Bright & Dark Zen practice group is celebrating the arrival of Spring with a shared meal. Whether you are a regular, a newcomer, or visiting for the first time, we invite you to drop in and share in the abundance of the season.

This past month I have been watching as the bare trees outside my window have grown buds and now untold numbers of leaves have almost completely covered the tree. Just beyond our balcony, a Currawong has also returned to its nest from last year and is carefully keeping a small clutch of eggs warm, even as the last of the August winds buffet the branches. Meanwhile, in the calendar of the Dharawal people, September marks the beginning of the season of Ngoonungi: A time of ceremony marked by the gathering of flying foxes in our vast skies, and the appearance of Waratah.

To mark the changing of seasons is, in a way, to bow to the mystery of the bright and the dark. Time and place and change and our own human lives are all entangled inseparably. The seasons of our lives unfold, and somehow… here we are! Existing, together. Cultivating our attention and trusting in the silence that we hold each Friday night as the flying foxes sail overhead.

In the words of Wumen from the Gateless Gate:

Spring comes with flowers, autumn comes with the moon.
Summer with breeze, winter with snow.
When idle concerns don’t hang in your mind,
That is your best season.

What to bring: Please bring a small plate of food to share. All offerings welcome, including just bringing yourself if for some reason the plate of food doesn’t align for you. For this gathering we will have two rounds of zazen meditation and make some extra time to eat together at the end.

Contact: Warren Summers if you have any questions.