Overview
While the four Iddhipādās (Bases of Spiritual Power) are cultivated by all advanced meditators, a Fully Awakened Buddha develops these four mental engines to an absolute cosmic maximum. The complete, flawless optimization of these four forces grants the Tathāgata unmatched control over life-vitality and physical matter, allowing him to suppress physical aging at will.
The List
- Chanda-iddhipāda: The base of power driven by his limitless, pure aspiration for the liberation and protection of all beings.
- Viriya-iddhipāda: The base of power driven by his unyielding, flawless energy that never wavers or experiences fatigue across his entire career.
- Citta-iddhipāda: The base of power driven by his incredibly pure, unconditioned, radiant mind-stream.
- Vīmaṃsā-iddhipāda: The base of power driven by his absolute, omniscient analytical investigation into the conditional physics of the cosmos.
Textual References
- Canonical: Mahāparinibbāna Sutta (DN 16) – The Buddha explicitly tells Venerable Ānanda three times that because a Tathāgata has developed and perfected these four bases of power, he could, if requested, live onward for an entire cosmic eon (kappa) or the remainder of one.