“Du und ich: Wir sind eins. Ich kann dir nicht wehtun, ohne mich zu verletzen.”
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Attribution note
A popular German-language attribution to Gandhi expressing his ahimsa/oneness idea, but no dated primary source supports it and it circulates only via quote collections; also non-English for an English site.
Likely origin: German rendering of 'You and I are one; I cannot hurt you without wounding myself,' widely credited to Gandhi with no reliable primary source.
Review the attribution sourceAbout this quote
Harm rarely stays on one side. Wounding another person tends to rebound on the one who does it — through guilt, broken trust, or a poisoned atmosphere you also have to live in. Seeing your fate as bound up with theirs is what makes cruelty feel like self-injury.
When to use it
- Winning an argument by humiliating a friend and then being unable to enjoy the victory.
- A boss who slashes a team's pay to hit a number and watches trust and output collapse together.
- Spreading a rumor about a coworker that eventually sours the whole office you still have to work in.