ahaá¹ prajÄḥ vÄá¹ bhagavan
rakṣiṣye dīnayor iha
anistÄ«rṇa-pratijño 'gniá¹
pravekṣye hata-kalmaṣaḥ
aham - I; prajÄḥ - the offspring; vÄm - of you two (you and your wife); bhagavan - O lord; raká¹£iá¹£ye - will protect; dÄ«nayoḥ - who are wretched; iha - in this matter; anistÄ«rṇa - failing to fulfill; pratijñaḥ - my promise; agnim - fire; praveká¹£ye - I will enter; hata - destroyed; kalmaá¹£aḥ - whose contamination.
“My lord, I will protect the progeny of you and your wife, who are in such distress. And if I fail to keep this promise, I will enter fire to atone for my sin.â€
Chivalrous Arjuna could not tolerate the shame of being unable to fulfill his promise. As Kṛṣṇa says in Bhagavad-gÄ«tÄ (2.34), sambhÄvitasya cÄkÄ«rtir maraṇÄd atiricyate: “For a respected person, dishonor is worse than death.â€
