- English translation
Ailing himself, yet he goes around playing the doctor.
- Literal wording
Sick, and making himself out to be a healer.
- Meaning and lesson
The saying mocks a person who is clearly unwell yet poses as the one who cures others. The jab targets self-appointed pretension, not a genuine healer at work. The illness stands for any personal flaw or problem, and the healing role for meddling in others' affairs while ignoring one's own.
Beneath the ridicule lies a lesson about priorities and self-awareness: anyone who honestly saw their own condition would tend to it first.
- When it is used
Use it as a pointed remark about someone who keeps diagnosing and fixing other people's lives while their own troubles go untreated. It is a critical jab rather than gentle advice, suited to informal talk where some bluntness about hypocrisy or blind spots is acceptable.
Cite or copy proverb
How this record reached us: Editorially sourced.
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