Shloka 5
कर्मयोग–ज्ञानयज्ञ–अवतारोपदेश
Karma-Yoga, Jñāna-Yajña, and Avatāra Instruction
अर्जुन बोले--हे मधुसूदन! मैं रणभूमिमें किस प्रकार बाणोंसे भीष्मपपितामह और द्रोणाचार्यके विरुद्ध लडूँगा? क्योंकि हे अरिसूदन! वे दोनों ही पूजनीय हैं ।।
arjuna uvāca—he madhusūdana! raṇabhūmau kathaṁ bāṇaiḥ bhīṣma-pitāmahaṁ droṇācāryaṁ ca viruddhaṁ yotsye? he ari-sūdana! ubhau hi tau pūjanīyau. gurūn ahatvā hi mahānubhāvān śreyo bhoktuṁ bhaikṣyam apīha loke; hatvārtha-kāmāṁs tu gurūn ihaiva bhuñjīya bhogān rudhira-pradigdhān.
阿周那说：“噢，摩度苏丹啊，我怎能在这战场上以箭矢与毗湿摩——那位祖父——以及德罗那——我的师长——为敌而战？噢，降伏仇敌者，他们二人皆应受我敬奉。的确，在此世间，我宁可乞食度日，也不愿杀害这些高贵的长者。因为若为财富与享乐而弑师杀长，我在此所得的，不过是沾满鲜血的利益与欲乐。”
अजुन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Arjuna frames a moral conflict: victory gained by killing revered teachers and elders would make any resulting wealth and pleasure ethically tainted—“stained with blood.” The verse foregrounds the tension between personal reverence (guru/elder veneration) and the harsh demands of righteous warfare, setting up the need for a deeper dharmic resolution.
On the battlefield, Arjuna addresses Kṛṣṇa and hesitates to fight because the opposing commanders include Bhīṣma (the grandsire) and Droṇa (his teacher). He argues that it would be better to live by begging than to kill such venerable figures and then enjoy the spoils of war.