“He is the devotee who is jealous of none, who is a fount of mercy, who is without egotism, who is selfless, who treats alike cold and heat, happiness and misery, who is ever forgiving, who is always contented, whose resolutions are firm, who has dedicated mind and soul to God, who causes no dread, who is not afraid of others, who is free from exultation, sorrow and fear, who is pure, who is versed in action and yet remains unaffected by it, who renounces all fruit, good or bad, who treats friend and foe alike, who is untouched by respect or disrespect, who is not puffed up by praise, who does not go under when people speak ill of him, who loves silence and solitude, who has a disciplined reason. Such devotion is inconsistent with the existence at the same time of strong attachments. We thus see that to be a real devotee is to realize oneself. Self-realization is not something apart. One rupee can purchase for us poison or nectar, but knowledge or devotion cannot buy us salvation or bondage. These are not media of exchange. They are themselves the thing we want. In other words, if the means and the end are not identical, they are almost so. The extreme of means is salvation. Salvation of the Gita is perfect peace.”
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Probable attribution
This saying is widely associated with Mahatma Gandhi, but the attribution is not supported by a reliable primary source.
Likely origin: The Bhagavad Gita According to Gandhi (Anasaktiyoga) - largely his rendering of Bhagavad Gita ch. 12 (scripture) plus his commentary.
About this quote
The portrait of real devotion is mostly evenness — the same steady person in cold and heat, praise and insult, gain and loss. And the reward isn't separate from the practice: unlike money that buys either poison or nectar, this kind of knowing is itself the thing you were seeking.
When to use it
- A volunteer helps just as fully whether or not anyone notices or thanks them.
- Someone stays level-headed through both a glowing review and a harsh one at work.
- A person meditates for the calm it brings, not to reach some prize beyond the sitting itself.

