📿 Shloka Collection

Ahankaram Balam Darpam

Gita 16.18 Bhagavad Gita
📖 Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 16 — Daivasura Sampad Vibhaga Yoga
अहङ्कारं बलं दर्पं कामं क्रोधं च संश्रिताः ।
मामात्मपरदेहेषु प्रद्विषन्तोऽभ्यसूयकाः ॥
Ahankaram balam darpam kamam krodham cha samshritah
Mam atmaparadehesu pradvisanto abhyasuyakah
अहङ्कारम्
ego
बलम्
brute strength
दर्पम्
arrogance
कामम्
desire
क्रोधम्
anger
संश्रिताः
taking shelter in
माम्
Me (the Lord)
आत्मपरदेहेषु
in their own and others' bodies
प्रद्विषन्तः
despising, hating
अभ्यसूयकाः
envious, fault-finding

Five poisons sustain the demonic person: ego, brute strength, arrogance, desire, and anger. Mixed together, these five create a toxic brew that eats a person from the inside out. Each one is dangerous alone; combined, they are devastating.

But the gravest charge comes next: these people despise the Lord who dwells in every body. Krishna is present in all beings — in their own hearts and in the hearts of others. And these people hate that presence. They hate the divine within themselves and within everyone else. This is not mere atheism; it is active hostility toward the sacred.

Krishna adds one more trait: abhyasuyakah — they are envious fault-finders. When they see goodness in someone else, they cannot bear it. They search for flaws. Even in acts of divine grace, they find reasons to criticize. Envy and contempt are the lenses through which they view everything.

This shloka identifies the deepest flaw of the demonic nature: hatred of God. Ego, desire, and anger are serious faults, but hostility toward the divine is the ultimate fall.

The next shloka describes the consequence: such people are cast repeatedly into demonic births.

Chapter 16 · 18 / 24
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