yadā

 

In Sanskrit, "yadā" (यदा) primarily means "when," "at the

time when," or "whenever," and it is commonly used as 

a relative or temporal adverb to introduce clauses 

indicating time or condition.

Basic Definition

"Yadā" is an indeclinable adverb derived from the root "ya" and the 

temporal suffix "dā," used to indicate a point in time or the occurrence 

of an event 

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. It is equivalent to expressions like 

"at what time," "whenever," or "as soon as" in English 

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Usage and Grammar

• Temporal sense: "Yadā" introduces temporal clauses, marking 
• when an action occurs. For example, in a sentence from the 
• Bhagavad Gītā or Hitopadeśa, it can appear as "yadā sā siddhim 
• labhate tadā tasyāḥ kīrtiḥ", meaning "When she obtains success,
• then her glory is like the sun" 

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• Repeated actions: Doubled or correlative forms like "yadā yadā" 
• often convey "whenever" or "as often as," indicating repetition 
• of an event 

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• Conditional/relative clauses: "Yadā" is frequently used in 
• combination with correlative adverbs such as tadā ("then") to 
• form relative-correlative structures that link clauses in Sanskrit 
• sentences 

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• Other nuances: Depending on context, it can convey meanings 
• akin to "if," "since," or "as," sometimes strengthened by suffixes
• like eva for emphasis (e.g., yadaiva = "exactly when") 

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Examples in Context

Temporal:

yadā chātrāḥ saṃskṛtam āgacchanti tadā adhyāpakaḥ ānanditaḥ 

bhavati — "When the students come to Sanskrit, then the teacher

becomes happy" 

Repeated/whenever: 

yadā yadā dharmasya glānir bhavati tadā tadā — "Whenever there is 

a decline in righteousness, then..." (from classical texts, exemplifying

the "yadā yadā" construction) 

As a relative adverb:

Introduces clauses that depend on another clause, often paired 

with tadā to provide a correlative meaning ("when ... then ...") 

In summary, "yadā" is a versatile temporal adverb in Sanskrit used 

to express time, condition, and repetition of events, often forming

a relative-correlative pair with "tadā" for clarity and emphasis 

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It is fundamental in classical Sanskrit, appearing extensively

in scriptures like the Bhagavad Gītā, Rāmāyaṇa, and literary works

such as Hitopadeśa.