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Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa 3.61.9

Araṇya Kāṇḍa, sarga 61: Lakṣmaṇa restrains Rāma’s anger. He rejects destroying the world for one offender and urges a search and persuasion before resorting to force

In the sequence: he says they do not yet know who owned or wrecked the chariot → although the ground clearly shows a fight, it shows no great army, so the evidence does not justify blaming the world for one offender's act

3.61.9

naikasya tu kṛte lokān vināśayitum arhasi
yuktadaṇḍā hi mṛdavaḥ praśāntā vasudhādhipāḥ

You ought not to destroy the worlds for the sake of one alone; for kings who wield the rod justly are gentle and tranquil.

Words: naikasya — not for one's; tu — but; kṛte — for the sake of; lokān — the worlds; vināśayitum — to destroy; arhasi — you ought; yuktadaṇḍā — wielding the rod justly; hi — for, indeed; mṛdavaḥ — gentle; praśāntā — tranquil, calm; vasudhādhipāḥ — lords of the earth, kings

Composed by Maharṣi Vālmīki, the ādikavi of the ādikāvya: the first poet of the first poem. 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.