Do not associate with bad friends nor with unworthy persons. Associate with good friends and with the best of human beings.

Na bhaje pāpake mitte — do not associate with bad friends: pāpake are the morally harmful. Social context shapes the mind more than is usually recognized. This is practical psychology, not elitism.

Na bhaje purisādhame — do not associate with unworthy persons: purisādhama is a being of low moral quality in terms of current ethical development, not of birth or class.

Bhajethā mitte kalyāṇe — associate with good friends: kalyāṇa-mitta is the noble friend. The Buddhist tradition elevates this concept to affirm that “noble friendship is the entirety of the holy life.”

Purisuttame — the best of human beings: seeking the company of the most spiritually developed is not elitism but recognition that the path is greatly facilitated in the right context. The sangha is, for this reason, one of the three jewels.