How can we transform our understanding of the world and decenter ourselves? How do we create an integral spirituality—one that includes the transcendent? Because there's beauty beyond the limits of what we can know, beyond being with what's typical, beyond the constraints of predetermined ways of knowing.
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
February 3 - March 28, 2026 | Tuesday - Saturday | 53 nights
2026 Insight Meditation 2-Month Retreat - Application
Application Open. Spaces Still Available! An extended period of retreat offers the rare opportunity for sustained, dedicated practice. This retreat emphasizes quieting the mind, opening the heart, and developing profound clarity and depth of Insight practice. Instruction will follow the traditional four foundations of mindfulness combined with training in lovingkindness and compassion, and practice will be structured around a daily schedule of silent sitting, walking, Dharma talks, and practice meetings with teachers.
Dawn Scott
Tuere Sala
James Baraz
JD Doyle
Vance Pryor
Brian Lesage
Tara Mulay
Tempel Smith
Kristina Baré
Anushka Fernandopulle
Greg Scharf
Rasika Link
Retreat | On-Land
February 3 - March 2, 2026 | Tuesday - Monday | 27 nights
2026 February Insight Meditation 1-Month Retreat - Application
Application Open. Spaces Still Available! An extended period of retreat offers the rare opportunity for sustained, dedicated practice. This retreat emphasizes quieting the mind, opening the heart, and developing profound clarity and depth of Insight practice. Instruction will follow the traditional four foundations of mindfulness combined with training in lovingkindness and compassion, and practice will be structured around a daily schedule of silent sitting, walking, Dharma talks, and practice meetings with teachers.
Retreat | On-Land
June 22 - June 26, 2026 | Monday - Friday | 4 nights
Awaken the Elements: Connect with Joy
Spaces Still Available! Explore the timeless wisdom of the Four Elements—Earth, Water, Fire, and Air—in a serene natural environment. Through cultivating mindfulness and connecting with the elements, we will experience the joy of our interconnectedness with the natural world. This retreat will offer silent meditations, opportunities for movement meditation, heart practices, Dharma talks, and restful time to be in nature and honor the natural rhythms of your own practice.
Upcoming Drop-Ins
Drop-in | Online
Wednesday, December 17 | 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.