Dhammapada verse 80
Chapter 6, The Astute (Paṇḍitavagga) · verses 76–89
“While irrigators guide water, fletchers bend arrows straight, and carpenters bend timber straight, the astute tame themselves.”
Udakañhi nayanti nettikā, Usukārā namayanti tejanaṁ; Dāruṁ namayanti tacchakā, Attānaṁ damayanti paṇḍitā.
English by Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, via SuttaCentral)
What does Dhammapada verse 80 mean?
Verse 80 belongs to chapter 6, The Astute (Paṇḍitavagga), which gathers verses 76–89 on the astute. 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 79 and verse 81 are part of the same passage.
The astute, the discerning, the one worth following, in fourteen verses. It balances the previous chapter: the wise person is described as one who advises, instructs and steers others away from harm, and the chapter includes the instruction not to keep company with the worst but to keep company with good friends.