“Only he who is smitten with the arrows of love knows its power.”
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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: A couplet Gandhi quotes in his Autobiography ('Only he who is smitten with the arrows of love knows its power'); it is a cited verse, not Gandhi's own composition.
About this quote
Some things can't be understood from the outside, and this is one of them. You can hear it described endlessly and still miss the point, because the knowledge only arrives once it has taken hold of you and quietly rearranged what you're willing to do.
When to use it
- A skeptic who dismissed all the fuss about parenthood finally gets it the night his child is born.
- Someone who mocked sappy love songs stops laughing after falling hard for the first time.
- A caregiver learns what real devotion costs only when someone she loves truly needs her.