“I want the cultures of all lands to be blown about my house as freely as possible. But I refuse to be blown off my feet by any.”
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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: Gandhi, Young India, 1 June 1921, p.170. Full passage: 'I do not want my house to be walled in... I refuse to be blown off my feet by any.'
About this quote
You can welcome ideas and influences from everywhere without being swept away by them. The trick is standing on firm ground of your own: curious and open, yet rooted enough that new winds enrich you rather than uproot you. Openness and a stable sense of identity aren't opposites.
When to use it
- A traveler adopts foreign customs she admires while keeping her own core values fully intact.
- A company borrows useful practices from other industries without abandoning what makes it distinct.
- A student studies many philosophies but doesn't lose himself chasing whichever one he read last.