Sacred Text · The Dhammapada
The Dhammapada, verse 160
Chapter 12, Self · verse 160
“Self is the lord of self, who else could be the lord? With self well subdued, a man finds a lord such as few can find.”
Dhammapada 160 · Müller
Translation: F. Max Müller (1881), The Dhammapada, Sacred Books of the East vol. X, public domain, via Project Gutenberg (ebook 2017). Reproduced in full and in context; verse 5 and the verse count (423 verses, 26 chapters) validated against the source before publishing.
Christian comparison
How this connects to Jesus
Self is the lord of self, says the Dhammapada, making the disciplined self its own master. Jesus offers a different kind of lordship, not the self mastering the self, but a Saviour who loves you and gives rest to the weary (Matthew 11:28-29). Christians confess Jesus as Lord, and find in him a freedom the self alone could not give.
Explore: Who is Lord of the selfWhy Jesus?Read the Gospel