levo

Buddhism: Relationships and Families

Buddhist attitudes to marriage and its cultural forms

  • 3 things to know
  • Component Group 2

Overview

Marriage's religious status, the duties of husband and wife, fidelity, the role of monks at a wedding, Sri Lankan, Thai and Western weddings, and what Queen Mallika taught King Pasenadi.

What you need to know

Answer each one before you reveal it.

Your recallNot started
Key term

What is marriage for Buddhists, and what is it for?

Key term

How do Buddhists view the religious status of marriage?

Key term

What are the purposes of marriage for Buddhists?

Questions from this subtopic

Each one with the model answer underneath.

  1. 1

    How do Buddhists view the religious status of marriage?

    Model answer

    Buddhism treats marriage as a social contract, not a sacrament or religious duty. The Buddha gave guidance on married life but set no marriage rite.

  2. 2

    What are the purposes of marriage for Buddhists?

    Model answer

    Marriage offers companionship, mutual support and a stable home for children. A good marriage helps both partners live by the precepts.

  3. 3

    How does the Sigalovada Sutta describe the duties of husband and wife?

    Model answer

    A husband should respect his wife, be faithful, share authority in the home and provide for her. A wife should manage the home well, be faithful and guard the family's wealth.

  4. 4

    What is fidelity and why does it matter to Buddhists?

    Model answer

    Fidelity is faithfulness to one's partner. Buddhists see unfaithfulness as sexual misconduct that causes deep harm and breaks trust.

  5. 5

    What role do monks play at a Buddhist wedding?

    Model answer

    Monks traditionally do not conduct weddings, because marriage is a lay matter. Couples often invite monks to chant blessings before or after the ceremony.

  6. 6

    How does culture shape Buddhist weddings in Sri Lanka?

    Model answer

    Sinhalese couples stand on a decorated wedding platform called a poruwa. An elder ties their little fingers with thread and pours water over them.

Other ways to work this

The same content, four other ways.

What is inside Levo

Six ways to work the same material.

1Closed book
2Open book
3Closed book

The 3-step method, run for you

Answer cold, learn it, then prove it stuck. Levo tracks the jump between your first attempt and your last.

Christianity: Beliefs and Teachings
Christianity: Practices
Islam: Beliefs and Teachings
Islam: Practices

Cram a whole paper in one sitting

Sort every topic into what you know and what you do not, then drill only the weak ones.

Omniscient means .
all-knowingall-powerfulall-loving

Blank Blitz makes facts automatic

Rapid timed gap-fills on the terms and numbers you need to recall without thinking.

AThe mind comes before all mental states and shapes them.
BPain follows an impure mind as a cart-wheel follows the ox.
CHappiness follows a pure mind like a shadow.

Build It gets the exam shape right

Assemble a full-mark answer from its marking points, in the order an examiner wants them.

Shalom means peace, wholeness and wellbeing.
TrueFalse

Test It catches misconceptions

Spot the fault in a statement. The traps are the mistakes students actually make.

721941163128510

Brain Breaks between sessions

Short focus games to reset attention, so the next set lands better than the last.

Every question in Buddhism: Relationships and Families, on a schedule.

Attempt a question from memory, write the correct version, then attempt it again. Levo records the jump between your first attempt and your last, and brings each question back on the day you are due to forget it.

Or £46 a year, about £3.83 a month. Cancel anytime.