33 Quotes From Gandhi: Understand His Philosophy
Quotes from Gandhi are still inspiring to people all over the world today. The pacifist leader has a significant influence on our way of thinking, with his spirituality, simplicity of heart and philosophy of non-violence. His legacy is like no other. Few characters in history have inspired us like him to live in peace and in accordance with the truth.
Experts in Mahatma Gandhi’s work say that his philosophy is enormously multifaceted and quite complicated at times, so much so that it will require several volumes to even just sketch its main features.
But for those who want to dive into his work for the first time, Gandhi’s philosophy can be divided into four main parts: non-violence, Sarvodaya (socially engaged Buddhism), Satyagraha (the power of souls) and the search for truth.
These are four well-defined but coherent areas where religious ideas harmonize with social ideals to form a clear purpose and hope: to encourage humanity to trust itself to convince us that we can create positive change in our society, while we achieve greater moral growth.
Quotes from Gandhi about non-violence
These brief testimonies, encapsulated in simple sentences, are found in several of his books. When we read quotes from Gandhi, we realize almost immediately that we are not dealing with the work of someone who wanted to impose a rigid doctrine on the world.
On the contrary, they are a set of principles that invite us to reflect, and that can be applied in any area of our lives, and help us to understand, for example, that the basic things we need to break the cycle of violence are love, dialogue and respect for the other.
Therefore , we suggest reading and reflecting on our selected quotes from Gandhi at your own pace without prejudice, but with a willingness to learn new things. They are more than relevant in today’s world.
1. Do not lose faith in humanity. Man is an ocean; if a few drops are dirty, the sea does not get dirty
Ahimsa is a concept from Sanskrit and gives rise to the philosophy of non-violence and respect for life that is so characteristic of Gandhi.
In the same way, if there was one thing that defined him, it was his unwavering hope in humanity. This hope is why he encouraged people to have a positive attitude towards tolerance, patience and charity, and to never lose faith in humanity.
2. Violence is fear of the ideals of others
This is one of Gandhi’s most famous phrases and the one that best defines the essence of his philosophy: we should not be afraid of things that are different. We should not fear those who think differently or have different opinions. Fear of “the other” is a symptom of weakness.
An eye for an eye and everyone will be blind
Violence only breeds violence. Mankind must stop using aggression, revenge and hatred to communicate. The only thing it does is make evil chronic.
4. Hatred and intolerance are enemies of proper understanding
Gandhi suggested the importance of dialogue as a way of overcoming differences and intolerance. Only those who can humbly talk to each other face to face can achieve a proper understanding.
5. Poverty is the worst form of violence
One of Gandhi’s statements that is still very relevant. Poverty remains a structural violence that does not improve and in fact continues to be ignored.
6. I guess leadership once meant power, but today it means getting along with people
A good leader does not force himself with power or violence, but with respect, with sensitivity in the heart.
8. There are two types of power: one is achieved through fear of punishment, and the other through acts of love. Power based on love is more effective and permanent than fear of punishment
For Gandhi, love is the way to the truth. Once we have made this our ideal, we will be able to fight violence to make respect, coexistence and charity the foundation of our society.
9. Non-violence requires double faith, faith in God and faith in man
Non-violence for Gandhi was a “great power” that must be accepted as the law of life. It should be a part of our whole being and all our thoughts. It should be reflected in our actions.
Gandhi Quotes About Satyagraha (Power of the Soul)
Now we will give you quotes from Gandhi about the power of the soul:
11. The purpose of life is to live right, think right and act right
The principle of Satyagraha is crucial to understanding Gandhi’s philosophy. This concept tells us that a person must live in harmony with himself, free from fear and prejudice, and always adhere to the idea of truth as the purpose of life.
12. Happiness is when what you think, say, and do is in harmony
This is the principle of harmony between thought and action.
13. Be the change you want to see in the world
A Satyagrahi, that is, a person who is brave and has the principle of respect, love and truth in his heart, sees himself as capable of making this world a much better place.
15. Justice through love is liberation, justice through the law is punishment
The Gandhi principles always have a moral connotation. A key principle is a clear opposition to injustice, the development of a spirit of service, self-denial and sacrifice. He therefore always talked about the importance of making love and simplicity our best weapons.
Quotes from Gandhi about Sarvodaya: a committed society
Gandhi dreamed of an ideal society, free from all forms of exploitation, social differences, violence and injustice. Here are quotes from Gandhi that reflect this lofty purpose, a commitment we are all responsible for.
16. The future depends on what you do today
The future of our society depends on the small changes we can make now, and commits us to the principles of love and justice.
17. There is enough in the world to meet the needs of man, but not his greed
This social goal, described by Gandhi as Sarvodaya , is a concept he himself has created. It can be translated as a need to seek welfare for all without exception. It is thus clear that greed does not have a place in a world where there are already enough resources and opportunities for everyone if we do so.
18. An honest disagreement is often a good sign of progress
Dialogue and its significance for smoothing out tough exteriors and differences make up a fundamental principle of Gandhi’s philosophy. A respectful disagreement between two people is a way to make progress in life.
19. It is not enough for our ears to be happy, for our eyes to be happy; our hearts must be touched and our hands and feet must move
A society that wants change must be a society that is able to carry out, change and generate a movement that starts with the individual, with one’s own heart, and must then be reflected in our actions. A good leader must therefore be able to create real hope in his people so that they can make changes.
21. No culture can survive if it wants to be exclusive
The concept Satyagraha can and should be practiced in all cultural environments, because otherwise we are lost. Exclusion, mistrust, the differences between my religion and your religion, the violent antagonisms between my ideas and yours, do nothing but build walls and sow the seeds of violence.
22. It is difficult, but not impossible, to run a business honestly
Moral power is the engine that should drive every good society, from the bottom up, in our own homes and small businesses. Therefore, according to Gandhi, each individual should be trained in honesty, humility and justice to be a productive citizen, take responsibility and fulfill his duties to create a much better world.
23. A leader is useless when he acts against the impulses of his own conscience
This is one of Gandhi’s most famous quotes. Something he argued for without fail was political decentralization to prevent the power from being in the hands of a person, a power that will almost always overcome him.
Little by little, the almighty leader will only seek his own gain. That is why Gandhi always defended direct, participatory democracy.
24. Peace between countries must be based on love between individuals
Only through love can truth and peace be achieved in society. In fact, a common idea in Gandhi’s philosophy is that the concept we have of God is love itself, and it is the only way to weaken our enemies and the forces of evil.
To achieve this ideal of a perfect society that Gandhi dreamed of, we must start with ourselves and those around us. If we respect and love our family, our neighbors and our community, we must also be able to do the same with the countries around us.
25. If we want true peace in the world, start with the children
To create a better society and a more noble future governed by love and harmony, we must nurture and educate our younger generations in the principles of peace and non-violence.
Quotes from Gandhi about the truth
The true meaning behind the key concepts of Gandhi’s philosophy lies in their etymological roots. The word “truth” has its origin in the Sanskrit term “Satya”, and “sat” means “what exists, what is real”. So for Gandhi, the idea of truth applies when thoughts are in line with actions and when a society has a moral code that encourages this high purpose in its citizens.
Here are quotes from Gandhi that best represent this idea.
26. The truth remains even if it has no public support
This is one of Gandhi’s most famous phrases, and refers to the idea that one must be able to maintain, protect and defend one’s own truth, even if the majority can push us in the opposite direction.
27. The truth is obvious by nature. When you remove the cobwebs of ignorance that surrounds it, it shines freely
The truth is always there, right in front of us. However, we allow ourselves to be manipulated and carried away by laziness, submission or even ignorance. Few actions require as much courage as finding the truth and acting on it.
28. My life is my message
We said for a moment that “Satya”, which means “true” in Sanskrit, means what is real, what exists. In turn , Gandhi learned that truth is meaningless if you think one thing and do the opposite. Therefore, this pacifist leader of India always lived in harmony with everything he preached and led a humble life dedicated to others.
29. To believe in something and not live it is dishonest
Here we can see the same principle that is reflected again: the need to live in harmony with our own truth, with our own faith.
30. The truth prevails, even if it has no public support. It stands on its own
Some say that Gandhi was an idealist, and we can agree that is true. But in many of his texts and in quotations from Gandhi we can see that there is a very practical, useful idealism that can be used in many areas of our lives.
Each of us at some point in our lives, whether at home or at work, has defended the truth even though we had no support. Sooner or later, falsehood and injustice will fall…
31. The truth never hurts a righteous house
As much as we are afraid to tell the truth, if we do it in a place that is just, it will always be respected and appreciated.
32. Anyone who wants to can hear his inner voice. It is in all of us
To connect with the truth and act accordingly, we must listen to our inner voice. Our inner dialogue must be constant and permanent. It is the only way we will find the strength to act in relation to what we consider unfair and against the truth.
33. The goal is truth and the way is love
The opposite of violence is love, and the only way to build a society capable of defending the truth, capable of thinking and acting in accordance with this principle, is to take the path of charity, dialogue, equality, brotherhood and fairness.
To conclude, as you can see, Gandhi’s philosophy has not only moral, political and religious implications. Above all, it is a compendium of knowledge that may be rooted in Indian culture, but which is so relevant to us today.
Source list:
Gandhi, MK (1993). An Autobiography: The Story of My Experiments With Truth. Boston: Beacon Press.
Wolpert, S. (2001). Gandhi’s Passion: The Life and Legacy of Mahatma Gandhi. Oxford University Press.
Gandhi, Mahatma (1989) “The words of Gandhi” Madrid: SIDDHARTH MEHTA EDICIONES
Gandhi, Mahatma (2016) “The food of the soul”. José J. de Olañeta
