Question: What are some of the worst impurities?¹⁹⁸

Sri Chinmoy: The worst impurity is a negative thought. When you are impure, you think, “I cannot do the right thing. I cannot think of God or meditate on God. I cannot see the light or the truth.” Self-doubt, insincerity and the feeling of unworthiness are all negative ways of thinking. All these negative qualities are self-imposed.

We always have to see the light in a positive way. If I say, “I do not have any light at all. All I have is darkness,” then I am not only fooling myself but also digging my own grave. If I feel that I am all darkness, I will not even try to go towards the light. If I constantly think, “I am impure, I am insincere,” then I really become impure and insincere. Even if I say that I have light or purity only in infinitesimal measure, at least there is some hope of increasing it. So it is always better to take the positive approach.

When somebody says, “I am impure,” very often in the back of his mind he feels that he is at least one iota better than his neighbour or friend or somebody else. He tries to make others think he is sincere by exercising his false modesty. But all that he is doing is demonstrating his insincerity. Again, if an ordinary human being says that he has abundant purity and boundless light, then he, too, is being insincere.

Whatever we see and feel inside ourselves we try to exhibit outwardly. If I have impure thoughts, I will also have impure acts. If I am inwardly insincere, then I will take refuge outwardly in the house of insincerity. But if I am sincere and pure inside, then outwardly I will take shelter in the house of purity and sincerity.