“We have to live and move and have our being in ahimsa, even as Hitler does in himsa. It is the faith and perseverance and single-mindedness with which he has perfected his weapons of destruction that commands my admiration. That he uses them as a monster is immaterial for our purpose. We have to bring to bear the same single-mindedness and perseverance in evolving our ahimsa. Hitler is awake all the 24 hours of the day in perfecting his sadhana. He wins because he pays the price. His inventions surprise his enemies. But it is his single-minded devotion to his purpose that should be the object of our admiration and emulation. Although he works all his waking hours, his intellect is unclouded and unerring. Are our intellects unclouded and unerring? A mere belief in ahimsa or the charkha will not do. It should be intelligent and creative. If intellect plays a large part in the field of violence, I hold that it plays a larger part in the field of non-violence.”
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Source: Speech (June 1940); Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi, vol. 78, p. 349.
About this quote
You can admire the method while flatly rejecting the aim. What makes any pursuit effective is single-minded, relentless devotion — and a worthy goal deserves at least the intensity people pour into destructive ones. On the constructive side, clear thinking matters even more.
When to use it
- Studying a tireless rival's preparation and applying that same rigor to your own honest work.
- A student channeling the obsessive focus they once gave a video game into mastering a subject.
- Redirecting the energy that went into nursing a grudge toward patient, creative problem-solving.

