Mental impurities have been summarised by ancient Indian sages as arishadvargas or enemies of the mind --Kama (Lust), Krodha (Anger), Lobha (Greed), Moha (Delusion), Mada (Intoxication), Matsarya (Envy) supported by their variants Dambha (Pride), Darpa (Arrogance), Asuya (Jealousy), Irshya (jealousy), Ahankara (Pride), Raga (Anger) and Dvesha (Envy).
We must abandon them gradually and when bereft of these negative passions, the mind attains mental purity and absolute peace of mind. The impact of these passions of the mind varies widely and deeply but is extremely dangerous in the long run. All these impurities have the demonic strength of robbing the peace and tranquillity of an individual and collectively can destroy the individual, the community and eventually the human race. History has abundant examples of these destructive stories.
The negative impact of these impurities begins with their power to destroy the integrity and character of a human being by destroying his capability of discriminating between good and bad and terminating in annihilating his character and life. They culminate in the individual leading a life of a beast slipping into the debris of sin.
The features of pure thought are easily identifiable. Pure thought, or its synonym pure mind, is free from anything that debases, contaminates, pollutes or encourages harmful or negative thoughts towards oneself or others. Broadly, pure mnd consists of love, affection, trust, impartiality, non-violence, not thinking ill of others in any way, working and wishing for the well being of all human beings and always striving to be reliable and trustworthy.
Both pure and impure thoughts are powerful tools and, therefore, we should always discriminate and entertain pure thoughts so that we reap worthy results. Let us recall the old adage ‘sow a thought, reap an action; sow an action, reap a consequence; sow a consequence, reap a character; sow a character and reap a destiny’.
Fortunately, the militancy of these impurities of the mind can be controlled and mental purity can be cultivated and habituated. Some of the simple ways of controlling and containing the impurities of the mind are--
Trying to be God-like, loving all and hating none and striving to be a spiritual person, always entertaining and nourishing only positive thoughts, taking responsibility for one’s actions, exercising moderation in all thoughts and actions , seeking and staying in the company of righteous people--satsang--and, generally keeping away the Arishadvargas mentioned above.