2.9
सञ्जय उवाच | एवमुक्त्वा हृषीकेशं गुडाकेशः परन्तप | न योत्स्य इति गोविन्दमुक्त्वा तूष्णीं बभूव ह ||९||
sañjaya uvācha evam uktvā hṛṣīkeśhaṁ guḍākeśhaḥ parantapa na yotsya iti govindam uktvā tūṣhṇīṁ babhūva ha
Translation
Sanjaya said: Having spoken thus to Hrishikesha (Krishna), Gudakesha (Arjuna), the scorcher of foes, became silent, telling Govinda (Krishna), 'I will not fight.'
Interpretation
After all his arguments, Arjuna's final position is silence and a flat refusal: 'I will not fight.' He has exhausted his arguments and collapsed into paralysis. This is the perfect ground for Krishna's teaching to take root — a mind that has argued itself to a dead end.