“To believe in something, and not to live it, is dishonest.”
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Misattributed quote
Provided disputed hit plus Wikiquote: the earliest located instance is a 2001 web-marketing book misspelling his name; there is no primary Gandhi text, so this is effectively a modern misattribution.
Likely origin: No Gandhi source; earliest Google Books instance is a 2001 'How to Make Free Money From Your Website' chapter heading crediting 'M. K. Ghandi' [sic]. A modern, later origin, not Gandhi.
Review the attribution sourceAbout this quote
There's no Gandhi source for this; the earliest known instance is a 2001 web-marketing book that even misspelled his name — a modern line, not his teaching. What it points at still holds: a belief you never act on is just a preference you enjoy claiming, and the gap between word and deed is a quiet dishonesty.
When to use it
- Someone who preaches frugality but keeps financing luxuries is fooling mostly himself.
- A manager who champions work-life balance yet emails staff at midnight teaches the opposite of what he says.
- A person who calls the environment sacred but never changes a single habit holds the belief in name only.