Bhagavad Gita Chapter 16, Verse 10

काममाश्रित्य दुष्पूरं दम्भमानमदान्विताः | मोहाद्गृहीत्वासद्ग्राहान्प्रवर्तन्तेऽशुचिव्रताः ||

kāmam āśritya duṣpūraṁ dambhamānamadānvitāḥ mohād gṛhītvā asadgrāhān pravartante 'śucivratāḥ

Giving themselves over to insatiable desire, full of hypocrisy, pride, and arrogance, they hold false views due to delusion and act with impure resolve.

Krishna describes the driving force and characteristics of demonic nature: 'kāmam āśritya duṣpūram'—having taken refuge in insatiable desire. This is the core: desire that can never be satisfied, always wanting more. 'Dambhamānamadānvitāḥ'—full of hypocrisy, pride, and arrogance. These three work together: hypocrisy (pretending to be what you're not), pride (inflated self-importance), arrogance (intoxication with power or position). 'Mohād gṛhītvā asadgrāhān'—from delusion, having taken hold of false views. Delusion (moha) means not seeing reality clearly—believing the false views from verse 16.8 (no truth, no foundation, no God). 'Pravartante aśucivratāḥ'—they act with impure resolve. Impure resolve means mixed motives, unclear intentions, driven by desires rather than principles. This completes the picture: insatiable desire drives them, hypocrisy/pride/arrogance characterize them, false views guide them, and impure resolve motivates them. This is the demonic nature in action.