Dhammapada verse 61
Chapter 5, The Fool (Bālavagga) · verses 60–75
“If while wandering you find no partner equal or better than yourself, then firmly resolve to wander alone— there’s no fellowship with fools.”
Carañce nādhigaccheyya, Seyyaṁ sadisamattano; Ekacariyaṁ daḷhaṁ kayirā, Natthi bāle sahāyatā.
English by Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, via SuttaCentral)
What does Dhammapada verse 61 mean?
Verse 61 belongs to chapter 5, The Fool (Bālavagga), which gathers verses 60–75 on the fool. It is filed under wisdom & folly, self-discipline. Read it with the verses around it: the Dhammapada arranges chapters as short runs, not as isolated lines, so verse 60 and verse 62 are part of the same passage.
The fool, in sixteen verses. The chapter is not kind about it: the fool who knows they are a fool is at least partly wise, the fool who thinks they are wise is beyond help, and the harm a fool does lands on themselves first. It includes the image of evil tasting sweet until it ripens.
More verses on this