← 1.7.9 · Bāla Kāṇḍa 7: The ministers who sustain the Kingdom · 1.7.11 →
Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 1.7.10
Bāla Kāṇḍa, sarga 7: The ministers who sustain the Kingdom. Ministers and priests advise Daśaratha, gather intelligence, maintain the treasury and army, and administer justice without favour
In the sequence: they punish wrongdoing even in their own sons but will not harm an enemy who has committed no offense → they maintain the treasury and army while weighing circumstances before imposing punishment
1.7.10
brahmakṣatram ahiṃsantas te kośaṃ samapūrayan
sutīkṣṇadaṇḍāḥ saṃprekṣya puruṣasya balābalam
Without harming the brahmins and kṣatriyas, they filled the treasury; though severe in punishment, they acted only after weighing a man's strength and weakness.
Words: brahmakṣatram — the brahmins and kṣatriyas; ahiṃsantas — not harming; te — they; kośaṃ — the treasury; samapūrayan — they filled up; sutīkṣṇadaṇḍāḥ — of very severe punishment; saṃprekṣya — having examined, considered; puruṣasya — of a man; balābalam — strength and weakness
Composed by Maharṣi Vālmīki. Sanskrit: The Vālmīki-Rāmāyaṇa: Critical Edition, Oriental Institute, Baroda, 1960–1975 (gen. eds. G. H. Bhatt, U. P. Shah); IAST from GRETIL (Göttingen). Translation and word glosses: Claude Opus 4.6–4.7; summaries and sequences: ChatGPT Astra (machine-made). Numbering follows the Critical Edition, not the vulgate (e.g. Gita Press, valmikiramayan.net), so sarga and verse numbers can differ from those editions.