Chapter I · Śloka 22
Arjuna uvāca
यावदेतान्निरीक्षेऽहं योद्धुकामानवस्थितान् |
कैर्मया सह योद्धव्यमस्मिन्रणसमुद्यमे ||
कैर्मया सह योद्धव्यमस्मिन्रणसमुद्यमे ||
yāvad etān nirīkṣe 'haṃ yoddhu-kāmān avasthitān |
kair mayā saha yoddhavyam asmin raṇa-samudyame ||
kair mayā saha yoddhavyam asmin raṇa-samudyame ||
Let me see those who have come here to fight, wishing to please the evil-minded son of Dhritarashtra, and with whom I must contend in this great battle.
Arjuna names his enemy obliquely — 'the evil-minded son of Dhritarashtra' — but frames the contest as one of duty. He wants to see who has chosen this side. What he will actually see will reframe the entire meaning of the word 'enemy' for him.