In this world, an emperor only endeavors to protect and benefit his own people. But Lord Rāmacandra is not like that. Rather, He protects and benefits all living creatures.

In that case, would He make an arrangement for the sinful to become happy? [Yes, but only in the following manner.] He is the complete protector of Vedic dharma, that is, He establishes the entirety of dharma through His behavior (ācara) and propaganda (pracāra). Like a surgeon, He treats those who transgress scriptural injunctions and makes them sinless [and in that way happy]. He is the protector of His own duty. His own duty is to protect His surrendered devotees. This is His special duty and He takes special care to fulfill it.

He is the overall protector of the entire system of varṇāśrama-dharma and He personally protects His own kṣatriya-dharma [by carrying it out perfectly]. This is significant because in this world people slip when it comes to carrying out one’s sva-dharma:

dharmopadeśa-samaye janāḥ sarve ’pi paṇḍitāḥ
tad-anuṣṭhāna-samaye munayo ’pi na paṇḍitāḥ

“Everyone is a learned scholar while giving instructions on dharma, [but] even sages are not learned scholars when it comes to carrying out dharma.”

In this world, even the protector of all is not confident of his ability to protect [and benefit] his own people. This is acknowledged by the Supreme Personality of Godhead:

dāsyam aiśvarya-bhāvena jñātīnāṁ ca karomy aham
ardha-bhoktā ca bhogānāṁ vāg-duruktāni ca kṣame

“I engage in menial service to My relatives considering them with awe and reverence. [Yet] I enjoy only a portion of the enjoyments [I am due because of sharing them with my relatives] and I tolerate their harsh words of speech.” (Mahābhārata 12.82.5)¹

[And yet] Lord Rāma endeavors to protect [and benefit] His own devotees too. It is thus indicated that it is very difficult to protect [and benefit] one’s own people.

Sva-janasya ca rakṣitā can also indicate that Lord Rāma specifically protects those who have surrendered unto Him by tolerating their [former] offenses as it will be noted in Rāmāyaṇa 6.18.3. It also indicates that while a person of this world protects and benefits everyone other than his own people, Lord Rāma protects and benefits everyone and His own devotees.

Sva-janasya ca rakṣitā expounds the purposes for which He descends from the spiritual world—these purposes have been described in the Bhagavad-gītā (4.8):

paritrāṇāya sādhūnāṁ vināśāya ca duṣkṛtām
dharma-saṁsthāpanārthāya sambhavāmi yuge yuge

“To deliver the pious and to annihilate the miscreants, as well as to reestablish the principles of religion, I Myself appear, millennium after millennium.”

Sva-janasya can also refer to all the living entities, who are all His dependent servants, taken together. He is their rakṣitā, the one who leads them to the fulfillment of their desires. This is indicative of His deliverance of the pious. As a protector, He also prevents the undesirable from happening to them.

Rakṣitā svasya dharmasya can also mean that He carries out His āśrama-dharma by marrying Sītā-devī. Svasya dharmasya can also refer to His nature of being the Supreme Being, and so rakṣitā svasya dharmasya indicates that He maintains His position of supremacy by breaking Lord Śiva’s bow, subduing Paraśurāma and so on. Since dharma can also mean “a bow” according to Bāṇa, rakṣitā svasya dharmasya indicates that He is an archer [32].

Sva-janasya can also refer to one who knows [his relationship with the Supreme Lord] and who is therefore considered to belong to the Lord Himself, as mentioned in the Bhagavad-gītā (7.16-18):

catur-vidhā bhajante māṁ janāḥ su-kṛtino ’rjuna
ārto jijñāsur arthārthī jñānī ca bharatarṣabha

teṣāṁ jñānī nitya-yukta eka-bhaktir viśiṣyate
priyo hi jñānino ’tyartham ahaṁ sa ca mama priyaḥ

udārāḥ sarva evaite jñānī tv ātmaiva me matam
āsthitaḥ sa hi yuktātmā mām evānuttamāṁ gatim

“O best among the Bhāratas, four kinds of pious men begin to render devotional service unto Me—the distressed, the desirer of wealth, the inquisitive, and he who is searching for knowledge of the Absolute. Of these, the one who is in full knowledge and who is always engaged in pure devotional service is the best. For I am very dear to him, and he is dear to Me. All these devotees are undoubtedly magnanimous souls, but he who is situated in knowledge of Me I consider to be just like My own self. Being engaged in My transcendental service, he is sure to attain Me, the highest and most perfect goal.”

Sva-janasya ca rakṣitā indicates that Lord Rāma protects those in full knowledge [of His glories] by providing them what they lack and preserving what they have.