‘Aditthana’/determination is mentioned as a ‘Parami’(perfection) in some books categorized as later canonical works by many international scholars. Are there any suttas or sutta passages on this topic?
Is it ‘Citta’ in the four 'Iddhipada’s?
In MN140 and DN33 the term is used in the sense of foundation. More specifically, the Buddha tells us of four foundations:
‘This person has four foundations.’
That’s what I said, but why did I say it?
The foundations of wisdom, truth, generosity, and peace.
‘This person has four foundations.’
That’s what I said, and this is why I said it.‘Caturādhiṭṭhāno ayaṃ, bhikkhu, puriso’ti—iti kho panetaṃ vuttaṃ.
Kiñcetaṃ paṭicca vuttaṃ?
Paññādhiṭṭhāno, saccādhiṭṭhāno, cāgādhiṭṭhāno, upasamādhiṭṭhāno.
‘Caturādhiṭṭhāno ayaṃ, bhikkhu, puriso’ti—iti yaṃ taṃ vuttaṃ idametaṃ paṭicca vuttaṃ.
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The suttas have nothing that corresponds to adiṭṭhāna in the sense of “resolve, determination (to attain Buddhahood in the future”.
The most general sense in the suttas is probably “commitment”. As such it may be positive or negative, depending on what you’re committed to! There’s a range of “worldly” examples at AN 6.52.
In the case quoted by @Gabriel_L, I think the basic sense is also “commitment”, these are the things one is committed to. However, the source text—MN 140—introduces the topic with a beautiful poetic passage, where the image of a “foundation” works better.
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I’m just curious where the idea of aditthana was introduced.
I think we find it first in the late canonical texts such as the Buddhavamsa. There’s a tolerably accurate summary on Wikipedia:
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Would these be viewed as not the Buddha’s teachings because they are late?
The tradition takes them as the teachings of the Buddha, but they are obviously late texts. If it were a matter of simply something that was missing from the early texts, there might be a case for arguing that they are authentic. However, they don’t just add to the early texts, they contradict them. The Buddha, for example, pointed to the practices he did in past lives, such as metta, one of the paramis, and said that did not lead to awakening. From a historical perspective, the Buddha began his path to awakening when he left home in this life.
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Bhante, If someone said, the paramis such as metta or adhitthana, set the background for beginning of his path to awakening, then ?