sane statecraft

उत्खातान् प्रतिरोपयन् कुसुमितांश्चिन्वन् लघून् वर्धयन्।
अत्युच्चान् नमयन् पृथून् विदलयन् विश्लेषयन् संहतान्।
तीक्ष्णान् काण्टकिनो बहिर्नियमयन् स्वारोपितान पालयन्
मालाकार इव प्रयोगकुशलो राज्ये चिरं तिष्ठति।
चाणक्यराजनीत्याम् १९
utkhātān pratiropayan kusumitāṁścinvan laghūn vardhayan|
atyuccān namayan pṛthūn vidalayan viśleṣayan saṁhatān|
tīkṣṇān kāṇṭakino bahirniyamayan svāropitāna pālayan
mālākāra iva prayogakuśalo rājye ciraṁ tiṣṭhati|
cāṇakyarājanītyām 19
This sloka is quoted by the eminent Sanskrit Scholar Ludwik Sternback in his book on Chanakya Rajaneeti..
This subhashitam finds place in many other anthologies like subhashita ratna bhandagaram etc with minor variation but conveying the same ideas


Here the efficient and adroit ruler of the people is compared with a professional gardener and florist who makes attractive garlands with different types of flowers.

The gardener, when he prunes a plant down to earth, ensures that another plant is put in that place.
The flowers from the plants which are full, are carefully plucked.. and the portions which are to give fresh buds are prepared carefully..
The plants which are thin in flowers and foliage, are nurtured so that they becom optimally large
The plants whose flowers are seen in tall places are forced to bend down for easy plucking
The plants which occur in repeatedly large numbers are pruned and reduced to numbers which are optimal
The plants which have been uprooted, cut or are dried up, are removed immediately
The plants which are tough and thorny are throw out.. or kept out of the garden and the garland too.
The flowering plants and the garland nurtured so far with care are maintained that way

The king, when he is subjugating a group should ensure that he encourages a matching group
If there are some flourishing and prosperous people around, the king should watch their activities, try to draw benefits from them by way of levies and taxation.. and also ensure that excessive affluence does not end up in making the society stale.
If the ruler discovers that some people in the society are growing taller in stature he should watch and ensure that they are controlled at least mildly to conform to the social norms.
The King should ensure that the activities of people are varied.. and that they should be deployed in any profession or avocation only in such numbers are are useful for the State.

The king should ensure that the waste and worn out elements in society, once they are identified, should be thrown away...so that they may not intervene with the normal healthy function of the state

The king should ensure that unbending, recalcitrant and resistive groups are thrown away .. far away without showing any mercy
And
The king should ensure that whatever good has been achieved with great care should be kept safe and secure..

Thus the efficient king and a maker of garlands have so much in common..