Abstract: In order to explore the way of industrialization suitable for China's then conditions, Mao Zedong raised his "walking on two legs" thoughts over arduous exploration, which based on both the Soviet Union's lessons and China's specific conditions. Despite that it has not been implemented well in practice, this guiding principle is of important reference value for us to build Socialism with Chinese characteristics. This article mainly explored the thoughts' fundamental meaning, background of the proposal, and the important practical significance.