CHAPTER 1

1.1: Dhritarastra’s questionA

(1) Dhritarastra asked Sanjaya, “What’s happening at the holy place, Kurukshetra? My sons and Pandu’s sons went there to fight. Are they still going ahead with the battle, or have they changed their minds?”¹

1. 2-11: Duryodhana Speaks to Drona

(2) Sanjaya replied, “Your son Duryodhana looked out at the Pandavas’ army, and then addressed his teacher, Drona.

(3) He said, “Your student Dhrishtadyumna commands the Pandavas’ army. See how well he has organised them.”²

(4-8) He named some of the chief fighters in the Pandavas’ army and then those in his army.

(9) All the men in his army were well armed and experienced fighters, and he was confident they would fight to the death for him.

(10) He felt sure they would win as they had many more fighters than the Pandavas. He also thought his best warrior, Grandfather Bhishma, was much stronger than the Pandavas’ best warrior, Bhima.^A

(11) He then became worried that his other generals may feel upset that he hadn’t praised them. So he turned to them and said, “Even though Grandfather Bhishma is powerful, he is old and will need you to protect him from all sides.”³

1.12-19: Preparing for battle

(12) Grandfather Bhishma knew Duryodhana was worried. To cheer him up, he blew his conch shell. This made Duryodhana very happy because it sounded like a roaring lion.⁴

(13) All the other fighters on Duryodhana’s side then blew their conches. Some also blew bugles, trumpets, and horns, and others beat drums. They made a tremendous sound.

(14-15) Then Krishna and Arjuna blew their conches, making an even more powerful sound. Krishna’s conch was called Panchajanya, Arjuna’s, Devadatta, and Bhima’s, Paundra.

(16-19) All the other fighters on Yudhisthira’s side also blew their conches. Among the conches blown were Yudhisthira’s Ananta-vijaya, Nakula’s Sughosha, and Sahadeva’s Manipushpaka. They made such a loud noise that Duryodhana and his brothers became terrified.

1.20-27: Arjuna sees the armies

(20-23) Arjuna stood on his chariot, which was flying a flag with an image of Hanuman. He grasped his bow and arrow. Looking at his cousins on the other side, he said to his chariot driver, Krishna, “I want to see who has come to fight against us. I can depend on you, Krishna, so please take my chariot between the two armies. I want to see who I must fight, and which of my family members have sided with evil Duryodhana.” ⁵

(24-25) Krishna drove the chariot between the two armies and parked it where Arjuna could clearly see his grandfather Bhishma, his teacher Drona, and all the other important generals on the other side. He said, “There you are, Arjuna. Now you can see all the Kuru family members who have come to fight with you.”

(26) From where he stood, Arjuna could see both armies. He saw his grandfather, teachers, men who were like fathers, uncles, brothers, sons, grandsons, friends, fathers-in-law, and many others he loved.

(27) The sight of all these friends and relatives ready to kill each other made Arjuna very sad.

1.28-46: Arjuna refuses to fight

(28-29) He said, “I am devastated to see all these people I love ready to fight me. My entire body is shaking, my mouth is dry, I’ve got goosebumps and my skin burns. I am so upset, I can’t even hold onto my bow.

(30) “Krishna, I want to leave this place. I am completely confused about my real nature and duty. It seems to me that whatever I do will lead to misery.^A6

(31-35) “How can anything good come from killing my own family members? I am not interested in winning the battle or the happiness of regaining my kingdom. Krishna, you are known as Govinda, one who gives happiness to all. Surely you understand that a kingdom, worldly pleasures, or even life have no value for me if those whose happiness I desire are standing here ready to fight me. You are famous as Madhusudana because you killed the demon Madhu; but these men are not demons. They are my teachers, men who have been like a father to me, boys who are like sons, those who are like grandfathers, maternal uncles, fathers-in-law, grandsons, brothers-in-law and other relatives. I will not kill them, even if it means I will be killed. O Supreme Protector of all beings, I will not fight them even to gain all the planets in the universe, what to speak of just this earth. I will never be happy by killing Dhritarastra’s sons.

(36) “Killing such opponents would implicate me in sin. It is wrong to fight Dhritarastra’s sons and my many friends. Krishna, you bring good fortune to everyone. Is there any good fortune or happiness in killing family members?

(37-38) “The other side is greedy for a kingdom and is therefore not thinking straight. That’s why they see no problem with killing their own family. However, I know it is sinful, so how can I fight?

(39) “If all these men are killed, our dynasty and religious traditions will be destroyed, and the surviving family members will be overcome by irreligion.

(40) “When people become irreligious, men and women mix irresponsibly. As a result, unwanted children are born.

(41) “Unwanted children grow up to cause misery for everyone in society. Thus both the men who are victorious and the families of the men who are defeated, all will suffer. Even the ancestors of the deceased will suffer because there will be no one to offer them water and pinda.⁷

(42) “Not only that but when traditions are destroyed, and unwanted children abound, community and family welfare activities are also destroyed. That’s why it would be evil to fight this war.

(43) “Great teachers warn that when family traditions are destroyed everyone in that family goes to hell for a long time.

(44) “The consequences of this war are so terrible; I am surprised anyone is prepared to fight. How is it that out of greed for royal privilege we want to kill our own family members?

(45) “It would be so sinful to kill our family members that I would be better off letting Dhritarastra’s sons kill me unarmed and unresisting.”

(46) Sanjay concluded by describing how Arjuna threw down his bow and arrows and sat down weeping in his chariot.

CHAPTER SUMMARY:

King Dhṛtarāṣṭra asks Sanjaya what is happening at Kurukṣetra where his sons and nephews have gone to fight. Sanjaya reports Duryodhana’s inspection of the enemy lines, his praise of Bhīṣma, and his attempt to rally and reassure his own commanders. The armies sound their conches and instruments; the battlefield is charged with martial display as Krishna and Arjuna, and the Pandavas, respond. Arjuna asks Krishna to place his chariot between the two armies and, seeing relatives and teachers arrayed on both sides, is overcome with grief. He cannot envision how any outcome of such a war could make him happy. His body trembles, he cannot raise his bow, and he rejects victory, kingdom, and even life if they require slaying his kin. He argues that the war will destroy family duties, disrupt social order, and violate ancestral rites, bringing long-term suffering, and therefore refuses to fight. The scene closes with Arjuna casting aside his weapons and collapsing in despair.