Quotation
Last reviewed:
“An eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind.”
Mohandas K. Gandhi · Moral and political thought · Modern · 20th-century proverb
What does it mean?
An eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind. Researchers have not found this sentence in his writings or speeches. It fits a popular picture of his nonviolence, which is why it stuck. A rival reading says the fit is enough, because nonviolence just is this proverb. Nonviolence in Gandhi is a disciplined political ethic, with limits and arguments, not a proverb about blindness. A similar thought is much older as a criticism of retaliation. This wording is not his. The proverb says retaliation multiplies injury until no one can see.
Did Mohandas K. Gandhi really say this?
The library’s label is Misattributed. Researchers have not found this sentence in Gandhi. It fits a popular picture of his nonviolence, which is why it stuck. A similar thought is much older as a criticism of retaliation, but this wording is not his.
Where it comes from
No reliable source in Gandhi's writings or speeches
Approximate date: 20th-century proverb.
How to use it
Argue against retaliation with reasons, examples, and, if you want him, with texts he wrote on ahimsa. A matching vibe, in a debate at a sixth form or on a timeline, is not a source. The proverb can stay anonymous and still be discussed. Anonymity is not an insult. It is accuracy.
A mindset reading
Fit is the forger's friend. The more a fake sounds like the person's reputation, the faster it is believed. That speed is the bias to watch, not a reason to relax the check.
Understand the philosophy
Leave this line anonymous. Read him if you want the ethic. The adjective people attach to a life is not a sentence from the life, even when the adjective was earned.
- ethics
- justice
- society
FAQ
What does it mean?
An eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind. Researchers have not found this sentence in his writings or speeches. It fits a popular picture of his nonviolence, which is why it stuck. A rival reading says the fit is enough, because nonviolence just is this proverb. Nonviolence in Gandhi is a disciplined political ethic, with limits and arguments, not a proverb about blindness. A similar thought is much older as a criticism of retaliation. This wording is not his. The proverb says retaliation multiplies injury until no one can see.
Did Mohandas K. Gandhi really say this?
Misattributed. Researchers have not found this sentence in Gandhi. It fits a popular picture of his nonviolence, which is why it stuck. A similar thought is much older as a criticism of retaliation, but this wording is not his.
Which work is it in?
No reliable source in Gandhi's writings or speeches Approximate date: 20th-century proverb.