Bg. 1.36

agnido garadaś caiva śastra-pāṇir dhanāpahaḥ kṣetra-dārāpahārī ca ṣaḍ ete hy ātatāyinaḥ The arsonist, one who poisons, one who attacks with weapons, the thief, the stealer of property and the stealer of ones wife are considered aggressors. Vasiṣṭha Smṛti 3.19 And also it is said: ātatāyinam āyāntaṁ hanyād evāvicārayan nātatāyi-vadhe doṣo hantur bhavati kaścana Without consideration, one should kill the aggressors, as there is no fault in killing them. Manu Smṛti 8.350 “Therefore by scriptural injunction, it is justified to kill these six types of aggressors.” In this verse he replies to this argument. “Having killed them, the sin caused by killing relatives will come to us who remain.” This means that the statements of artha śastra as mentioned above are weaker than the statements of dharma śastra such as mā hiṁsyāt sarva-bhūtāni: do not afflict any living entity, for the smṛti also says artha-śāstrāt tu balavad dharma-śāstram iti sthitiḥ: the rules of dharma śāstra are stronger than those of artha śāstra. (Yajṣavalkya Smṛti 2.21) Therefore killing Bhīṣma and others worthy of worship on the strength of the weaker artha śastra is certainly a cause of sin. In this verse Arjuna concludes his statement which started with na ca śreyo 'nupaśyāmi in verse 31. “Therefore (tasmāt) because of the commission of sin, and also because we cannot even achieve physical happiness in this life (stated in the verses above), we should not kill the sons of Dhṛtarāṣṭra who are our relatives,. Our enjoying the kingdom without our elders and friends meant for bringing happiness will actually bring sorrow. O Mādhava, husband of Lakṣmi, goddess of auspiciousness, [Note: The derivation of Mādhava is here mā meaning Lakṣmī and dhava meaning husband.] why do you instigate this war devoid of auspiciousness? ” Bg 1.37, Bg 1.38, Bg 1.37-38 YaÛPYaeTae Na PaXYaiNTa l/ae>aaePahTaceTaSa" ) ku-l/+aYak*-Ta& daez& iMa}ad]aehe c PaaTak-Ma( )) 37 )) k-Qa& Na jeYaMaSMaai>a" PaaPaadSMaaiṁviTaRTauMa( ) ku-l/+aYak*-Ta& daez& Pa[PaXYaiḤJaRNaadRNa )) 38 )) yady apy ete na paśyanti lobhopahata-cetasaḥ kula-kṣaya-kṛtaṁ doṣaṁ mitra-drohe ca pātakam kathaṁ na jṣeyam asmābhiḥ pāpād asmān nivartitum kula-kṣaya-kṛtaṁ doṣaṁ prapaśyadbhir janārdana yadi—if; api—even; ete—they; na—do not; paśyanti—see; lobha—by greed; upahata—overpowered; cetasaḥ—their hearts; kula-kṣaya—in killing the family; kṛtam—done; doṣam—fault; mitra-drohe—in quarreling with friends; ca—also; pātakam—sinful reactions; katham—why; na—should not; jṣeyam—be known; asmābhiḥ—by us; pāpāt—from sins; asmāt—these; nivartitum—to cease; kula-kṣaya—in the destruction of a dynasty; kṛtam—done; doṣam—crime; prapaśyadbhiḥ—by those who can see; janārdana—O Kṛṣṇa. “But it is justified to take part in this war since they have invoked it. The scriptures say that it is understood for the kṣatriya that he should not reject either a game of dice or a fight if challenged: āhūto na nivarteta dyūtād api raṇād api.” (Mahābhārata, 3.56.8) Arjuna answers this argument in two verses. “Being motivated by greed, they are inclined to sinful acts. We, without having greed, do not have the inclination to commit sin. Consciounsess of attaining an agreeable result alone should be the motivation.” The agreeable result should not be linked with undesirable results. Thus it is said: phalato’pi ca yat karma nānārthenānubadhyate kevala-prīti-hetutvāt tad-dharma iti kathyate Dharma is said to be that action performed only out of affection, whose effect does not lead to evil. Śloka Vārtika 2.268 [Note: This is a work by Kumarila Bhaṭṭa. Another book gave this reference, but I did not find the quotation there.] Though there are such śruti statements as śyenenābhicaran yajeta: one who wants to curse others should perform the śyena sacrifice (Apastambha Śrauta Sūtras 22.4.13), it is not proper for us to partake of this war because of its undesirable consequences, as is the case with the śyena sacrifice. The injunction of not refusing a challenge to fight relates to matters which do not bring about destruction of the family. The meaning of Janārdana is the same as in verse 35. (Therefore you should cause the suffering, since you do not incur sin.)