action | Unify knowing and doing through practice-theory spirals (知行合一) |
| Second-Order Thinking | Trace consequences beyond first-order effects |
| Systems Thinking | Feedback-driven structural analysis, not linear cause-effect |
| Temporal Wisdom | Make time your ally — compound effects and phase awareness |
| Cognitive Base Creator | Generate new cognitive bases from any thinking framework |
MIT