Anger creates a lot of problems in our lives. Before we get into the antidotes, we must spend some time seeing the disadvantages of the afflictions because if we do not see the disadvantages, we have no impetus to apply the antidotes. Then it becomes, “Well, I should get rid of this emotion, but actually I really like it.” It is very good to spend some time thinking about the disadvantages. Think of the disadvantages in terms of creating negative karma and causing lower rebirths; and by reinforcing those different emotions, it just creates more and more obscuration on the mind and it becomes more difficult to generate bodhicitta and more difficult to realise emptiness.

For all the afflictions, you have problems in terms of how they cause negative karma which results in unfortunate rebirth, how they block bodhicitta, and how they block wisdom. They might block it in different ways. How are you going to generate bodhicitta if you have anger? Bodhicitta is based on love and compassion, and anger is the opposite of that. If you are really harbouring a lot of grudges, anger, defensiveness and resentment, bodhicitta is going to be difficult.

Meditating on bodhicitta could be part of your antidote to anger. I am not saying you must get rid of the gross afflictions before you do other meditations, because the other meditations are part of the antidotes. But you can see that it is hard to generate the antidote when the affliction is powerful.

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