Chapter1- Ślokās 34,*35
ācāryāḥ pitaraḥ putrāṃs tathaiva ca pitāmahāḥ |
mātulāḥ śvaśurāḥ pautrāḥ śyālāḥ sambandhinas tathā || 34 ||
etān na hantum icchāmi ghnato’pi madhusūdana |
(1.34-*1.35)
madhusūdana- O Madhusūdana; hantum na icchāmi- I do not wish to kill; etān- all these; ācāryāḥ- preceptors; pitaraḥ- fathers; putrāḥ- sons; tathā- likewise; pitāmahāḥ eva ca- grandfathers too ; mātulāḥ- uncles (mother’s brothers); śvaśurāḥ- fathers-in-law; pautrāḥ- grandsons; śyālāḥ- brothers-in-law; tathā sambandhinaḥ- as well as other relatives (present here); ghnataḥ api- even though they approach to slay(us);
Purport
Arjuna continues to pour his heart out to Kṛṣṇa.
Arjuna says, “O Madhusūdana! I do not wish to kill these preceptors, fathers, sons and also grandfathers, uncles, fathers-in-law and grandsons, brothers-in-law and other relatives present here, even though they approach to kill us.”
etān na hantum icchāmi Madhusūdana (O Madhusūdana! i do not wish to kill these people) Bhagawān is called Madhusūdana as HE destroyed the asura Madhu. By addressing Bhagawān as Madhusūdana, Arjuna stated his belief that an asura like Madhu should be killed but not preceptors and relatives. He seeked Kṛṣṇa's acknowledgement for the same as Kṛṣṇa had acquired this famed title 'Madhusūdana' by killing an asura and not any relative.
The śāstras say, Guruṃ vā bālavṛddhau vā brāhmaṇaṃ vā bahuśrutam | ātatāyinamāyāntaṃ hanyādevāvicārayan || nātatāyivadhe doṣa hanturbhavati kaścana | udyatāni viṣāgniṃca śāpodyatakaraṃ tathā || ātharvaṇena hantāraṃ caiva rājasu | bhāryātikrdotmaṇaṃ caiva vidyāt saptāttāyinaḥ || Viṣṇusmṛti 5.185.188 (Though he might be an ācārya, small child, old man, person knowledgeable in more than one of the vedas or a brāhmaṇa, an assaulter coming to attack us can be killed without second thought. Killing an assaulter incurs no sin.)
If the question might arise, 'Who is to be considered an assaulter?', the śāstrās have answered this by stating that there are 7 kinds of assaulters namely,
1. One who approaches to kill with a knife
2. One who approaches to kill with poison
3. One who approaches to kill with fire
4. One who lifts his hand to curse
5. One who intends to kill by casting a spell.
6. One who instigates other kings (against us) by telling them lies.
7. One who desires to abduct another's wife.
ghnato’pi (Even though they intend to kill us, i.e they are assaulters) Arjuna knew that as per the śāstras they satisfied all the criteria for being called assaulters. However, Arjuna still felt, "Administering poison to Bhīma in the milk pudding, making multiple attempts to get us killed by using many unfair means, dishonouring our wife Draupadi and confronting us for war now with the intention to kill us- having done all of these they deserve to be killed but since they are our own relatives, I do not wish to kill them.