Bhagavad Gītā · Chapter 3, Verse 21
यद्यदाचरति श्रेष्ठस्तत्तदेवेतरो जनः।
स यत्प्रमाणं कुरुते लोकस्तदनुवर्तते।।
स यत्प्रमाणं कुरुते लोकस्तदनुवर्तते।।
yad yad ācarati śreṣṭhas tat tad evetaro janaḥ
sa yat pramāṇaṁ kurute lokas tad anuvartate
also searched as "yad yad acharati shreshthas tat tad evetaro janah"
Translation
Whatever a great man does, others do too. Whatever standard he sets, the world follows it.
Vāṇi's rendering
Whatever the best among us does, everyone else does. The standard one sets, the world follows.
Word by word
| Sanskrit & transliteration | Meaning |
|---|---|
| यद्yad | whatever |
| यद्yad | whatever (repeated for emphasis: each and every thing) |
| आचरतिācarati | does, carries out in practice |
| श्रेष्ठःśreṣṭhas | the best one, the person others look up to (final ḥ becomes s before the next word) |
| तत्tat | that |
| तत्tad | that very thing (repeated, matching the doubled 'whatever') |
| एवeva | exactly, just so — joined in the text with the next word |
| इतरःitaro | the other, the rest |
| जनःjanaḥ | people, the ordinary crowd |
| सःsa | he, that person |
| यत्yat | whatever |
| प्रमाणम्pramāṇaṁ | standard, the measure people take as authority |
| कुरुतेkurute | sets, establishes |
| लोकःlokas | the world, everyone around (final ḥ becomes s before the next word) |
| तत्tad | that |
| अनुवर्ततेanuvartate | follows after, falls in behind |
Frequently asked
What does Bhagavad Gita Chapter 3 Verse 21 mean?
It means influence is not optional. Whoever is regarded as capable sets a measure simply by acting, and the people around them take that measure as permission. Krishna is telling Arjuna that his withdrawal from battle would not stay a personal choice — it would become a pattern others quietly adopt.
What is the meaning of yad yad acharati shreshthas tat tad evetaro janah?
Whatever the person others admire does, the rest do too. The line has no praise in it, only weight. Śreṣṭha here is not a title of honour but a description of position: someone is watching you. What you do while unobserved is still, somewhere, being copied.
Does this verse only apply to leaders and famous people?
No. Every household has a śreṣṭha, and so does every team of three. You are the standard for someone who has not announced that they are watching. The verse widens responsibility rather than narrowing it — it applies wherever another person has decided that you know how this is done.
How do I live with this without becoming self-conscious?
Krishna is not asking you to perform. He is asking you to act rightly whether or not it is seen, because the seeing happens anyway. Self-consciousness watches the audience; this verse asks you to watch the action. Do the thing well, and let the copying take care of itself.
Read every verse this way, held — inside Vāṇi.
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Commentary
Krishna is not flattering Arjuna. He is warning him. The moment anyone looks to you — a younger colleague, a child, someone who decided you know what you are doing — your ordinary choices stop being private. You teach not what you say but what you do at the end of a tiring day. Arjuna wanted to lay down his bow as a private grief, nobody's business. Krishna tells him no such thing exists for a man others watch. The standard is never announced. It is set by what you actually did, and someone copied it.