Chapter1- Ślokās 45,46
aho bata mahat pāpaṃ kartuṃ vyavasitā vayam |
yad rājya sukha lobhena hantuṃ sva-janam udyatāḥ || 45 ||
yadi mām apratīkāram aśastraṃ śastra-pāṇayaḥ |
dhārtarāṣṭrā raṇe hanyustan-me kṣemataraṃ bhavet || 46 ||
(1.45 , 1.46)
vayam- we; rājya sukha lobhena- driven by great desire for kingly pleasures; hantuṃ udyatāḥ- are resolving to kill; svajanam- our relatives; (iti) yat- because of that; vyavasitāḥ- (we) have decided; kartuṃ- to commit; mahat- a very huge; pāpaṃ- sin; aho- Alas! bata- such a pity; raṇe- on the battlefield; dhārtarāṣṭrāḥ- (even if) the sons of Dhṛtarāṣṭra; śastra pāṇayaḥ- with weapons in their hands; yadi hanyuḥ- if shall slay; mām- me; apratīkāram- not retaliating; aśastraṃ- unarmed; tat- that death; kṣemataraṃ bhavet- will be better; me- for me; (thus spoke Arjuna)
Purport
With this śloka, Arjuna concludes his speech which he started in B.G 1.28.
Arjuna says, "Driven by great desire for kingly pleasures we were going to commit a very huge sin by resolving to slay our own kith and kin. Alas, such a pity! Even if the well-armed sons of Dhṛtarāṣṭra slay me in an unresisting and unarmed state in this battle, that death would be better for me.”
So far, Arjuna acknowledged that the Kauravas and their aides were ātatāyi (assaulters) who wanted to kill them. He agreed that returning back from the battlefield would be condemnable, unethical and defaming. On the other hand fighting the war would lead to accomplishment of duty, would fetch fame, justice for the atrocities done by the Kauravas in the past, victory and sovereignty over the three worlds. Moreover, most importantly Kṛṣṇa who is Sarveśwara had instructed them to fight the battle. In spite of all these valid points, Arjuna confessed that he could not fight against his own relatives.
By adding 'iti' and 'Arjuna uvāca' to 'kṣemataraṃ bhavet', and applying the context set in śloka 1.28 with the words 'viṣīdann idam abravīt' as 'kṣemataraṃ bhavet iti Arjuna uvāca (viṣīdann idam abravīt)' it can be concluded that, in despair Arjuna felt that getting killed unarmed and unresisting on the battlefield by the kauravas was a better option than fighting the battle.