Shloka 89
Nāradasya Rājadharma-praśnāḥ
Nārada’s Examination of Royal Ethics
कच्चिद् दण्ड्येषु यमवत्पूज्येषु च विशाम्पते । परीक्ष्य वर्तसे सम्यगप्रियेषु प्रियेषु च,महाराज! क्या तुम दण्डनीय अपराधियोंके प्रति यमराज और पूजनीय पुरुषोंके प्रति धर्मराजका-सा बर्ताव करते हो? प्रिय एवं अप्रिय व्यक्तियोंकी भलीभाँति परीक्षा करके ही व्यवहार करते हो न?
kaccid daṇḍyeṣu yamavat pūjyeṣu ca viśāmpate | parīkṣya vartase samyak apriyeṣu priyeṣu ca ||
那罗陀说道：“噢，民众之主啊！对当受惩罚之人，你是否如阎摩王般施以刑罚；对当受敬奉之人，你是否如法王般加以尊崇？并且，你是否在详加考察之后，方才端正行事——无论对亲爱之人，还是对不喜之人？”
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
A ruler must be impartial: punish the punishable with Yama-like firmness, honor the worthy with Dharmarāja-like righteousness, and act only after careful examination—without bias toward favorites or against disliked persons.
Nārada addresses the king with a series of ‘kaccit’ questions typical of counsel literature, probing whether the king’s administration of justice and distribution of honor are grounded in dharma rather than personal likes and dislikes.