Arjuna defends his hesitation. He is stung by Kṛṣṇa’s words but tries to explain his moral dilemma. He asks, “How can I counterattack Bhīṣma and Droṇa with arrows when they are worthy of my worship?” In Vedic culture, one offers flowers to the feet of a guru, not arrows. Arjuna feels that fighting them would be a sacrilege. He addresses Kṛṣṇa as ‘Ari-sūdana’, the killer of enemies, implying that while Kṛṣṇa kills actual enemies, these men are Arjuna’s beloved elders. He feels he is being asked to do something fundamentally wrong. Arjuna is still viewing the situation through the lens of worldly morality. He believes that respect for elders is an absolute rule that overrides all other duties. He is struggling to reconcile his role as a soldier with his identity as a devoted student and grandson.