Kural 541
Investigate well, show favor to none, maintain impartiality,
consult the law, then give judgment–that is the way of justice.
Kural 542
All the world looks to the rain cloud for sustenance.
All the people look to the king’s scepter for protection.
Kural 543
Even the Vedas of the brahmins and all dharma therein
rely on the sovereign’s sturdy staff for sustenance.
Kural 544
The world embraces the feet of a great kingdom’s monarch
who lovingly embraces subjects under his justice-wielding scepter.
Kural 545
Rain and rich harvests arise together
in a country whose sovereign ruler raises his rod lawfully.
Kural 546
Victory is not won by the lance,
but by the king’s scepter, provided it is not crooked.
Kural 547
The potentate protects the whole world,
and Justice protects him if he does not stray from Her.
Kural 548
An inaccessible ruler who listens and adjudicates inattentively
will inevitably plummet from power and perish.
Kural 549
No fault befalls a king who, in guarding and caring for his subjects,
punishes wrongdoers–for that is his duty.
Kural 550
A ruler’s punishing cruel criminals by execution
is like a gardener’s removing weeds from his garden.
