Ram: A spiritually undeveloped person works for worldly results, but a seeker of freedom works for a pure mind because a pure mind is necessary for self-inquiry and self-inquiry is the means for self-knowledge. An individual can gain a pure mind irrespective of the type of results he or she reaps. Both good and bad karma facilitate purity if the seeker has the right understanding. Unless the mind is peaceful and discriminating, the knowledge that is tantamount to freedom, “I am limitless, non-dual, actionless awareness,” will not take place nor will it be assimilated and retained even if it does take place.

Pure means partless. Nothing in existence can be completely purified. The three bodies, for example, are made of parts. The unconscious (causal body) is a storehouse of many helpful and unhelpful tendencies which may be dormant or active. Because the causal body is an aggregate of tendencies, the conscious mind (subtle body) is also an aggregate of subjective experiences. The physical body is comprised of many parts and processes. Purification of the physical body is certainly helpful, insofar as the sensations it produces impact on the mind and emotions (subtle body), but physical purification has no effect on the tendencies that produce psychological fixations. When self-inquiry encourages purification, it does not mean that the mind should be completely free of its tendencies (vasanas). Only that those tendencies that prevent the seeker from discriminating his or her true nature from the mind need to be purified.