I read the books by Carlos Castaneda many years ago and later Miguel Ruiz. Both describe parasitic beings taking over/controlling human minds to feed of negative emotions. We (or rather our emotions) is their sustenance and as long as we buy into the illusions of fear, anger etcetera we keep the parasites alive. I am just including a fraction from Carlos Castanedas book "The active side of infinity".
“We have a predator that came from the depths of the cosmos and took over the rule of our lives. Human beings are its prisoners. The Predator is our lord and master. It has rendered us docile, helpless. If we want to protest, it suppresses our protest. If we want to act independently, it demands that we don't do so... I have been beating around the bush all this time, insinuating to you that something is holding us prisoner. Indeed we are held prisoner! "This was an energetic fact for the sorcerers of ancient Mexico ... They took us over because we are food for them, and they squeeze us mercilessly because we are their sustenance. just as we rear chickens in chicken coops, the predators rear us in human coops, humaneros. Therefore, their food is always available to them."
So, equilibrium, ahimsa, stoicism, meditation, compassion and so on seems to be the way to reject imprisonment and in doing so literally starve them out.