Bhagavad Gita · Arjuna Vishada YogaChapter 1, Shloka 35 (1.35)

"Ghnato 'pi" — even if they kill. This is the boldest — and most worrying — part of what Arjuna says. He is saying he will not kill them even in self-defence. This will reach its peak in 1.46: "if they kill me unarmed, even that would be better for me."

"Trailokya-rājya" — the kingdom of the three worlds. In the traditional view of the cosmos there are three worlds — bhuh (earth), bhuvah (the space between), svah (heaven). Arjuna says: even if I got the kingdom of all three worlds, still no. So for just one kingdom on earth? Certainly not. Madhusudana: I would not even wish to kill, let alone kill.

"Madhusudana" — the sense of the address. This name of Krishna — slayer of the asura named Madhu. Madhusudana Sarasvati says that with this address Arjuna hints at the Lord's being the founder of the Vedic path. Many teachers also see a light irony here: Arjuna is telling a "slayer of demons" that he will not commit violence. (This second point is our interpretation.)

The note of ahimsa. Arjuna's words sound like a lofty ideal of ahimsa (non-violence). Many great thinkers have regarded ahimsa as the highest dharma. But the Gita's question here is not about the principle of ahimsa — it is about Arjuna's state: is his "not killing" a principle born of knowledge, or a reaction born of grief and delusion? For until a few shlokas ago he was standing there, bow raised, full of eagerness (1.20). This question will become the centre of the Gita's second chapter.