Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a field. I will meet you there. Lex talionis, is Latin for the law of talion, which means a retaliation or punishment authorized by law that corresponds in kind and degree to the wrong or injury-in its classic formulation, an eye for an eye. This concept of reciprocal justice evolved under Roman law to substitute money compensation in lieu of vengeance. This carried forward into the common-law traditions. The state imposed the punishment rather than individuals. This avoidance of self-help is intended to keep order, and reduce violence and destructive feuds.
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