Dhammapada verse 321
Chapter 23, Elephants (Nāgavagga) · verses 320–333
“The well-tamed beast is the one led to the crowd; the tamed elephant’s the one the king mounts; the tamed person who endures abuse is the best of human beings.”
Dantaṁ nayanti samitiṁ, dantaṁ rājābhirūhati; Danto seṭṭho manussesu, yotivākyaṁ titikkhati.
English by Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, via SuttaCentral)
What does Dhammapada verse 321 mean?
Verse 321 belongs to chapter 23, Elephants (Nāgavagga), which gathers verses 320–333 on the elephant, and companionship. It is filed under no theme. Read it with the verses around it: the Dhammapada arranges chapters as short runs, not as isolated lines, so verse 320 and verse 322 are part of the same passage.
Fourteen verses that use the elephant as their figure — the elephant in battle, the untamed elephant, the elephant that carries its own load. It is also the chapter about companionship: it contains the verses on finding an alert friend to travel with and on walking alone when no such friend can be found.