The fool who commits bad actions does not understand what they are doing; by their own actions the ignorant one burns, as if burned by fire.

Karaṃ bālo na bujjhati — the fool does not understand while acting: na bujjhati is “does not awaken”, does not realize. Unconsciousness at the moment of action is what distinguishes the fool from the wise. Both may make mistakes, but the fool does so without even perceiving they are sowing suffering.

Sehi kammehi dummedho aggidaḍḍhova tappati — by their own actions the ignorant one burns as if by fire: aggidaḍḍha is burned by fire. The image is precise: the fool’s own actions are the fuel and the fire that burns them. There is no external agent — it is self-immolation through ignorance.

This moral self-consumption of the fool is one of the central themes of the chapter on punishment. The most effective daṇḍa (punishment) does not come from outside but from one’s own actions. The moral universe of Buddhism is self-referential: the agent of actions is also the recipient of their consequences.

In contemplative practice, sati (mindfulness) is precisely the faculty that allows one to “awaken” during action, to see in real time what one is doing and what its consequences will be.