यदा यदा हि धर्मस्य ग्लानिर्भवति भारत ।अभ्युत्थानमधर्मस्य तदात्मानं सृजाम्यहम् ॥
yadā yadā hi dharmasya glānir bhavati bhārata |abhyutthānam adharmasya tadātmānaṃ sṛjāmy aham ||
- यदा यदा · yadā yadā
- whenever
- हि · hi
- indeed
- धर्मस्य · dharmasya
- of dharma, righteousness
- ग्लानिः · glāniḥ
- decline, fading
- भवति · bhavati
- comes to be
- भारत · bhārata
- O Bharata
- अभ्युत्थानम् · abhyutthānam
- the rise
- अधर्मस्य · adharmasya
- of unrighteousness
- तदा · tadā
- then
- आत्मानम् · ātmānam
- myself
- सृजामि · sṛjāmi
- I emit, bring forth
- अहम् · aham
- I
“Whenever there is a decline of dharma, O Bharata, and a rise of unrighteousness — then I bring myself forth.”
— Original plain-language translation
IN SHORT When goodness fades and harm rises, help arrives in some form.
One of the Gita's most beloved assurances: history's darkness is precisely the summons for divine entry. Dharma's ebb, not its triumph, draws the avatāra. The verse has comforted countless readers — decline is never the final word. Like a doctor arriving precisely when the fever spikes, not when the patient feels fine.
— Reader's notes (original)