GCSE Religious Studies: Buddhism – Practices and Ethics

This material covers the practical side of Buddhism as it is studied at GCSE: how Buddhists worship and meditate, how they mark death, the festivals they keep in Britain, and the ethical teachings that guide daily life (for example, the Buddhism practices section of AQA's specification). A companion material covers the Buddha's life and the core beliefs.

It begins with places of worship: temples, shrines, viharas and gompas, the Buddha rupa and its hand gestures, and the meaning of the offerings of flowers, light and incense. You then study puja, including chanting, mantras and malas, and the way Theravada and Mahayana devotion differ.

Meditation is covered in its main forms: samatha for calm and concentration, vipassana for insight, zazen in Zen, and the visualisation of Buddhas and bodhisattvas in Tibetan Buddhism. You learn what each aims at and how they relate to one another.

The section on death and mourning compares three communities, as the specifications do: the Theravada funeral with its chanting and transfer of merit, the Japanese funeral with its new Buddhist name and the gathering of bones, and the Tibetan sky burial and Book of the Dead. The festivals of Wesak and Parinirvana Day, and the value of retreats, complete the picture of Buddhist life in Britain.

The last part is Buddhist ethics: kamma and rebirth, compassion and loving kindness, the Five Moral Precepts as voluntary training principles, and the Six Perfections that a bodhisattva develops.

The material offers a quiz with explanations for every answer, flashcards for the key terms, a printable written sheet of explain-and-evaluate tasks with reference answers, and an oral practice exam in which the examiner asks one question at a time and gives brief feedback at the end.

Buddhist practice is described accurately and neutrally, with the variety between traditions made clear. Use the material to learn what Buddhists do and why, and to practise explaining practices and weighing statements about them.

  • Describe Buddhist places of worship, the Buddha rupa and the meaning of offerings
  • Explain puja and its differences in Theravada and Mahayana Buddhism
  • Compare samatha, vipassana, zazen and visualisation meditation
  • Compare funeral customs in Theravada, Japanese and Tibetan Buddhism
  • Explain the origins and significance of Wesak and Parinirvana Day
  • Explain kamma, karuna, metta, the Five Precepts and the Six Perfections

Practice material written by Zestly, based on the DfE GCSE religious studies subject content for Buddhism and, for example, AQA GCSE Religious Studies A (8062), Buddhism: practices (worship and festivals; Buddhist ethics).

Sample question

Which of the following is part of many Japanese Buddhist funerals?

See the answer

The dead person is given a new Buddhist name, the body is cremated and relatives lift the bones from the ashes with chopsticks.

In Japan a priest usually gives the dead person a posthumous Buddhist name, the body is cremated, and relatives pass the bones into an urn using chopsticks; memorial services follow, and the dead are remembered at the Obon festival. Offering the body to vultures is the Tibetan sky burial.

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