<p>The Pitāpūtrasamāgama-sūtra is most likely based on some earlier Abhidharmic writings from one or two centuries after the Buddha’s death. Multiple versions of this sutra have been recovered, perhaps the most famous one from the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mah%C4%81ratnak%C5%AB%E1%B9%ADa_S%C5%ABtra" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Ratnakuta</a> collection. The dating of this collection is uncertain, but the collection is mentioned in the Nikāyasaṅgraha, a Theravadin text. It states the collection was compiled by the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caitika" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Caityaka</a>, which had branched off the Mahāsāṃghika school by the 1st or 2nd century BCE. </p>

<p>Nagarjuna lived somewhere between 150-250 CE, so the text very likely predates him.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-11-07T14:31:25.107Z
Thank you for the answer. Are you suggesting that the text was composed in the immediate period after branching off of Caityaka or earlier?
The crow and the coconut
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2019-11-08T08:53:19.637Z
It's impossible to make that distinction based on the historical evidence. Also, consider the Ratnakuta is just one collection that contained a version of the Pitāpūtrasamāgama (albeit the one we can date most reliably AFAIK)
Codosaur
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2019-11-08T11:02:32.593Z
Is it possible that the Pitāpūtrasamāgama is post-nagarjuna or may be around the same time as him? You may wonder why I am asking this. I am trying to find out where the doctrine of two truths originally came from. Trying to find out where it was first explicitly propounded.
The crow and the coconut
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-11-09T14:34:10.350Z
As I mentioned, historical evidence indicates the Pitāpūtrasamāgama is not post-Nagarjuna or from the same time. It is also _not_ the origin of the doctrine of two thruths, early references to this concept can be found in [early Indian Buddhism](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Two_truths_doctrine#Early_Indian_Buddhism)
Codosaur
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-11-06T22:12:58.040Z
2019-11-06T22:12:58.040Z
Codosaur
<p>Is the pitāpūtrasamāgama-sūtra, a Mahayana sutra or does it occur in the nikayas or somewhere else? What is the historically accepted date of this sutra? Does this sutra precede Nagarjuna or is it a post-Nagarjuna sutra?</p>

<mahayana><sutras><nagarjuna>
Question about the Pitāpūtrasamāgama-sūtra
# Question about the Pitāpūtrasamāgama-sūtra

(Asked by: username_0 on 2019-11-01)

Is the pitāpūtrasamāgama-sūtra, a Mahayana sutra or does it occur in the nikayas or somewhere else? What is the historically accepted date of this sutra? Does this sutra precede Nagarjuna or is it a post-Nagarjuna sutra?

**Tags:** mahayana, sutras, nagarjuna


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## 1 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2019-11-06. Score: 3

The Pitāpūtrasamāgama-sūtra is most likely based on some earlier Abhidharmic writings from one or two centuries after the Buddha’s death. Multiple versions of this sutra have been recovered, perhaps the most famous one from the [Ratnakuta](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mah%C4%81ratnak%C5%AB%E1%B9%ADa_S%C5%ABtra) collection. The dating of this collection is uncertain, but the collection is mentioned in the Nikāyasaṅgraha, a Theravadin text. It states the collection was compiled by the [Caityaka](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caitika), which had branched off the Mahāsāṃghika school by the 1st or 2nd century BCE.

Nagarjuna lived somewhere between 150-250 CE, so the text very likely predates him.

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: Thank you for the answer. Are you suggesting that the text was composed in the immediate period after branching off of Caityaka or earlier?  
> **username_1**: It's impossible to make that distinction based on the historical evidence. Also, consider the Ratnakuta is just one collection that contained a version of the Pitāpūtrasamāgama (albeit the one we can date most reliably AFAIK)  
> **username_0**: Is it possible that the Pitāpūtrasamāgama is post-nagarjuna or may be around the same time as him? You may wonder why I am asking this. I am trying to find out where the doctrine of two truths originally came from. Trying to find out where it was first explicitly propounded.  
> **username_1**: As I mentioned, historical evidence indicates the Pitāpūtrasamāgama is not post-Nagarjuna or from the same time. It is also _not_ the origin of the doctrine of two thruths, early references to this concept can be found in [early Indian Buddhism](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Two_truths_doctrine#Early_Indian_Buddhism)  

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