दम्भो दर्पोऽभिमानश्च क्रोधः पारुष्यमेव च | अज्ञानं चाभिजातस्य पार्थ सम्पदमासुरीम् || ४ ||
dambho darpo 'bhimānaś ca krodhaḥ pāruṣyam eva ca ajñānaṁ cābhijātasya pārtha sampadam āsurīm
dambhaḥ—pride; darpaḥ—arrogance; abhimānaḥ—conceit; ca—and; krodhaḥ—anger; pāruṣyam—harshness; eva—certainly; ca—and; ajñānam—ignorance; ca—and; abhijātasya—of one born with; pārtha—O son of Pritha; sampadam—qualities; āsurīm—demoniac.
“Ostentation, arrogance, conceit, anger, harshness, and ignorance—these are the qualities of one born to a demoniac nature, O Partha.”
The demoniac qualities are listed economically in a single verse because they all reduce to one root: ahamkara, the inflation of ego. Ostentation (dambha) is ego seeking admiration; arrogance (darpa) is ego convinced of its own supremacy; conceit (abhimana) is ego attached to self-image; anger (krodha) is ego threatened; harshness (parusyam) is ego lashing out; ignorance (ajnana) is ego refusing the light of truth.
This verse is a checklist for honest self-inventory. When you feel the impulse to show off, to dismiss others, to nurse grievances, or to speak harshly—recognize these as the demoniac tendencies within. They are not who you are but patterns that veil the divine nature beneath. Recognition without judgment is the first and most important step.