“My patriotism is both exclusive and inclusive. It is exclusive in the sense that in all humility I confine my attention to the land of my birth, but it is inclusive in the sense that my service is not of a competitive or antagonistic nature. Sic utere tuo ut alienum non laedas is not merely a legal maxim, but it is a grand doctrine of life. It is the key to a proper practice of Ahimsa or love. It is for you, the custodians of a great faith, to set the fashion and show, by your preaching, sanctified by practice, that patriotism based on hatred "killeth" and that patriotism based on love "giveth life."”
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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: 'Third Class in Indian Railways' (1917); Gandhi on patriotism being exclusive yet inclusive - hatred 'killeth', love 'giveth life'.
About this quote
You can pour yourself into your own corner of the world without setting it against anyone else's. Loyalty curdles when it needs an enemy to feel real; kept rooted in care rather than resentment, the same devotion builds instead of destroys, and it leaves room for other people to love their own.
When to use it
- A parent who cheers hard for her kid's team without teaching him to sneer at the other side.
- A shop owner proud of his neighborhood who welcomes a newcomer's store instead of trying to run it out.
- A citizen who volunteers for local causes while refusing to blame outsiders for every problem the town faces.