Valmiki Ramayana · Ayodhya Kanda · Sarga 1
सत्सङ्ग्रहप्रग्रहणे स्थानविन्निग्रहस्य च। आयकर्मण्युपायज्ञ स्सन्दृष्टव्ययकर्मवित्
satsaṅgrahapragrahaṇe sthānavinnigrahasya ca| āyakarmaṇyupāyajña ssandṛṣṭavyayakarmavit
He was skilled in receiving and encouraging the righteous and in punishing (the wicked). He knew whom to punish. He knew the right means of raising revenue and also expending money in the prescribed manner.
— M.N. Dutt (1891)
Commentary
Rama knows how to reward the righteous and punish the wicked — and, crucially, he knows when each is appropriate. Justice is not a single action but a discernment. The ruler who punishes without wisdom becomes a tyrant; the ruler who rewards without wisdom becomes a fool.
दण्डनीति