New Years Eve

This New Year's Eve meditation at the Auckland Zen Centre in Onehunga, New Zealand, is an evening of zazen and ceremony for seeing out the old year and welcoming the new. It suits Zen students and anyone who wants to mark the turn of the year through sitting practice and shared ritual rather than a loud celebration.

What to Expect

The evening begins at 8:00 PM with zazen, seated Zen meditation. A release and renewal ceremony follows, designed to help participants let go of painful habits and start the new year on a positive note.

At midnight the group holds a Jukai ceremony, renewing vows for the coming year. The gathering runs until about 12:30 AM and ends with a shared meal.

Jukai is the Mahayana Taking-the-Precepts ceremony, in which students receive the Sixteen Precepts and commit to putting them into practice to the best of their ability. Before receiving the precepts, the group recites a repentance gatha (verse) as a means of purification. The precepts are the Three Refuges, the Three General Resolutions and the Ten Cardinal Precepts.

Before You Go

Bring a small dish of festive vegetarian food to share at the end of the night. For more details, see the Centre's email updates or contact the Centre directly.