You might think of breaking the precepts as harming other people, because after all, you’re killing them or stealing from them, lying to them. But the Buddha said, no, that’s where you’re harming yourself.

"You cause harm to yourself by breaking the precepts. You cause harm to yourself by giving in to greed, aversion, and delusion. You might think of breaking the precepts as harming other people, because after all, you’re killing them or stealing from them, lying to them. But [the Buddha] said, no, that’s where you’re harming yourself. If you want to harm other people, you get them to do these things, because then that becomes their karmic load."

~ Thanissaro Bhikkhu "Compunction"

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