Devanagari
आत्मसम्भाविता: स्तब्धा धनमानमदान्विता: ।
यजन्ते नामयज्ञैस्ते दम्भेनाविधिपूर्वकम् ॥ १७ ॥
Verse text
ātma-sambhāvitāḥ stabdhā
dhana-māna-madānvitāḥ
yajante nāma-yajṣais te
dambhenāvidhi-pūrvakam
Synonyms
ātma-sambhāvitāḥ
—
self-complacent
;
stabdhāḥ
—
impudent
;
dhana-māna
—
of wealth and false prestige
;
mada
—
in the delusion
;
anvitāḥ
—
absorbed
;
yajante
—
they perform sacrifice
;
nāma
—
in name only
;
yajṣaiḥ
—
with sacrifices
;
te
—
they
;
dambhena
—
out of pride
;
avidhi-pūrvakam
—
without following any rules and regulations.
Translation
Self-complacent and always impudent, deluded by wealth and false prestige, they sometimes proudly perform sacrifices in name only, without following any rules or regulations.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
17. Respected by the unintelligent, unsubmissive, filled with the intoxication of pride in their wealth, they perform worship for show only, through false yajṣa, without following scriptural rules.
Translation (Baladeva Vidyabhusana)
17. Respected by the unintelligent, unsubmissive, filled with the intoxication of pride in their wealth, they perform worship for show only, through false yajṣa, without following scriptural rules.
Purport
Thinking themselves all in all, not caring for any authority or scripture, the demoniac sometimes perform so-called religious or sacrificial rites. And since they do not believe in authority, they are very impudent. This is due to illusion caused by accumulating some wealth and false prestige. Sometimes such demons take up the role of preacher, mislead the people, and become known as religious reformers or as incarnations of God. They make a show of performing sacrifices, or they worship the demigods, or manufacture their own God. Common men advertise them as God and worship them, and by the foolish they are considered advanced in the principles of religion, or in the principles of spiritual knowledge. They take the dress of the renounced order of life and engage in all nonsense in that dress. Actually there are so many restrictions for one who has renounced this world. The demons, however, do not care for such restrictions. They think that whatever path one can create is one’s own path; there is no such thing as a standard path one has to follow. The word avidhi-pūrvakam, meaning a disregard for the rules and regulations, is especially stressed here. These things are always due to ignorance and illusion.
Purport (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
Ātma-sambhāvitā means those who have attained worshipable status, but are not respected by any well bred people. Therefore they are unsubmissive (stabdhā). They perform worship by actions which are sacrifice in name only (nāma-yajṣaiḥ yajante).
Purport (Baladeva Vidyabhusana)
Recognized as preeminent (ātma saṁbhāvitāḥ) by themselves alone, not by knowers of scripture, lacking humility (stabdhā), filled with pride in wealth, filled with pride (mada) at being respected as paramahaṁsa or a great mendicant, worthy of all worship, or greatly learned in worship, they worship devatās they themselves concoct, by rules of worship which is worship in name alone, dressing up as renunciates, and pretending to be religious (dambhena) for the prosperity of their own house and family. All this is without following the Vedic rules (avidhi pūravakm).