Jñāna Yoga · Verse 8
परित्राणाय साधूनां विनाशाय च दुष्कृताम् | धर्मसंस्थापनार्थाय सम्भवामि युगे युगे
paritrāṇāya sādhūnāṃ vināśāya ca duṣkṛtām | dharma-saṃsthāpanārthāya sambhavāmi yuge yuge
For the protection of the good, for the destruction of the wicked, for the establishment of dharma, I manifest in every age.
Three purposes of the avatāra. Paritrāṇa — protection, liberation — of sādhūnām — the good, the virtuous.
Vināśa — destruction — of duṣkṛtām — the evil-doers. Dharma-saṃsthāpanā — establishment of order — is the supreme purpose. Yuge yuge — in every age — confirms cyclical periodicity, not historical exclusivity. Divinity intervenes when order crumbles.