Dhammapada verse 330
Chapter 23, Elephants (Nāgavagga) · verses 320–333
“It’s better to wander alone, there’s no fellowship with fools. Wander alone and do no wrong, at ease like a tusker in the wilds.”
Ekassa caritaṁ seyyo, Natthi bāle sahāyatā; Eko care na ca pāpāni kayirā, Appossukko mātaṅgaraññeva nāgo.
English by Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, via SuttaCentral)
What does Dhammapada verse 330 mean?
Verse 330 belongs to chapter 23, Elephants (Nāgavagga), which gathers verses 320–333 on the elephant, and companionship. It is filed under wisdom & folly, happiness. Read it with the verses around it: the Dhammapada arranges chapters as short runs, not as isolated lines, so verse 329 and verse 331 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.
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