CHAPTER SIX.

THE WISE.

76. If thou see a man of wisdom, Like a guide to treasure-trove, Pointing out thy faults and failings, Follow him; such company Brings prosperity, not woe.

77. He who gives advice and teaching, And restrains thy feet from wrong, By the righteous is beloved, But the wicked love him not.

78. Have no fellowship with evil; Make no friends among the vile; Make the virtuous thy companions; Follow thou the Perfect Men.

79. They who drink the Good Norm's nectar Live in bliss with tranquil mind; In the Norm by saints expounded Wise men ever take delight.

80. Irrigators guide the waters, Fletchers straighten out the shaft, Carpenters unwarp the timber, But the wise subdue themselves.

81. As the solid rock for ever Rests unshaken by the wind, Wise men rest unwavering, Troubled not by praise or blame.

82. As a deep clear pool of water Lies unruffled by the wind, To the Good Norm listening Wise men reach tranquillity.

83. When the good men go about, Sensual babble is not theirs; They, when touched by pain or pleasure, Show a calm untroubled face.

84. Not for self and not for others Do they long for sons or wealth, Not for rule, nor by injustice Self-advancement to attain; Righteous, wise and just are they.

85. Few are they among us mortals Who have reached the further shore Over yonder. But we others On this side fare up and down.

86. They who hold fast to the teaching Of the Norm expounded well They shall reach the shore and pass The realm of Death so hard to cross.

87-8. Giving up the state of darkness, Let the wise embrace the pure; Giving up home for the homeless Loneliness, where joys are rare, Let him long for bliss unbounded Casting all desire aside, Owning naught, and, firm in wisdom, Cleanse his heart from passion's stain.

89. They whose mind is rightly tempered In the Wisdom's seven ways,[1] Who have left desire behind them, Void of clinging, they rejoicing Passionless and all-resplendent, Even in this world are freed.[2]

[1] The seven limbs of the Bodhi are:--_Sati_, concentration; _Dhammavicaya_, examination of mental processes or of nature; _Viriya_, energy; _Pīti_, zest; _Passaddhi_, calmness; _Samādhi_, mental balance; _Uṗekhā_, equanimity.

[2] _Parinibbutā_, let free from rebirth by having attained the state of _Nibbāna_, "gone out."