The first thing is to not to harm ourselves, not to harm others, and not to harm both. The practice of non-harming is kindness: kindness for ourselves, for others, for both, and then moving into the desire for the welfare and benefit of the world. When we shift to this way of looking at the whole, we begin to understand the sacred, shifting into a place of reverence and respect. To wish for the welfare of the whole world! It’s such an honorable path. It’s such an amazingly high estimation of what we might be capable of in this world.
JD Doyle, MA
Residential Retreat Teacher
JD Doyle (they/them) served as Core Teacher at the East Bay Meditation Center, where they co-founded the Alphabet (LGBTQIA+) Saṅgha. They graduated from Spirit Rock Meditation Center’s Retreat Teacher Training in 2020 and teach at saṅghas across the US and in Canada. JD began studying and practicing Buddhism in 1995, at Insight Meditation Society and at Spirit Rock, and continued with extensive retreat practice in Thailand and Burma in the Theravadan lineage. For over twenty-three years, they worked as a public school teacher. JD holds a BS in Environmental Studies from Cornell University, a bilingual multicultural teaching certificate from UC Santa Cruz, and a Masters in Language and Literacy and Sociocultural Studies from the University of New Mexico. They are committed to celebrating the diversity of our human saṅgha, transforming the impacts of racism on our communities, honoring all genders, and living in ways that affirm the sacredness of the Earth.
JD Doyle's Upcoming Programs
Retreat | On-Land
October 21 - October 25, 2026 | Wednesday - Sunday | 4 nights
Taking the Sacred Journey Through Grief to Heal the Heart
Spaces Still Available! Grief is not sequestered to the loss of loved ones—it traverses beyond physical death and seeps into disappointments in relationships, the loss of dreams, ancestral anguish, and unnamed disappearances. Understanding the personal nature of grief and the tenderness of being with a broken heart, we will create a container that honors all individuals who are moving through their sorrow. We will practice silent meditation indoors and in nature and there will be Dharma talks, meetings with teachers, and embodiment practices.
Carol Cano
JD Doyle
Renda Dionne Madrigal
Kimber Simpkins-Nuccio
Ramona Lisa Ortiz-Smith (Teacher in Training)
Retreat | On-Land
May 29 - June 5, 2027 | Saturday - Saturday | 7 nights
Embodied Insight: Mindfulness of the Body as a Pathway Home
Registration Open. This retreat invites you to come home to the body as the ground of Insight practice, meeting sensations and breath moment by moment. Through steady attention, the body reveals itself as a field of change, helping us see clearly into experience. What we discover can loosen habits of identification and bring a sense of freedom. Lovingkindness meditation supports the practice, softening the heart so we meet whatever arises with care, as wisdom and compassion unfold in presence.
Upcoming Drop-Ins
Drop-in | Online
Wednesday, September 30 | 5:30 PM - 7:00 PM
Rainbow Saṅgha
For those who identify as LGBTQIA+.
The Rainbow (LGBTQIA+) Sangha is a weekly gathering for self-identified practitioners within marginalized gender and sexuality groups such as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual, two-spirit, and gender non-conforming.
JD Doyle
Drop-in | Online
Wednesday, October 7 | 5:30 PM - 7:00 PM
Rainbow Saṅgha
For those who identify as LGBTQIA+.
The Rainbow (LGBTQIA+) Sangha is a weekly gathering for self-identified practitioners within marginalized gender and sexuality groups such as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual, two-spirit, and gender non-conforming.
JD Doyle
Dharma Library
Can't join us live online or on the land? Study and practice at your convenience with JD Doyle through our new library of recordings, articles, and self-paced online courses.