Pradyumna (leads chanting, etc.):

yadi mam apratikaram
asastraṁ sastra-paṇayaḥ;
dhartaraṣṭra raṇe hanyus
tan me kṣemataraṁ bhavet
[Bg. 1.45]

sañjaya uvaca
evam uktvarjunaḥ; saṅkhye
rathopastha upavisat
visrjya sa-saraṁ capaṁ
soka-saṁvigna-manasaḥ;
[Bg. 1.46]

Translation: "I would consider it better for the sons of Dhrtaraṣṭra to kill me unarmed and unresisting, rather than fight with them.

"Sañjaya said: Arjuna, having thus spoken on the battlefield, cast aside his bow and arrows and sat down on the chariot, his mind overwhelmed with grief."

Prabhupada: Yadi maṁ apratikaram asastram sastra-paṇayaḥ;. It is the custom between the kṣatriyas that in the fighting, if the other party hasn't got weapon to fight, this party will supply him weapon, not that the other party without weapon and this party will take opportunity to kill him. This is not the rules and regulation of fighting. There are many rules and regulation of the fighting. Not that "Because he is my enemy, I shall kill him any way." No. There are rules and regulations. If the enemy has broken his chariot, he is fallen down on the ground, the other party also will immediately get down from the chariot. Suppose he is feeling... If one is on the foot and another on the chariot, so he will be in superior position. So therefore the opposite party must also get down from the chariot and walk with him. That means the defeated enemy should be given all opportunities so he may not think that unnecessarily, in weak position, he has been killed. No. So Arjuna says... Arjuna, of course, did later on. When he killed Karṇa. Karṇa was without weapon, and he fell down from the chariot. Karṇa, after falling down from the chariot, and he was trying to raise the wheel of the chariot from the mud, so Krṣṇa asked Arjuna "That this is the opportunity to kill him. You kill him immediately." So at that time he had no weapons and he fell down from the chariot, and in that position he was killed by Arjuna by the order of Krṣṇa. This is violating the laws.

So you can violate the laws on the order of Krṣṇa. You cannot do. This is surrender. When Krṣṇa says that "You do this," although it is wrong, you have to do it. There is no consideration. Just like in fight, the commander says to the soldiers, "Do this." His duty is to do that. He should not think at that time what is right or wrong. Just like Yudhiṣṭhira Maharaja, he was advised by Krṣṇa that "Yudhiṣṭhira, Maharaja Yudhiṣṭhira, you go to Droṇacarya and inform him that 'Your son is dead.' " It was a false information. Because Droṇacarya would not die if he is not affected with some lamentation. So Krṣṇa asked Maharaja Yudhiṣṭhira that "You go because you are recognized truthful, Dharmaraja. So when you will say, this is also false, he will believe." But Yudhiṣṭhira hesitated, "How can I tell lie?" He disobeyed the order of Krṣṇa, and he wanted to become very truthful. For this reason he had to see hell. So in the mundane consideration there are so many things, right and wrong. So long you are on the mundane platform, you have to obey all these right and wrong. But in the spiritual platform, when it is ordered by Krṣṇa... He is above all this duality. He is Absolute. So even if He says to do something wrong... Because He cannot say anything which is wrong. God is all-good. If you discriminate God's order from the mundane platform, then you will be misguided. Anyone who has got firm and fixed up faith that whatever God does, whatever God orders, even from mundane calculation it may be wrong, that is right... That is absolute understanding. So those who are in the spiritual platform, for them, there is no such consideration, which is right and which is wrong. Their only consideration is whether Krṣṇa is pleased. That's all. If Krṣṇa is pleased by inducing me to do something wrong, I will not hesitate to do it. I will do it because it is Krṣṇa's order. Tasmin tuṣṭe jagat tuṣṭam. My principle should be, "If Krṣṇa is satisfied, then everything is all right." But while we are in the mundane platform, we should not concoct the idea that "Krṣṇa is pleased; let me do that." No. That you, cannot do. You have to follow the rules and regulations. But if you think that it is... You cannot think; neither you can manufacture. So either you should hear from Krṣṇa directly or... That is not possible because we are not in touch with Krṣṇa at the present moment. We are trying to see Krṣṇa through the transparent medium of spiritual master. So we cannot manufacture that "This is Krṣṇa's desire." No. You have to get it confirmed from the transparent medium, spiritual master. These are the principles.

So Arjuna says, yadi mam apratikaram. Pratikaram, apratikaram. Pratikaram means counteraction, and apratikaram means without any counteraction. So he is informing Krṣṇa that "If the other party, dhartaraṣṭraḥ;, the sons of Dhrtaraṣṭra, other party, they kill me while I am not prepared..." But that is not the regulation of fighting. So therefore he says apratikaram: "Whether if I am not prepared and they kill me all of a sudden, this is wrong. I accept, even they kill me, apratikaram, without I am fully equipped..." Asastram. In the fight, one must be equipped with all weapons. "But when I am not equipped with weapons or I am not willing to fight... Because I am not willing to fight." This has been decided: "I cannot kill my kinsmen. Therefore I am not going to take the step of pratikaram, counteraction. So even in this condition, they come and kill me," yadi mam apratikaram asastram, "I am not fully equipped with sastra, weapons," asastram and sastra-paṇayaḥ;, "and they are fully equipped with weapons," dhartaraṣṭra raṇe hanyus, "so in this condition the other party, my cousin-brothers, sons of Dhrtaraṣṭra, if they kill me," raṇe hanyus, tan me kṣemataraṁ bhavet, "I shall prefer that. I am not going to fight. If you think that 'If you don't fight, then they will take the opportunity...' " He is talking with Krṣṇa. He is already giving the counterargument, that "Krṣṇa, if you think that I don't fight, but they will take the opportunity and kill me immediately, that also I shall prefer, but I am not going to fight. This is my decision." Sañjaya uvaca. So Sañjaya, the secretary of Dhrtaraṣṭra... They were sitting in a room. So evam uktva, "thus saying," Arjuna, the person... Arjuna is nominative case. Arjuna, saṅkhye, "in the battlefield;" rathopastha, "on the chariot," upavisat. You have seen the picture. When Krṣṇa blew His conchshell and from the backside Arjuna is just trying to take his arrow and fight... But instead of fighting, he's visrjya sa-saraṁ capam. "No, no, no. I am not going to..., giving up. Finished. I am no more going to fight." Visrjya sa-saraṁ capam. Why it is? Soka-saṁvigna-manasaḥ;. His mind was overwhelmed with lamentation, that "How can I kill my kinsmen?" This is the position.

So apratikaram, pratikaram. There are two things. Pratikaram means counteraction. Here in this material world, for everything there is counteraction. Just like if you are diseased, so you have to take the medicine. That is pratikaram. The disease is caused by some, what is called, disarrangement within the body. So we have to arrange, we have to set up the disarrangement within the body. That is pratikaram. Medicine, counteraction. Similarly, if somebody is coming to kill you, so you also become prepared to kill him. This is pratikaram. If somebody is drowning in the sea, then you have to give him some help, send some boat or some lifeboat so that he can be saved. So we have got so many... This material world is going on. It is full of dangers. Padaṁ padaṁ yad vipadam [SB 10.14.58]. Material world means step by step, simply danger. That is material world. So we have to find out pratikaram, counteraction, how to save yourself from danger. Just like when we walk, we see in so many doors, "Danger." So that you are warned. Sometimes the doors are: "Beware of the dog." So you have to take care, "No, I shall not enter." So everything there is danger, and there is pratikaram, counter, counteraction, how to save yourself from it. This is called struggle for existence. In this material world, there is only this danger and counteraction. I am unhappy; so just to become happy I have to work, I have to get money. Whatever I want... So this is going on. Pratikaram, danger, vipadam. Padaṁ padaṁ yad vipadam. Padaṁ padaṁ yad vipadaṁ na teṣam. So samasrita ye pada-pallavaṁ plavam. Anyone who has taken shelter of the lotus feet of Krṣṇa, samasrita ye pada-pallavaṁ plavaṁ mahat-padaṁ puṇya-yaso murareḥ;. Murari. Murari means Krṣṇa. So puṇya-yaso. He is simply glorified by pious activities. There is no impious activities in Krṣṇa. Krṣṇa is the purest. So whatever He does, that is pure. The rascals they do not know this. They think, "Krṣṇa is immoral." And He has become a professor, teacher. He does not know, he does not understand Krṣṇa. So many big, big professors, learned scholars, they do not understand what is Krṣṇa. And they talking about Krṣṇa. They are taking the position of instructing about Krṣṇa. Just see how rascaldom. You do not know something perfectly, and still, you are talking about it. This is going on. Puṇya-yaso murareḥ;. What is Krṣṇa? Krṣṇa says, bahunaṁ janmanam ante jñanavan maṁ prapadyante [Bg. 7.19]. We have to know Krṣṇa. Because as soon as you know Krṣṇa, you become immediately liberated.

So knowing Krṣṇa is not so easy thing. Therefore Krṣṇa says, manuṣyaṇaṁ sahasreṣu kascid yatati siddhaye [Bg. 7.3]. First of all you become siddha, perfect. Perfect means perfect knowledge. That is called siddha. And another siddha means very powerful, master of all yogic perfection. That is also siddha. Yogic perfection, eight kinds of perfection,

anima-laghima-praptiḥ;
prakamyaṁ mahima yatha
isitvaṁ ca vasitvaṁ ca
tatha kamavasayita

So they obtain eight kinds of siddhis. They are also called siddhas. From material point of view, a perfect yogi can counteract anything, and whatever he likes, he can do. That is called siddhi, aṣṭa-siddhi. But still, he is not as siddha as Krṣṇa. Krṣṇa's name is Yogesvara. He is the master of all the yogis. Yogesvara. Yatra yogesvaraḥ; krṣṇaḥ; [Bg. 18.78]. The yogis also, they are deficient with Krṣṇa's power. Still, some rascals, without any yoga siddhi, they claim that "I have become God." What is your qualification? Have you got all the yoga-siddha? Then how you claim that you are... But rascals, they claim to become God, and other rascals, they also believe that "Here is God." Both of them are animals. Sva-viḍ-varahoṣṭra-kharaiḥ; saṁstutaḥ; puruṣaḥ; pasuḥ; [SB 2.3.19]. One who does not know actually what is Krṣṇa, if he accepts somebody, some rascal as God, then he is also animal. That is also animal. One who is claiming that "I am as good as Krṣṇa," he is certainly animal, crazy. He does not know what is the power of Krṣṇa, how much He is Yogesvara. Still, he is falsely claiming to become Krṣṇa. And one who accepts him as Krṣṇa... So Krṣṇa, one should understand first of all Krṣṇa. Without understanding Krṣṇa, if somebody remarks, if he thinks Krṣṇa as ordinary human being, avajananti maṁ muḍha manuṣiṁ tanum asritam [Bg. 9.11], that is the muḍha's business, rascals' business. Krṣṇa, because He comes as ordinary human being, manuṣya-lila, if we take Him, Krṣṇa, as like me, like ordinary, than I am a muḍha. How a human child at the age of six or seven years, one can lift the whole mountain Govardhana? First of all try to understand Krṣṇa, how much powerful He is. How a three-month-old child can kill a big demon, Putana. These things are there in the Bhagavatam about Krṣṇa's life. How do you claim to become as good as Krṣṇa? This is crazy. Animalism.

So Krṣṇa's order must be final. If He says then everything is all right. So here Arjuna's position is: Krṣṇa has already arranged the battle, and he knows that Krṣṇa wants this battle; still, he says that yadi mam apratikaram, he decides in his own way. This is called maya. He knows what is Krṣṇa's desire, and still, he is speaking his own philosophy. That means Arjuna is placing himself on the position of ordinary man. Ordinary man does not know what is Krṣṇa and what is Krṣṇa's desire, and he manufactures his own philosophy and thoughts. That is ordinary man. But Arjuna, he is always friend of Krṣṇa, constant friend. His name is Gudakesa, above all darkness. Certainly he must be. One who is Krṣṇa's friend directly, how there can be ignorance? There cannot be. Then why Arjuna is playing that part? He knows Krṣṇa's desire; still, he says that yadi mam apratikaram asastram sastra-paṇayaḥ;. And no... Tan me kṣemataraṁ bhavet. He is playing like that. Because without Arjuna's playing like that, how this Bhagavad-gita will come? This is just like playing on the stage. One very rich man, he is, in a drama, he is playing the part of a very poor man. But actually, he is not poor man. But in the stage he is playing the part of a poor man. Similarly, Arjuna is not bewildered, but for the time being he appears to be bewildered by Krṣṇa's maya, because Krṣṇa wants to speak Bhagavad-gita, for the benefit of the whole world, that what is spiritual knowledge. Therefore this is a stage arrangement.

So pratikaram and apratikaram. Whatever we have manufactured, pratikaram, counteraction, that will be also failure if Krṣṇa does not sanction it. That is realized by Prahlada Maharaja. He says "My dear Lord," Hiraṇyakasipu, that "people have manufactured so many pratikaram, counteraction." But tanu-bhrtam, "Those who have accepted this material body, they are simply manufacturing things to counteract dangers. But even though they have all this counteracting machine or counteracting agents, still, without Your sanction, this counteracting machine or agent will not be fruitful." So similarly, Arjuna is being protected by Krṣṇa. So even though Arjuna is not well-equipped, apratikaram, still he will be saved. Because Krṣṇa is there. Tavad vibho tanu-bhrtaṁ tvad-upekṣitanam [SB 7.9.19]. And even one is well-equipped and if Krṣṇa does not like to save him, he'll not be saved. Always mind this. Rakṣe krṣṇa mare ke, mare krṣṇa rakṣe ke. This is ordinary, that if Krṣṇa wants to kill you, nobody can save you. And if Krṣṇa wants to save you, nobody can kill you. This is the position. So the examples are given by Prahlada Maharaja: balasya neha saraṇaṁ pitarau nrsiṁha. "My Lord Nrsiṁhadeva, the parents of children, they are not actually protector of the children." Because generally we think that "This child, this boy has got his father, mother, he is well-protected." No. Father and mother... Every father and mother wants to protect the child, but still, the child has to meet some danger and dies. There are so many experience. Similarly, balasya neha saraṇaṁ pitarau nrsiṁha. The father and mother is a counteraction for the dangers of the child. But Prahlada Maharaja said, "No, they are not counteraction." It is not that if a child is in danger, because the father and mother is very strong, very rich, he will be able to give protection to the child. No. That is not possible. Then nartasya cagadam. The medicine... A person is suffering from some disease, some fatal disease. If you think "I shall engage first-class physician and I shall supply first-class medicine," if you think, "Then the patient will be saved," no, that is not possible. That is not possible. We have got many experiences like that. Then no rich man would have died. Because he has got money, he can employ first-class physician, first-class medicine, and simply by engaging such things, counteracting, pratikaram, he cannot be saved. There are many examples like that. So the conclusion is tavad vibho tanu-bhrtaṁ tvad-upekṣitanam: [SB 7.9.19] "If You neglect, if You have decided that this person, this child cannot be saved, then any amount of pratikaram will not help, will not help."

Therefore real pratikaram is Krṣṇa. Real pratikaram is Krṣṇa, counteractive. So better we take shelter of Krṣṇa as Krṣṇa says, sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekaṁ saraṇaṁ vraja [Bg. 18.66]. You must always know that no counteraction will be beneficial for us unless we are protected by Krṣṇa. So therefore our business is fully surrender to Krṣṇa and seek His protection. Krṣṇa says, "Yes," ahaṁ tvaṁ sarva-papebhyo mokṣayiṣyami, "I shall give you protection." This is Bhagavad-gita philosophy. We have to believe on the assertion of Krṣṇa that "He is prepared to give me all protection, provided I have fully surrendered unto His lotus feet."

Thank you very much.