Self-important and obstinate, intoxicated by wealth and pride, the demonic perform sacrifices in name only — with ostentation and without regard for scriptural rules. All traditions distinguish sharply between genuine and performative religiosity. Shankara warns that ritual without inner transformation is spiritually worthless. Ramanuja teaches that God accepts the heart's devotion, not the display's grandeur. Madhva condemns such sacrifices as offenses against the Lord that generate negative karma through hypocrisy. Abhinavagupta explains that genuine sacrifice involves offering limited self-awareness into the fire of universal consciousness — external display without inner transformation is empty. Vallabha teaches that in pushti-bhakti, even the simplest offering made with love surpasses the most elaborate ritual performed from pride. The bhakti tradition considers sincerity the soul of all worship. Tilak criticizes religious ostentation as socially corrosive, turning sacred institutions into instruments of ego. Vivekananda derides performative religion as the enemy of genuine spirituality, insisting that inner transformation — sincerity, selflessness, and desire for truth — is all that matters. This verse challenges every tradition to examine whether its own practices have substance or merely form.