On the brink of a great battle, Arjuna is overwhelmed with misgivings and expresses his qualms to Krishna, his charioteer—a combination bodyguard and court historian. Krishna persuades Arjuna to do his duty as a man born into the class of warriors, which is to fight. Arjuna’s dilemma thus draws a response from Krishna that expands to become an expression of the central themes of the Bhagavadgita.