Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 43-minute teaching, Ven Jampa Ignyen unpacks the four opponent powers, the essential Lamrim framework for purifying accumulated negative karma. He explains each power in sequence: taking refuge in the Three Gems as the basis, generating genuine regret for past actions by identifying their faults, committing firmly not to repeat them, and practicing antidotes through mantra, meditation on emptiness, offerings, and virtuous action. He covers six primary antidote practices and Vajrasattva meditation specifically. The closing section turns practical: concrete strategies like committing not to commit a specific fault for five minutes, then gradually extending the period, and how ordinary challenges—anger, impatience, early mornings—become purification practice with right intention. For serious practitioners working to transform entrenched habits.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 07 2001 08 11 LR.mp3
UUID: ed05ad23-fcb4-44ce-8af8-81da7ca986c3
Teacher: Ven Jampa Ignyen
Collection: y Lam Rim 2001 Month 07-09 (Ven Jampa Ignyen)
Date: 2001-08-11
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 43.6 minutes
Words: ~4,096
Powers. Now the four opponent powers, of course, are very are very important practice. And in Lamrim, for instance, they’re explained in the confession section of the seven limbs. We have the seven-limb prayer in our book there, I think. So it’s the confession limb.
Is that clear from just reading the prayer, which is the confession? Prostrations, offering, confession, and so on. I guess the third line, is it? I confess. Right.
That in the seven limbs, that is the third limb. So in the Lamrim teachings, the teachings on the four opponent powers are initially given there, which is easy to understand because the four opponent powers are really directed towards purifying our store of negative karma. This, of course, we have an abundant store of negative karma, negative seeds in the present. And the practice, for instance, of Vajrasattva is especially effective in purifying our negative seeds. But in order to make that practice effective, we really do need to know what the four opponent powers are because doing the practice of reciting the mantra, the hundred syllable mantra, for instance, is the fourth of the the four limbs.
But we do need to know what comes before then in order to make the fourth limb effective because there are, like, causes and conditions coming together. Does everyone know the four limbs? The four, no, the four, sorry, strengths or the four powers? Yep. What’s what’s the first one?
Okay. So the first strength well, the first power the first part of power, we can say is the power of the basis or the power of support. Right. Anyone know the second one? Yes.
Yes. And the third one? Remit the antidote. Yeah. Yes.
In brief, that’s what they are. In fact, we start we could even write them down if if for those who have a pen and pen and paper. In Tibetan, the first one is called ten gi tob, which means the power of the basis or the the strength of support of the support. And the second one is the power of repudiation. In Tibetan, which also refers to regret.
And the third one is the power of not committing that action again, of the determination not to commit the action again. In Tibetan, it’s The strength of stopping the recurrence of that fault. And then the fourth one is the strength of always practicing the antidote, or the power of always practicing the antidote. So really these four, as much as possible, we should keep in mind. First one is the power of the basis, then the power of repudiation, the power of not committing that fault again of the committing that fault again, of the commitment for us not to commit that fault again.
And the fourth is the power of the antidote or the power of always practicing the antidote. So in brief, we’ve got the basis repudiation. Repudiation is this term for in Tibetan, which means like to criticize or to find fault in something, to locate the fault, repudiate. The third one is not committing again. And the fourth one, the power of the antidote.
Right. Now, the first one first one of the four is really dealing with taking refuge. The power of the basis here is really just simply put, it’s taking refuge, taking refuge in the three gems. Then it’s also an understanding that the actions that we commit are done in relation to Buddhas and sentient beings, and sentient beings themselves have the capacity to become Buddhas. They have Buddha potential.
Therefore committing an action, a negative action towards any being goes against the whole concept of taking refuge. Taking refuge initially helps us to align our practice. And in taking refuge, what are we taking refuge from? Really, we’re taking refuge from our past accumulation of negative actions that exist really in the center of our heart at present. All the accumulated non virtue from beginningless time is at present abiding in our heart.
And when the conditions arise, those negative seeds will manifest. So this is why we take refuge, where at any moment negative past seeds can be awakened and we would experience unhappiness, mental pain, physical pain, dissatisfaction, discontent, annoyance, impatience, whatever. All of these experiences are really coming from the black karmic seeds that abide within our heart at present, within the center of our mental continuum. So in taking refuge, we’re really taking refuge from them, all these negative black karmic seeds. And we take refuge having understood our situation and that we do experience unhappiness in the present, and we have all of these karmic seeds that can awaken at any point and create future suffering for us, we need to take refuge from this state.
The state is unsatisfactory. What is the refuge from these negative black karmic seeds? The refuge is that which has gone beyond the reach of all negative actions that lies, that stands outside the whole contaminated process of generating or creating non virtue. And so who is outside of the process of creating non virtue? It’s someone who’s fully beyond the reach of our negative actions, we take refuge refuge in, the Buddha and the Dharma and the Sangha.
So taking refuge there is the first, opponent power. In general, we realize we’ve accumulated lots of negative actions, and really we wanna get beyond the result of those. So to do that, we do take refuge. And then the second is the power of repudiation. And so here, the second one is generating regret for those past negative actions.
We take refuge realizing that we do need to get beyond the results of our negative actions. And the second opponent power is repudiating those negative actions. It’s examining these actions that we’ve committed in the past and commit in the present and seeing that they’re faulty, identifying them as being a fault. And in seeing that they are faulty, that there is error, they’re flawed actions, then one develops regret. When we see that there are flawed actions, then the regret follows sort of automatically.
But unless we see they’re at fault, then the regret there is no regret that arises. So we need to think, are they flawed? Are those actions, those negative actions of body, speech, mind, the ten negative actions, are they at fault? Then we apply regret, strong regret to those negative actions. And understanding that they’re gonna produce a negative result for us, they’re bad for us, they’re bad for other beings, then we generate a strong regret.
And that’s the power of repudiation. We’re repudiating those actions. We’re saying those actions are at fault. Then the third one is the power of not of determining, making the determination that we’re not gonna commit that action again in future. So that follows from the regret.
Once one has generated the regret, and one’s gotta generate the regret focused on the action to act as an opponent to it, then one strongly generates the thought, I’m not gonna commit that action again. We understand that it’s faulty. We don’t want the result of it. So then to undermine it, then we make the very strong determination. I’m not gonna commit that action again.
So that determination is the third opponent power. Then the fourth opponent power is, the power of always practicing the antidote. So then having taken refuge from the accumulation of our past negative black karmic seeds, and determining the actions which produce them to be a fault, and determining I’m not going to commit those actions, again in future, then we engage in a practice of the antidote, which is engaging in a practice of virtue in order to complete the process of the purification. So and this is what Vajrasattva is. Vajrasattva is one of the main practices by which we can actually purify, begin to purify, past accumulation of negative actions.
Now, also in another text, I was thinking this this might also be useful. It joins up the four opponent powers with what are called the four abandoners. And in general, the teachings of the Buddha are can be condensed into the thirty-seven dharmas, which include the four mindfulnesses, the four bases of miraculous power, the four correct abandoners, the five powers, the five strengths, the, what, the the seven factors of enlightenment and the and the eightfold. No. The seven requisites of enlightenment and the Noble Eightfold Path.
Anyway, they added up. They make thirty seven. But in the center there, have the four correct abandoners. And the four correct abandoners really, again summarize the process of applying the four opponent powers. So what the four correct abandoners are, anyway, we might just go through them.
It may be useful. And the first one is abandoning the first correct abandoner. The first correct abandoner is abandoning already generated non virtue. So already we’ve generated a vast amount of non virtue, which resides within our mental continuum. So we need a process by which we can abandon or eliminate the already generated non virtue.
And what does abandon already generated non virtue is the first two opponent powers. So the opponent power of the basis or the support, which is taking refuge, And the power of repudiation, those two abandon already generated non virtue. So the function of the first two powers there is to abandon already generated non virtue. The second correct abandoner is not producing ungenerated non virtue. What that means is we don’t in future want to generate new instances of nonvirtue.
We already have already produced nonvirtue. Results of produced non virtue within our mental continuum as karmic seeds. So in future, we don’t wanna also engage in that process. We don’t wanna produce as yet un generated non virtue. And so here, in order to do that, we apply the third opponent power, which is the power of not committing fault in the future or the power of never again committing that fault.
Anyway, this is quite straightforward. It’s not but still, it helps if we can think through these categories. Because as much information as we can bring to on this process, the better it is for us. Because at present, we really basically, we need to be able to identify what is virtue and what is non virtue. Any of the virtue, we need to strengthen.
Strengthen. Anything that’s non virtue we need to weaken. So much of our work at present is just identifying what is what and strengthening what is positive, accentuating the positive, refraining from the negative. Right. So then the third correct abandonment is what’s called, producing ungenerated virtue.
And the fourth correct abandonment is enhancing already generated virtue. So these two are established by the fourth opponent power, which is always practicing the antidote. So always practicing the antidote, in other words, is generating new virtue and enhancing already generated virtue. The first two opponent powers are just dealing with abandoning past accumulations of non virtue. So in a way, it’s one can see the two opponent powers are dedicated just to abandoning already generated non virtue.
So the importance of doing that is clear from that. So this practice of the four opponent powers is really a practice engaged in, firstly, abandoning already generated nonvirtue and not generating nonvirtue in future. And then on the other hand, it’s generating new virtue and strengthening already generated virtue. So that’s why we are engaged in the four opponent powers. In a way, the most important things there because are, say, the second and the third, repudiation and the determination not to commit the action again.
Because they’re really functioning to undermine our collection of non virtue. Repudiation there meaning generating regret for past accumulations of non virtue. So when we’re regenerating regret, of course, we’re thinking about the past. And we’re thinking about this vast amount of past negative actions that we will suffer the consequences of at some point in the future. Of course, we don’t want those results.
If we want the results, no problem. They’ll come. They’re here already, in fact. But if we we really have to clearly decide whether we want those results in future. And how we begin to undermine them is generating regret for them.
And we do that by repudiating those actions, by finding fault, understanding the fault of those actions. If we don’t see the fault in them, we don’t regret them. Seeing the fault in them is not so easy. Because often we think of our negative actions as being of benefit to us. When we get angry and say things to other people and so on, we often think this is benefiting us and so on.
So it’s not easy to see the fault in those actions. But in order to establish establish the second well, second opponent power is repudiating, finding the fault in those faulty actions, understanding them to be faulty. And then the commitment not to commit those actions again is also very, very important. So they should, as much as possible, be present in any purification practice that we undertake. Past accumulation of non non virtue is there.
That has to be undermined through the power of repudiation. And then not to do that commit those actions in future, the third opponent power then prevents the accumulation of future non virtue. So in brief, we should keep in mind what the four opponent powers are. That is of the basis, taking refuge, then repudiation of negative action, then commitment not to commit that action again. And then the fourth one is always practicing the antidote.
So at present, we’re practicing the antidote in reliance on establishing the first three, because the fourth one, of course, is supported by the first three. And if the first three are not there, the fourth one is, you know, it’s a little bit of benefit, but not much benefit. If the first three are there, it almost doesn’t matter what you do in the fourth one. If one has takes strong refuge, which is really refuge from our accumulation of negative actions, and then strong regret for all of those negative actions, and then the strong determination not to commit those actions again in future, then whatever one does will tend potentially will tend to be the fourth, the practice of purification, because those three are already established. However, specifically there are said to be six types of antidote that can be applied, having established the first three.
So those six are, for instance, reciting the names of the Buddha. Like in the thirty five confessional Buddhas, one recites, say, thirty five names. And doing that is going to is recommended as a means of purifying those past negative actions. And then reciting mantras, such as the hundred syllable mantra or Om Mani Padme Hum and so on. And then reciting sutras, like in Sera, often the Heart Sūtra would be recited.
So that also can be done as the fourth opponent power. And then Oh, yes. The fourth one, meditating on emptiness, which, for instance, is also part of the Heart Sūtra, meditating on emptiness. And then in general making offerings, like water bowl offerings, light offerings, offerings of flowers, incense, all the seven, eight standard types of offering, offering food, imagined offerings, actually offering offering substances, and so on. Offering anything that one has, offering one’s body, speech, mind.
All of these things are included within making offerings. And then the sixth one, as Pabongka Rinpoche mentions, is any actions done in relation to images. So then, for instance, cleaning an image or painting, gilding an image, or sweeping the dust off an image, and so on. Cleaning something, cleaning the temple, and so on. So there’s these six basic types of purification that are listed as the fourth opponent power.
So at present with the Heruka Vajrasattva purification, then it’s primarily the recitation of the hundred syllable mantra. And then to do that, say, twenty one times or one hundred times or as many times as one has as one can as one has time for and so on. But then any action in general that is done in order to overcome our past accumulation of non virtue is a purification practice, sort of like tonglen, enduring some difficulty for the purpose of Dharma, and so on. All of these are purification practices. Coming to the center and doing Vajrasattva practice today, that is you know, that means putting you know, one has got to put into doing that.
That’s also a part of purification because one is doing it basically to overcome this past accumulation of non virtue. And, of course, this can be practiced at any time. We can always apply in fact, we always should apply the four opponent powers day and night whenever we think of it. So, anyway, this is a very brief, very rough outline to the four opponent powers. But as much as possible, we should keep them in mind what the four are.
The power of the basis, repudiation. Power of the basis is taking refuge. Power of repudiation is generating regret. The power of making a strong determination not to commit the action again. And then the power of practicing an antidote, always practicing an antidote, such as the hundred syllable mantra.
And if we have those four in mind, then we have the basic structure of how we deal with our unruly mind. Whenever a non virtuous thought comes up or regret or just thinking about what we’ve done in the past, then we can apply, ah, yes. That’s good regret. If I’m regretting negative past actions, very positive. That’s the second opponent power.
I should conjoin that with, refuge. And then the third opponent power, I won’t commit that action again in future. In fact, if we can just do those two actions, you know, regret negative action, The simpler we can keep it, the better. Just keep in mind, keeping in mind that we should regret our past accumulation of negative actions, and then never commit them again. Have the determination not to commit them again, even though we suspect we may commit them again because of our strong habits.
Make the strong determination because this gradually weakens the strength of our negative tendencies. And then we can join it with the fourth opponent power, That’s a fourth opponent power. So then we can rejoice, dedicate the merit. But this is recommended. This particular process is an authentic means of purification, and it does lead to purification.
It just means we have to apply it. But, also, we should keep it very simple. And when we think about it, we can easily practice the four together. Taking refuge, regret negative actions, not commit them again. What action can I do then to a time?
Or do a Om Mani Padme Hum. Anyway, that’s a very rough outline. I was wondering if there are any maybe any issues that come up in regards to that. Oh, practicing if we practice patience in relation to their anger, yeah, that’s an the antidote to anger. Yeah.
And it can be the fourth opponent power. Definitely. If it’s if it’s achieving that, those basically, those two things, not generating non virtue and generating virtue, then yeah. In general, it’s included in the four opponent powers because that’s what the four opponent powers are doing is simply stopping non virtue, generating virtue. Oh, now those are the six general categories.
Yeah. Those six are the six general categories for practicing the fourth opponent power, like reciting the names of the Buddha, reciting mantras, and then reciting sutras, meditating on emptiness, making offerings. In a way, doing something like that is like making an offering. It’s offering, what, patience to another person, another person who has the potential to become a Buddha. Yeah.
I think here, there’s six general categories of practicing the antidote, the fourth opponent power, but there are other positive actions that may not fit strictly into one category or another. But in general, they do. The actions. Like, the reciting the hundred syllable mantra is, of course, the second one reciting mantras. But practicing patience also definitely can be a patience in the midst of austerity or in the midst of adversity, be the fourth opponent power.
When it’s difficult, but we’re doing it in order to purify and not generate new nonvirtue, then it’s really the fourth opponent power. Here, we do need to think about what the purpose of the four powers are. And it can that type of practice can become the fourth opponent power. It seems anyway. I don’t see any reason why it shouldn’t.
As Pabongka Rinpoche says in the text in Lamrim that even in the monasteries when monks or nuns would undergo difficult conditions in order to practice, then take just bearing those difficult conditions can be, you know, like, a purification practice. It can be the fourth opponent power. Just persevering when situation is not so good. It’s raining or it’s cold or it’s windy and it’s too early in the morning. Yes.
So persevering in a difficult situation definitely can be an important thing. And in fact, it’s possible for us to bring this practice practice into just about everything we do. Because always we want to minimize our non virtue and generate new virtue and increase already established virtue. So this yeah. This if we are mindful of this, then there’s opportunities always arise to do that.
Okay. I think. Any more anything more with in terms of the four opponent powers? But no. I think they’re quite straightforward.
But, anyway, we can see how that goes. Yeah. Yeah. Oh, if we’re particularly prone to doing something, and it’s a fault, it’s something that we really have to overcome, then if we see that we’re liable to do this again in five minutes time, then we can when we when establish the third opponent power, we can put a time limit. I will not for the next five minutes commit this type of action or the next ten minutes.
And then if we last five minutes, then we can do it again and then do it again. It’s really just to begin to lengthen the period in which we can avoid committing that negative action. Yeah. I can do it with, like, instance, anger. I shouldn’t be impatient with anything.
We might have to put it one minute. So I’ve never but even then, that’s okay. Just one minute. I’m not gonna get annoyed or impatient. And, you know, just for one minute, hold that.
And then one can okay. After a minute, extend it to two minutes. And so on. It’s just that if we’re, you know, as we are, we’re prone to committing negative actions, actions, thinking negative thoughts and so on. We can choose a very short period to begin with and then put a lot of effort into not committing that type of action for that period.
And if we’re successful, then another period of five minutes, and then another period of five minutes. This sounds a bit tedious, I guess, in one way. God, I’m sit there every five minutes. I gotta check and see. But, of course, the purpose for doing this is that we need to undermine our negative habits.
Because even in the present, it’s these negative negative states that we generate that are making us unhappy, that are undermining our happiness. And always we wanna be happy, but yet we continually undermining it by our negative actions. And although, you know, we have the strong we see the fault of those negative actions. We really see the faults of them. And even then we grit our teeth and say, I’m not gonna commit this sort of action.
Not gonna think that again. Still within five minutes where we completely forgotten that we’re thinking it again and, oh, okay. So if we make that sort of a time scale, then we can then that’s useful. That’s a way in which we can start to undermine the habits that we have. And by doing it, that’s a good habit to have.
So, yeah, even five minutes, even shorter. Thirty seconds. Okay. We might just finish there.