Shloka 11
इन्द्रद्युम्नोपाख्यानम्
Indradyumna Upākhyāna: On Kīrti, Smṛti, and Restoration
त्रिभिरंशैरधर्मस्तु लोकानाक्रम्य तिष्ठति । तामसं युगमासाद्य तदा भरतसत्तम
tribhir aṁśair adharmas tu lokān ākramya tiṣṭhati | tāmasaṁ yugam āsādya tadā bharatasattama ||
قال ماركانديّا: «وحين ينقلب الزمان إلى اليوغا التامَسية—مظلمةً خاملة—فإن الأدارما، بثلاثة أجزاء من قوته، يكتسح العوالم ويثبت فيها غالبًا، يا خير آل بهاراتا.»
मार्कण्डेय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that in a dark age (tāmasa yuga), adharma expands and becomes dominant, implying that ethical order is not constant but fluctuates with time; vigilance and commitment to dharma become especially necessary when moral confusion spreads widely.
Mārkaṇḍeya is describing the condition of the world in a degenerate epoch: adharma, described as prevailing with “three parts,” overruns the worlds and stands established, and he addresses his listener as “best of the Bharatas.”