Dhammapada verse 85
Chapter 6, The Astute (Paṇḍitavagga) · verses 76–89
“Few are those among humans who cross to the far shore. The rest just run around on the near shore.”
Appakā te manussesu, ye janā pāragāmino; Athāyaṁ itarā pajā, tīramevānudhāvati.
English by Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, via SuttaCentral)
What does Dhammapada verse 85 mean?
Verse 85 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 84 and verse 86 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.