Bhagavad Gita Verse 33, Chapter 11

tasmaattvamuttishtha yasho labhasva jitvaa shatroonbhungakshva raajyam samriddham |
mayaivaite nihataaha pooravameva nimttamaatram bhava savyasaachin || 33 ||
 
Therefore, you arise, obtain valour by conquering your enemies, and enjoy the prosperity of your kingdom. All these (warriors) have been previously killed by me, so you become just an instrument, O Savyasaachin.
 
tasmaat : therefore
tvam : you
uttishtha : arise
yashaha : valour
labhasva : obtain
jitvaa : by conquering
shatroon : enemies
bhungakshva : enjoy
raajyam : kingdom
samriddham : prosperous
mayaa : by me
eva : only
ete : these
nihataaha : killed
pooravam : previously
nimttamaatram : just an instrument
bhava : become
savyasaachin : O Savyasaachin
 
When we buy a ticket to any Bollywood blockbuster, we know that no matter what happens, the hero will save the heroine from the clutches of the villain. But even though the ending is no surprise to anyone, we still want to sit for over two hours in a movie theatre. Why is that? We enjoy the drama, the emotional ups and downs, the fight sequences, the songs and so on. We want the movie to entertain us. Just because we know the ending, we don’t stop watching movies.
 
Ishvara’s grand spectacle, his “leela”, works in similar ways. Shri Krishna had pre-planned the ending of the war, and had orchestrated the events in such a manner that it would result in the destruction of the Kauravaas. Knowing this, Arjuna would have liked very much to flee the war. Addressing Arjuna as Savyasaachin, one who could use both his hands in archery, Shri Krishna encouraged him to fight with all his might, defeat his enemies and enjoy the result of his actions. This is because Arjuna, like all of us, had a role to play in Ishvara’s grand play of the universe, his “leela”.
 
Here is the crux of karma yoga. If we fulfill our duties with a spirit of detachment, we align ourselves with Ishvara’s vision. We become a “nimitta” or an instrument of Ishvara. But if we assert our selfish desires and our will, we only entrap ourselves in the material world and set ourselves up for a painful existence. Furthermore, Shri Krishna, in his generosity, was more than happy to let Arjuna take credit for his work. In fact, he encouraged him to do so. And in the midst of all this, there is no favouritism. The Kauravaas were annihilated as a result of their actions, not because of Shri Krishna’s partiality towards the Pandavaas.
 
So now, who are the people who would be killed in the war? We shall see in the next shloka.

Bhagavad Gita Verse 8, Chapter 2

na hi prapashyaami mamaapanudyaad yachchokamuchchoshanamindriyaanaam |
avaapya bhoomaavasapatnamridham raajyam suraanaamapi chaadhipatyam || 8 ||
 
Even if I should obtain prosperity and unrivalled kingship on earth, or even supremacy over the gods, I do not see that it will drive away this sorrow that withers my senses.
 
na hi: do not
prapashyaami : I seemama : my
apanudyaat : drive away
yat : that which
shokam : sorrow
uchchoshanam : wither
indriyaanaam: senses
avaapya : obtain
bhoomau : on earth
asapatnam : unrivalled
ridham : prosperous
raajyam : kingdom
suraanaam : gods
api : even if
cha : and
aadhipatyam : supremacy
 
Arjuna realized that the sorrow caused as a result of his attachment to his kinsmen was not ordinary. It burrowed deep into his personality and lodged itself in it. This deep rooted sorrow had the effect of totally throwing his senses off track. He was not able to see or hear clearly. This sorrow was not going to be easy to remove.
 
In this verse, Arjuna also came to the conclusion that what he was looking for could not be found in the material world. If this were the case, he would have been happy with wealth, riches and thrones. But here we see that even supremacy over the gods was something that would not satisfy him.
 
Arjuna reached a point where the only thing that mattered for him was the ultimate cure for sorrow, a cure that was permanent, and not some material thing like wealth that would diminish sorrow temporarily. And this ultimate cure that he was seeking was a higher level of discrimination or viveka that would lead him to liberation.