Delicate Love and Buddhist Values in Relationships : หน้า 10/62

Delicate Love Buddhist traditions serve as wonderful guidelines for a couple's married life. If we are to study Buddhist traditions, we will learn to distinguish which actions are appropriate and inappropriate, as well as how to refrain from carrying out inappropriate actions. This knowledge covers every aspect of a person's life, including how to build relationships that are ethical and conform to The Five Precepts. Our Buddhist ancestors' view of love was nobler than that which we find in modern times. In examining their ways, we learn how they valued their families for joining them in the pursuit of Perfections, and for their roles in being a mother or father to their children. They did not condone promiscuity and sexual intimacy before marriage. If we reaffirm this sound Buddhist tradition and have the strength to prevail over our desires, we will become proud of ourselves, and be praised and honored by all. Our behavior will set moral standards for our family as well as future generations. Children born into our family will be proud of this legacy. Short-Term Pleasure It is normal for couples to engage in sexual intimacy, nevertheless we should not become obsessed with it. Over-indulgence in intimacy could result in having unhealthy emotions such as jealousy, possessiveness, suspicion and fear of betrayal. We should not engage in intimacy with a lack of awareness or self-worth. Short term pleasure sometimes results in long term negative consequences Intimacy should only be shared between a married couple, and not before they are married. Extra-marital affairs will lead to negative Kammic consequences in Samsara, the cycle of existence. Buddhism considers sexual relations between partners as something that is to be dignified, not indulged Adultery is a violation of the fundamental Buddhist code of moral conduct. Love is noble. Love is also the force that allows a man and a woman to pick each other from the crowd of seven billion people, and to become one another's life partner. True companions should encourage each other to perform good deeds and to accumulate merits so they can both reach the goal of Nibbana. PDF created with pdfFactory Pro trial version www.pdffactory.com