Dhammapada verse 66
Chapter 5, The Fool (Bālavagga) · verses 60–75
“Fools and simpletons behave like their own worst enemies, doing wicked deeds that ripen as bitter fruit.”
Caranti bālā dummedhā, amitteneva attanā; Karontā pāpakaṁ kammaṁ, yaṁ hoti kaṭukapphalaṁ.
English by Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, via SuttaCentral)
What does Dhammapada verse 66 mean?
Verse 66 belongs to chapter 5, The Fool (Bālavagga), which gathers verses 60–75 on the fool. It is filed under wisdom & folly, good & evil. Read it with the verses around it: the Dhammapada arranges chapters as short runs, not as isolated lines, so verse 65 and verse 67 are part of the same passage.
The fool, in sixteen verses. The chapter is not kind about it: the fool who knows they are a fool is at least partly wise, the fool who thinks they are wise is beyond help, and the harm a fool does lands on themselves first. It includes the image of evil tasting sweet until it ripens.
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