akÄ«rtiá¹ cÄpi bhÅ«tÄni
kathayiá¹£yanti te 'vyayÄm
sambhÄvitasya cÄkÄ«rtir
maraṇÄd atiricyate
akÄ«rtim - infamy; ca - also; api - over and above; bhÅ«tÄni - all people; kathayiá¹£yanti - will speak; te - of you; avyayÄm - forever; sambhÄvitasya - for a respectable man; ca - also; akÄ«rtiḥ - ill fame; maraṇÄt - than death; atiricyate - becomes more.
Both as friend and philosopher to Arjuna, Lord Kṛṣṇa now gives His ï¬nal judgment regarding Arjuna’s refusal to ï¬ght. The Lord says, “Arjuna, if you leave the battleï¬eld before the battle even begins, people will call you a coward. And if you think that people may call you bad names but that you will save your life by fleeing the battleï¬eld, then My advice is that you’d do better to die in the battle. For a respectable man like you, ill fame is worse than death. So, you should not flee for fear of your life; better to die in the battle. That will save you from the ill fame of misusing My friendship and from losing your prestige in society.â€
So, the ï¬nal judgment of the Lord was for Arjuna to die in the battle and not withdraw.