Bhagavad Gita 1.36
निहत्य धार्तराष्ट्रान्नः का प्रीतिः स्याज्जनार्दन। पापमेवाश्रयेदस्मान्हत्वैतानाततायिनः॥
nihatya dhārtarāṣhṭrān naḥ kā prītiḥ syāj janārdana pāpam evāśhrayed asmān hatvaitān ātatāyinaḥ
Translation
Slaying these sons of Dhritarâshtra, what pleasure can be ours, O Janârdana? Killing these desperadoes, sin will but take hold of us.
What it means
Killing these "desperadoes," Arjuna argues, would only bring sin. He reaches for a rule to end the debate. Note that he concedes their guilt yet still protects them; his position is kinship over justice, which the coming teaching will not leave standing as the final word.
Try this today
He argues that even aggression from the other side does not license his own. Whether the other side 'started it' does not settle what you should do.
Something to reflect on
Do I justify my intended actions by the other side's wrongs?
Read it in Yathora