In this excerpt from the ‘New Course’ – which was the opening shot in the Left Opposition’s struggle against Stalinism – Trotsky takes up the question of the Leninist method of understanding the world. This advice retains its full relevance for communists today.

On this day 85 years ago, Leon Trotsky was brutally attacked by a Stalinist assassin. He died the following day. This short obituary summarises the breadth of Trotsky’s marvellous contributions to humanity: as a theoretician, as a journalist, and as a working-class fighter.

Since launching a call for a new left party, over 600,000 have signed up, illustrating a burning desire for change. In turn, we republish Lenin’s advice on how Communists should orientate towards mass workers parties to win them over to a communist programme.