In case he has to give up his life on the war-front, fighting for such a noble cause, he shall, certainly, enter the ‘Heaven of the Heroes’ (Veera-swarga) to stay and to enjoy there for aeons. In case he wins, he shall certainly come to rule over the kingdom and enjoy in the world, and thereafter also he shall go to Heaven to enjoy there the status of a mighty hero who fought championing the cause of Dharma. Either way he will gain because he was on the side of the good — the war aims of the Pandavas being stoutly righteous.

Therefore — meaning, for all the reasons so far enumerated, “Arise, resolved to fight.” Earlier, Arjuna, after expressing his feelings of grief and despair had sat inert and motionless throwing down his weapons. Krishna asks his friend to come out of this moodiness and dejection, “determined to fight” the noble war.

The call to war is justified because of the particular situation in the Mahabharata where the Geeta was given out. Generalising the call of Krishna, we may say that it is a divine call to Man to discard his melancholy dejections in the face of life’s challenges and to come forward to play as best as he can “the game of life” with a firm determination to strive and to win. In this line, we have the universality of the Geeta explicitly brought out for those who understand it and find its vast application to the community of man.

NOW LISTEN TO THE ADVICE I OFFER YOU ON YOUR INNER ATTITUDE WHILE YOU FIGHT THE BATTLE:

37 Atha ca etc., upto krta-niscavah. Accepting what the opponent has stated, this pentad of verses is narrated as an argument : ‘If your goodself prefers to abide by the generally accepted practice, even then this [fighting] must be undertaken necessarily’.