I have provided a link to a great article by Pema Chodron. It deals with a buddhist concept called "shenpa" which is a Tibetan word that describes that urge within us that hooks us (attaches us) and causes us to react in ways that we don't want to react. It is worth the time to read it.

How We Get Hooked and How We Get Unhooked

My initial reaction to this concept is that it resembles the Christian idea of recognizing sin or "sinful attitude" and confessing it. She even mentions another term called shenlok which means to turn that shenpa upside down. That sounds like the Christian concept of repentance which means to turn around and go the other way. The one thing that excited me about the Buddhist understanding of shenpa is that it focuses our attention on the part of us that gets hooked NOT so much on the actual result of being hooked. In Christianity we often focus on the results (sin or bad behavior) rather than focusing on the internal drive that hooked us in the first place. We often end up trying to solve the symptom rather than the root cause. Somehow it feels like this teaching about shenpa and shenlok is a better long term solution that doesn't leave us hooked in a cycle of sin, guilt, confession, sin, guilt, confession, etc. Also, as a modern person living in a post-enlightenment culture, it makes more sense to address the psychological issues that are underneath my own problems rather than using the excuse “the devil made me do it” and focusing on a supernatural solution or placing our hope in a solution in a supernatural after-life.