September Reflection: Living Without Extremes – The Middle Way

2025.09.01.

Living Without Extremes – The Middle Way

By Daikō Iizuka, Head Priest

Hello everyone, this is Daikō Iizuka, head priest of Ichibata Yakushi.
We are now in September. Though the summer heat still remains, the cool breath of autumn can already be felt in the mornings and evenings.

https://www.thebuddhistsociety.org/page/buddhist-society-summer-school-2025

At the moment, I am in England, taking part in the Summer School of the Buddhist Society in London. This program has more than one hundred years of history, bringing together monks, teachers, and practitioners from Japan, East Asia, and Tibet, as well as many friends from the West who wish to study and practice the Dharma. I first joined this Summer School forty years ago with my teacher, the late Zen Master Sōkō Morinaga. For the past three years, I have been invited to give Dharma talks. This year, about sixty people are participating—half with many years of experience in zazen and Buddhist study, and half new beginners. It is a precious opportunity, and I do my best to speak with clarity and sincerity.

At Ichibata Yakushi, our Wind Chime Festival, which began on the summer solstice in June, will come to a close at the autumn equinox later this month. Many visitors have been guided here by the gentle sound of the chimes. The autumn equinox is the moment when day and night are equal in length. In Japan, people say, “Heat and cold last only until the equinox.” This points to the teaching of the Middle Way—living without leaning to one side or the other.

The intense heat of summer passes away, and new seasons come. In the same way, our lives are always changing, moving on like the flow of time. Remembering this, let us live each day with balance, gratitude, and a peaceful heart.