This spirit of kṣatriya was prevalent even, say, three hundred years ago in India. There was a king, Yashomanta Sena. He was the commander-in-chief of Emperor Aurangzeb. So in one fight he was defeated and came back to his home. So his wife heard that, "My husband has been defeated. He's coming back home." So he (she) asked the caretaker to close the door of the palace. So when Yashomanta Sena came there, he saw that his palace door is closed. Then he sent message to the queen that, "Why you have closed the door? I have come home." So messenger came and informed that "The king has come. So he is asking to open the door." The queen replied, "Who is king? Yashomanta Sena? No, no. Yashomanta Sena cannot come, being defeated. Yashomanta Sena, either he conquers the battle or he lays down his body there dead. So the man who has come, he must be somebody pretender. He is not King Yashomanta Sena." So she refused to open the door. This is the spirit of kṣatriya spirit.
So here also the same thing, five thousand years also ago, that Kṛṣṇa says that "You are so reputed a fighter, and if you stop fighting, people will not consider . . . especially other commander-in-chiefs like Droṇācārya, Bhīṣma, Karṇa, they are mahā-rathas." Mahā-ratha means one fighter who can combat with thousands of men alone. He is called mahā-ratha. As nowadays the titles are "captain," "commander," "commander-in-chief," similarly, formerly mahā-ratha, ati-ratha were the title given to these soldiers, fighters.
So mahā-ratha, the greatest commanders . . . so Kṛṣṇa said that, "You are recognized, one of the mahā-rathas. So what the other mahā-rathas will think of you? They will not consider that out of compassion you did not fight. They will think that out of fear you have left the battlefield. They will take the opposite." Bhayād raṇād uparatam.
"Out of fear you have stopped fighting." Maṁsyante tvaṁ mahā-rathāḥ. "So now you are recognized as one of the mahā-rathāḥ. Yeṣāṁ ca tvaṁ bahu-mataḥ. "Oh, you are known by various, I mean to say, commander-in-chiefs." Bhūtvā yāsyasi lāghavam: "In their eyes you will be considered as degraded." Bhūtvā yāsyasi lāghavam. "Why should you accept? Better fight and die."