Dhammapada verse 164
Chapter 12, The Self (Attavagga) · verses 157–166
“On account of wicked views— scorning the guidance of the perfected ones, the noble ones living righteously— the idiot begets their own self’s demise, like the bamboo bearing fruit.”
Yo sāsanaṁ arahataṁ, ariyānaṁ dhammajīvinaṁ; Paṭikkosati dummedho, diṭṭhiṁ nissāya pāpikaṁ; Phalāni kaṭṭhakasseva, attaghātāya phallati.
English by Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, via SuttaCentral)
What does Dhammapada verse 164 mean?
Verse 164 belongs to chapter 12, The Self (Attavagga), which gathers verses 157–166 on the self as one’s own responsibility. It is filed under good & evil. Read it with the verses around it: the Dhammapada arranges chapters as short runs, not as isolated lines, so verse 163 and verse 165 are part of the same passage.
Ten verses on the self, understood here as one’s own responsibility rather than a permanent essence. The chapter says the self is the refuge and the self is the thing to train, and it warns against the person who is skilled at correcting others and not at correcting themselves.
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